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doncb wrote: Got pulled out of line because of a small jar of change. Was told I needed to leave my change at home.

One of my pet peeves with TSA.

Good officer response: "You didn't do anything wrong, it's just we can't see through this much change so we have to check your bag. In the future if you leave your change at home or carry it in a separate bag it will get you through faster."

Bad officer response: "You need to leave this at home" **Usually said with a scowl and condescending attitude.

Having worked for TSA for many years in the past, the worst thing you could do is return to TSA to reveal your mistake.

Putting it in your vehicle was a good call given you had the time. If not, continue to your destination and either dispose of it there or check it for your return flight.

I would also advise against disposing of it in the secured area of the airport for several reasons. If it's truly a dangerous item (most prohibited items aren't all that dangerous), it's best not to have it in the secured are, but mainly is because IF you were found out (by video evidence or other methods), it's very possible it could be interpreted as some sort of terrorist plot to plant something and open a huge can of worms. Definitely something I wouldn't want to risk.

As for how it got through.... Yeah, let's just say the majority of officers are solid and wouldn't do that and the oft-quoted 95% failure rate isn't the whole story, but there are some VERY bad and VERY inattentive officers out there.