A Georgia woman is suing the federal government after she says Transportation Security Administration agents forced her to walk through an airport screening machine that allegedly destroyed a medical device implanted in her spine.
Kerri Thomas filed a civil complaint on Feb. 18 accusing TSA employees of ignoring her repeated requests for a manual pat-down at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
According to the lawsuit, the incident happened early in the morning on May 21, 2024, when Thomas arrived at the airport’s North Security checkpoint around 5 a.m.
Thomas says she immediately informed TSA agents that she had a spinal cord stimulator implanted in her body — a medical device used to treat chronic pain by sending electrical impulses to the spinal cord.
The complaint says she also showed TSA workers a medical identification card confirming the implant.
Despite this, Thomas alleges that agents refused her request to avoid the screening machine.
According to the lawsuit, she repeatedly asked to be taken to a private room for a pat-down instead of walking through the metal detector.
But the complaint claims one TSA employee responded bluntly.
“The only way you are getting on the plane is to go through the machine,” the agent allegedly told her.
A spinal cord stimulator is a small device similar to a pacemaker that includes a battery and thin wires placed near the spinal cord. Patients can control the device to help manage chronic pain.
Medical guidance from Johns Hopkins Medicine notes that airport security scanners can detect these implants. However, patients with stimulators are typically issued identification cards so they can request alternative screening methods.
According to the lawsuit, Thomas tried one more time to warn airport staff before entering the machine.
She says she attempted to explain her condition to another TSA employee, who allegedly told her the machine had been “adjusted” or “recalibrated” so it would not interfere with her device.
Thomas says that assurance proved to be false.
The lawsuit alleges that when she walked through the scanner, she immediately felt a painful shock.
“[Thomas] felt a shock and immediate pain from the screening machine destroying her spinal cord stimulator,” the complaint states.
The alleged malfunction left her requiring medical treatment, including surgery to address the damage to the implant.
TSA agents screen and direct passengers at John Glenn International Airport in Columbus, Ohio October 3, 2025.
Her lawsuit claims TSA agents violated their own screening policies.
According to the TSA’s official website, passengers who do not wish to go through screening technology can request a pat-down instead. The agency states that pat-downs are conducted by officers of the same sex and that passengers may request private screening at any time.
Thomas argues that those policies were ignored.
The complaint says the incident left her with both physical injuries and financial losses tied to medical treatment and other damages.
Her legal claim was filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act, a law that allows individuals to sue the U.S. government for harm caused by federal employees acting within the scope of their jobs.
Thomas is demanding a jury trial and is seeking unspecified damages to be determined in court.
