Q: There has been much in the news lately about the high number of firearms confiscated by the Transportation Security Administration at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. What happens to the firearms after they are discovered? Are they returned to the owners? — Kathy Geroski, Atlanta
A: All firearms are immediately confiscated and handled on a case-by-case basis. Some are returned to their owners and some are not, airport spokeswoman Monica Fuentes told Q&A on the News. Travelers who are caught with guns are in violation of federal law and "will miss their flight, be taken to jail and be subject to prosecution and fines up to $7,500," airport general manager Louis Miller said in a release last month. Last year, 100 guns were found at security checkpoints at Hartsfield-Jackson, more than any other airport in the country. Sixty-seven guns had been found in carry-on bags at Hartsfield-Jackson checkpoints as of Aug. 15, a pace that would surpass 2012.
Q: Every time I see John Boehner on TV, he always looks so tanned. No one in Washington keeps a tan like that. Is he a tanning bed junkie? — Donald Varn, Conyers
A: Boehner, the speaker of the House, has said his dark complexion is natural, but it has been a source of jokes in Washington. "I have never been in a tanning bed or used a tanning product," he told The Wall Street Journal in 2010. Boehner said his complexion comes from his mother, and the paper reported that he had the darkest complexion in a picture of high school classmates.
Andy Johnston wrote this column; Carolyn Crist contributed. Do you have a question about the news? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
