Police Chief Investigated for Fraud Out as Air Marshal Deputy Director Weeks after TSA Appointment

After just a few weeks the Biden administration’s egregious choice to serve as Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) deputy director has stepped down, thanks in part to Judicial Watch’s reporting. Americans can also thank the highly trained aviation security specialists who brought it to our attention and the Air Marshal National Council, the union that represents thousands of agents nationwide and has exposed a multitude of scandals that have rocked the agency in recent years. The fleeting deputy director, Pauline (Polly) Hanson, was appointed to the position on June 14 despite a shady history that includes being investigated for fraud and conflict of interest as chief of a federal law enforcement agency. FAMS operates under the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), created after 9/11 to prevent another terrorist attack. Both function under the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and have been plagued by controversy and mismanagement that has left the nation vulnerable from a security standpoint, according to multiple DHS sources interviewed by Judicial Watch over the years.

Hanson’s appointment by TSA Director David Pekoske to be second in command at FAMS immediately raised questions about the criteria to qualify for the top-secret clearance required for the position and ignited fury among air marshals nationwide. Hanson once served as chief of the Amtrak Police, a federal law enforcement agency of about 500 charged with protecting the nation’s railroad system. As Amtrak police chief Hanson was investigated for “unethical and illegal” behavior after awarding her then live in boyfriend’s company a million-dollar counterterrorism contract to train officers in her agency. Hanson was directly involved in the process for awarding the contract, according to federal court documents filed by the Inspector General for the National Railroad Passenger Corporation and failed to disclose her romantic and financial ties to the company’s senior director, Kerry Thomas. Hanson lawyered up and fought in court to limit investigators’ access to her bank records and when a judge ordered her to turn them over, she resigned as chief of the Amtrak Police. Hanson has also served as chief of Metro Transit Police in the District of Columbia and executive director of the D.C. Police’s strategic service bureau.

The baffling deputy director appointment of a candidate with a highly questionable history came just months after the administration quietly replaced the last FAMS director, marking the fourth time in around as many years that the agency got a new leader. The frequent turnover at the top highlights the instability that has prevailed at FAMS, a critical agency charged with protecting commercial passenger flights by deterring and countering the risk of terrorist activity, aircraft piracy and other crimes to protect the nation’s transportation infrastructure. A deputy director with Hanson’s record is the last thing the agency needs. Judicial Watch immediately fired off two Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests—to TSA and the National Railroad Passenger Corporation Inspector General—asking for details about Hanson’s criminal and ethical investigation as Amtrak Police Chief, subsequent resignation and communications exchanged between the Amtrak Inspector General and the DHS and TSA regarding the new FAMS deputy director. Judicial Watch also requested Hanson’s employment history and administrative investigations as well as documents acknowledging or approving her security clearance authorization and DHS-TSA application forms and employment contracts.

The Air Marshal National Council asked the DHS Inspector General to reopen Hanson’s investigation days after Pekoske’s appointment to ensure she is eligible to hold a position of public trust and top-secret security clearance. “Hanson abruptly resigned while under investigation before that investigation could come to a conclusion on whether or not she violated ethical and possible criminal laws,” the complaint to the DHS watchdog states, adding that as deputy director will ultimately be in charge of all purchasing and contracts for FAMS. “If the allegations are true this is akin to letting the fox into the hen house,” the Air Marshal National Council wrote.

Knowledgeable sources such as Sonya Hightower-LaBosco, a retired air marshal who serves as executive director of the Air Marshal National Council, emphasized that it was not clear how Hanson could get a top-secret clearance with her background. Exposing the administration’s behind the scenes plot to hire a police chief investigated for unethical and illegal behavior to help run FAMS apparently ignited enough concern to change course. This week sources confirmed that Hanson is out and will not be working with the agency. The men and women charged with protecting commercial flights are incredibly thankful, according to multiple DHS sources.