Republican Congresswoman Charged with Firearm Violation at Airport

Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-IN) has been given a court summons after authorities at Dulles International Airport say they found a handgun during a security screening.

“On Friday, June 28, TSA officers at IAD (the three-letter code for Dulles) detected a .380 caliber firearm during passenger security screening,” a spokesperson for the TSA told WISH in Indianapolis. “The firearm was unloaded and in the individual’s carry-on bag.”

The gun was not loaded at the time of the screening.

Spartz, who represents Indiana’s 5th congressional district, defeated a field of primary challengers to notch the GOP nomination again. She has served since 2021 and is the first Ukrainian-born member of Congress. The lawmaker opposes U.S. aid to Ukraine as the eastern European nation tries to fend off the ongoing Russian invasion that began in February 2022.

It has been a rough four weeks for Spartz. In June, it was reported that the House Ethics Committee had opened an investigation into allegations of “abuse” and “general toxicity” in her congressional office. According to a current staffer, Spartz frequently curses out aides while calling them “retards” and other names. She is also alleged to have used her taxpayer-funded congressional resources for her campaign, which is prohibited under federal campaign finance law.

The congresswoman is not the first federal lawmaker to bring a gun through airport security. In 2022, then-Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-NC) was cited for bringing a firearm into Charlotte Douglas International Airport. He was also cited for the same offense at Asheville Regional Airport in 2021.

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