Except that the "someone" likely wasn't Joe Citizen, if you get my meaning.



And if he was simply a gawker with binoculars who called in to report seeing a gawker with binoculars, well i don't think i need the ACLU's help to deal with that type of assholery.

The way I read it, Deebs specifically says it's other spectators not spooks.

I didn't read the "great" story to mean "wow, how cool, their place was searched."

For some reason the "someone" to me was already secret service scouting out the place, not a neighbor calling in a tip. Though I wonder if they weren't scouting out all the apartments that could be in the line of fire. Don't they generally make sure that the surrounding areas are safe?

If it truly was someone calling in a tip, and the SS (pun intended) barging in to search the place.. that's horrifying.

In my experience, these things are well thought out and secured, but not without their moments of drama. I've known people who were bird-watching on the hills just to the west of LAX who have been tackled by Secret Service while Clinton was arriving (which was a frequent occurrence) because of their binoculars.

I agree with BTD that this is a good story, not because it was a good event, but because it will last throughout the years.

We had a scheduled meeting here at our offices a few years ago with a person who had a secret service detail. They sent agents to our office a week or so before to scope out the location. They were also out in the surrounding area looking as well. They were looking for things like vantage points.

The meeting ended up being at another location, which had also been searched and "cleared".