TIME.com: Air Marshals Or Cowboys? -- Jan. 19, 2004: "Last year a marshal was fired for drawing his gun on a man who had stolen his airport parking spot."

"A marshal was suspended two years ago after he left his gun in a lavatory on a United flight from Washington to Las Vegas, a USA Today investigation revealed. A passenger discovered the weapon.

"Perhaps countries should take a cue from China, where guards trained in martial arts rely on the only weapons that can never be wrested away or left in a lavatory."