An Army lieutenant whose jaw is wired shut from a bullet wound he received in Afghanistan claims screeners at San Francisco International Airport denied him permission to pass through security with wire clippers used to snap open his jaw in an emergency.

Lt. Greg Miller, a combat medic and member of a special forces patrol, was shot in Kandahar in April. The bullet passed through his jaw, severing nerves and leaving him without feeling in his mouth.

He said his jaw was wired shut at a hospital in Germany, and his doctor issued him wire clippers to carry in case he became sick and needed to open his jaw to avoid choking.