GoKawiilA few hours after checking into a hotel in New York City, David Streever woke up to a call from the front desk saying someone was looking for him.
Streever had just landed on a return trip from Finland, where he’d vacationed with his daughter. Though Streever didn’t know it yet, while he’d been away, agents with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) had shown up to his home in Rochester and spoken to his wife. They dropped off a “WARNING NOTICE,” which informed Streever that ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) is “responsible for enforcing crimes against the United States,” including “threats made against ICE personnel.” Then, nearly as soon as he touched US soil, another agent tracked him down at his hotel.
In a lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington, DC, Streever says he didn’t threaten anyone. Shortly after federal agents killed two US citizens in Minneapolis, Streever emailed Todd Lyons, at the time the acting director of ICE. “You are a monstrous human being and will go down in history as America’s Reinhard Heydrich, the butcher,” Streever’s message read in part. “Even Trump will turn on you before the end, and you will be a sad, despised man who eats himself alive with shame at your own pathetic weakness.” The message castigated Lyons, warning him of his “downfall” — but the consequence, it said, would be “the burden of knowing the truth about yourself.”
Streever wasn’t arrested over the message. But the notice warned him that it “MAY BE IN VIOLATION OF FEDERAL LAW.”
The warning Streever received isn’t an isolated incident. For much of the past year, DHS has been going after people who criticize President Donald Trump’s immigration policies in emails and social media posts, accusing them of threatening federal personnel or “doxing” agents whose identities are already known to the public. OPR has opened more than 100 investigations into “incidents of doxing and threats” involving ICE, Wired reported this week. Unlike the recent arrests and prosecutions of so-called antifa members, no criminal charges have apparently been filed in these cases — but especially against the backdrop of a larger crackdown, the threat to civil liberties is clear.
“I think that everyone would instantly recognize it as a First Amendment violation if the police showed up and arrested someone for this email. But the First Amendment doesn’t just cover arrests — it also prohibits government retaliation or coercion,” said Adam Steinbaugh, a senior attorney with the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression who is representing Streever.
Steinbaugh doesn’t know how DHS tracked Streever down to his hotel, but noted that the department regularly asks web platforms to help identify critics. Since at least last August, DHS has sent several hundred administrative subpoenas to companies like Google, Reddit, Discord, and Meta asking for the names, email addresses, phone numbers, and other identifying information of people who criticize ICE online, according to The New York Times.
“There is a broader pattern of the federal government using dubious legal resources or tools to deter speech,” Steinbaugh said.
ICE agents at David Streever’s door. Image courtesy of FIRE.
In a statement to The Verge, DHS spokesperson Lauren Bis said the department does not comment on ongoing investigations. “Any allegation DHS and its components are attempting to ‘squash’ free speech is categorically FALSE. ICE investigates all credible threats towards its employees and officers, including threats to the ICE Director,” Bis said. “Anyone who assaults or threatens our law enforcement officers will face the consequences.”
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