US citizen David Streever sues federal agents who came to his home over email criticizing ICE
David Streever, who lives in New York, filed a lawsuit alleging that federal agents who came to his home after he sent a critical email to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials violated his freedom of speech. Streever's lawyer argued that the email was protected speech and that the officials' action five months later showed it was not a threat.
US citizen David Streever filed a lawsuit against federal agents who came to his home after he sent an email criticizing the leadership of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Streever, who lives in Rochester, New York, alleged in the lawsuit filed in Washington, D.C., against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and ICE that the officials violated his right to criticize the government.
Streever sent an email in January to then-Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons. The email was written in response to the fatal shooting of US citizen Renee Nicole Good by an ICE officer during a raid in Minneapolis.
In the email, Streever used phrases such as "a monstrous human being who will never find peace" and "America's Reinhard Heydrich, its butcher" for Lyons. It also included harsh words: "Your protection of the blatant execution in Minnesota will be your undoing. Even Trump will eventually turn his back on you, and you will be a miserable, hated man, consumed by the shame of your own pathetic weakness."
In June, while Streever was in Finland with his 7-year-old daughter, two federal agents came to his home and delivered a "warning notice" to his wife. The notice stated that Streever may be violating federal law and must immediately cease this behavior, and that this warning would be taken into account if he continued criminal activities.
Although the agents learned that Streever was abroad, instead of waiting, they attempted to confront him at a hotel in New York after he returned from Finland, but were turned away by hotel staff. That same night, the agents repeatedly called Streever's phone, leaving voicemails identifying themselves only as Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
On the train ride back, when Streever told his daughter that federal agents might confront him, the little girl burst into tears, worried about her father's safety.
Attorney Adam Steinbaugh of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression argued that the email was protected speech under the First Amendment and did not constitute a legitimate threat. Steinbaugh said, "If someone is truly threatening a government official, you don't wait five months to act. The officials' failure to respond immediately shows that David posed no threat. This pursuit is designed to intimidate lawful expression."
DHS spokesperson Lauren Bis told the Associated Press, "The claim that DHS and its components are trying to 'suppress' free speech is categorically FALSE."
The warning to Streever bears similarities to the questioning of Syracuse election official Paigelynne Gonyea by federal agents the same week over a social media post. Gonyea believes she was targeted for a post about ICE officer Jonathan Ross, who shot Good. DHS alleged that Gonyea committed a federal crime by sharing Ross's address.
