David Streever, a U.S. citizen from upstate New York, has filed a lawsuit against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), alleging that the agency violated his First Amendment rights by sending federal officers to his home to deliver a warning about an email he had sent.
According to Streever's attorneys, two ICE officers visited his Rochester home in June while he was traveling abroad and presented his wife with a notice. The notice stated that the email Streever sent in January to Todd Lyons, then the acting director of ICE, was considered a threat. Streever sent the email following the fatal shooting of Minneapolis resident Renee Good by an ICE officer during an anti-ICE demonstration.
In the email, Streever referred to Lyons as "a monstrous human being" and stated that he "will never know peace." The lawsuit, filed in Washington D.C. by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), argues that this communication falls under the protection of the First Amendment as political speech.
"This is very clearly within the protection of the First Amendment," said Adam Steinbaugh, an attorney with FIRE. "It was in the context of political speech."
ICE representatives declined to comment on the warning to Streever, citing an ongoing investigation. The agency did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Monday. The lawsuit also names Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullins. A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a statement asserting that "Any allegation DHS and its components are attempting to ‘squash’ free speech is categorically FALSE." The statement added, "Anyone who assaults or threatens our law enforcement officers will face the consequences."
The three-paragraph email, with the subject line "What’s next," included a reference to a Nazi German leader, stating, "You are a monstrous human being and will go down in history as America’s Reinhard Heydrich, the butcher." It continued, "The way you are protecting the obvious execution in Minnesota, even as we see the videos, will lead to your downfall. 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 concluded, "You will never know peace. You will seek to lose yourself, to escape the burden of knowing the truth about yourself. But wherever you go, you will find yourself. You will torment yourself until your last day on Earth."
Federal agents reportedly attempted to contact Streever at a hotel in New York City upon his return from Finland, but hotel staff turned them away, according to Steinbaugh. Federal officials also approached another upstate New York resident, poll worker Paigelynne Gonyea, at a voting location during New York's primaries in June. Gonyea believes her encounter was related to a social media post she made in January, criticizing ICE officer Jonathan Ross, who had shot and killed Renee Good.
Gonyea's post included the statement, "I think today is a great day for Jonathan to be indicted," accompanied by a picture of Ross. A spokesperson for DHS stated that Gonyea "committed a federal crime by posting the address of an ICE law enforcement officer online" and warned that "if you doxx our officers, we will investigate you, and you will be brought to justice."
A representative for the New York Attorney General’s Office has acknowledged awareness of the interactions between these residents and federal agents and stated that the office is reviewing the encounter between Gonyea and federal agents at the polls.