ICE sent officers to his home over an email. Now he’s suing

Key Points:

• David Streever, a U.S. citizen from upstate New York, sued U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after federal officers visited his home to issue a warning over an email he sent criticizing the agency’s former acting director, Todd Lyons.
• Streever’s email, sent in January after an ICE officer fatally shot a protester in Minneapolis, called Lyons “a monstrous human being” and invoked a Nazi leader; his attorneys argue this political speech is protected under the First Amendment.
• Federal agents also confronted another upstate New York resident, Paigelynne Gonyea, over social media posts related to the ICE officer involved in the shooting, with Homeland Security accusing her of committing a federal crime by posting the officer’s address.
• ICE and the Department of Homeland Security deny attempts to suppress free speech, emphasizing that threats or assaults against law enforcement officers will have consequences.
• The New York Attorney General’s Office is reviewing the federal agents’ interactions with both Streever and Gonyea, particularly the incident involving Gonyea at a polling location during state primaries.