US EditionClass-Action Lawsuit Accuses Feds of Targeting, Intimidating, and Retaliating Against Mainers
The lawsuit alleges DHS used facial recognition and license-plate scanning to intimidate ICE observers and seeks to expunge data and stop retaliatory practices, citing First Amendment violations.
- On Monday, Portland residents Elinor Hilton and Colleen Fagan filed a federal lawsuit in U.S. District Court of Maine in Portland alleging DHS and subagencies collected data on lawful ICE observers and intimidated them.
- On Jan. 21 and Jan. 23, bystanders say federal agents recorded faces and license plates using the Mobile Fortify facial-recognition app accessing roughly 200 million images and used more than 100,000 times by January.
- One agent reportedly recorded Hilton at extremely close range, while others recorded license plates and warned observers they would be placed on a domestic terrorist watchlist, prompting Hilton to avoid her home and protests.
- Seeking immediate relief, the plaintiffs requested a temporary restraining order and expungement, and they seek class-action status before U.S. District Judge John Woodcock Jr.
- Meanwhile, DHS and ICE deny a centralized database, while ICE confirmed over 200 arrests in Maine and Lyons said `I can't speak for that individual, sir` at a congressional hearing.
16 Articles
16 Articles
Class-action lawsuit accuses feds of targeting, intimidating, and retaliating against Mainers
The lawsuit says the plaintiffs' actions are protected by the First Amendment, but contends the government is collecting, maintaining, and disseminating biometric and other personal information about the plaintiffs.
A new lawsuit alleges DHS illegally tracked and intimidated observers
Last month, Colleen Fagan was observing an immigration enforcement operation at an apartment complex in Portland, Maine, when federal agents scanned her face with a smartphone and appeared to record her car license plate number.In a social media video she recorded, Fagan can be heard asking why the agent was taking her information. What the agent said next made the video go viral.“Cause we have a nice little database,” the masked agent said. “An…
Maine immigration observers sue over Trump admin "domestic terrorist watchlist" threats
A new lawsuit in Maine seeks to stop the Trump administration from retaliating against people who are recording or otherwise observing immigration enforcement activities — specifically challenging immigration agents’ surveillance threats, often, ironically, caught on video.“The federal government is pursuing a conscious course of action to silence and sideline Mainers and other Americans who choose to observe, record, and share information about…
Mainers sue DHS after ICE agents allegedly threatened to label them ‘domestic terrorists’
Two Mainers are suing the federal government, alleging immigration officials are targeting and intimidating residents. Portland residents Elinor Hilton and Colleen Fagan filed a lawsuit Monday against the Department of Homeland Security and multiple subagencies after agents allegedly told both women that they were “domestic terrorists,” because they were filming U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. Distri…
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