ICE Agents Reportedly Tagged Protest Observers as a 'Threat to Law Enforcement' in a Palantir Database

US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents reportedly compiled dossiers on people observing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations and stored information in Palantir Technologies' Investigative Case Management (ICM) system, according to Wired. The allegations stem from a proposed class action lawsuit brought by observers in Maine.

ICE Observers Allegedly Profiled in ICM

For context, the lawsuit was placed under seal in September before a redacted version was released on Friday, according to Wired. JoAnna Suriani, an attorney with Protect Democracy representing the plaintiffs, told the publication, 'The government is treating people who exercise their First Amendment rights and seek to hold it accountable as criminal suspects, and that's what we're asking the court to stop.'

The lawsuit alleges that DHS agents drove past protesters' and observers' homes to intimidate them. It also alleges that an agent identified as 'Agent J.C.' created ICM profiles on six people, while the government's count was eight, according to Wired.

Two people who were allegedly filmed in a parking lot were tagged in the ICM database as 'Threat to Law Enforcement, Professional Protestor'. The suit further alleges that J.C. sent photographs of the two individuals to a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer for facial recognition using an app called Mobile Query.

The lawsuit also alleges that J.C. ran one plaintiff's license plate through the LexisNexis Accurint database after the individual photographed an arrest in Portland, Maine. It says J.C. then called the plaintiff's spouse, who is also a plaintiff, and warned that people who 'do anything like that in the future... might get added to a domestic terrorism watchlist.'

Those claims remain allegations in the lawsuit and are contested by the government.

DHS Calls Lawsuit 'Meritless'

A DHS spokesperson told Wired that the claim is 'meritless' and said the lawsuit is based on 'the lie that there is a database of "domestic terrorists" run by DHS.'

The government's motion to dismiss argued that the incidents described in the lawsuit were isolated actions prohibited by DHS policy. It also argued that the alleged conduct did not constitute 'unconstitutional retaliation'.

The ICM system is used by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to track case files, according to Wired. Palantir Technologies has won nearly $126 million (£95.14 million) in government contracts to maintain and expand the system since 2022, including $30 million (£22.65 million) to develop ImmigrationOS.

ICE is part of DHS, alongside agencies including HSI and CBP. The specific allegations in the lawsuit, however, concern conduct attributed to DHS agents, including Agent J.C. The suit also alleges that photographs were sent to a CBP officer for facial recognition.

The supplied reporting says ICE agents shot and killed 25-year-old Johan Sebastián Durán Guerrero in Maine in July during a summer surge in ICE operations. It also reports that immigration authorities have shot at least 21 people during Donald Trump's second term, resulting in at least 10–11 deaths.

The American Civil Liberties Union asserts that at least 57 people have died in ICE custody since Trump's second inauguration. The source also notes that ICE has sometimes detained US citizens in its detention facilities.

At the center of the Maine lawsuit is the question of whether the alleged collection and use of information about observers amounted to unconstitutional retaliation. The government's position is that the incidents were isolated and did not meet that threshold, leaving the competing claims to be addressed through the legal proceedings.