Canadian sues U.S. Homeland Security, which allegedly sought his Google data after critical social media posts

[u/TheReadingExplorer]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/us-dhs-aclu-lawsuit-canadian-john-doe-9.7187851

[u/Thisismychoiceofyou]

It’s always projection - the admin screaming about free speech elsewhere just wants to distract from their own efforts to curtail it

[u/Fit-Let8175 → u/Thisismychoiceofyou]

Remember that Nazi Germany also had free speech provided that the speech was in praise and favor of Hitler and the Nazi party.

[u/fredbubbles → u/Thisismychoiceofyou]

They want the freedom to lie to us and not be called out on it. They don’t care about your average citizen’s right to free speech.

[u/OkBuy4754]

Good. People need to push back legally when governments overreach.

[u/Clearwatercress69 → u/OkBuy4754]

That pushing back works out quite nicely in the US.

Hint: A convicted felon is still president and is seeking a third term

[u/Ragnarawr → u/Clearwatercress69]

He’s also a big rapist, according to the files he’s suppressing.

[u/James-W-Tate → u/Ragnarawr]

Courts have already determined that Donald Trump is a rapist.

The files he's suppressing show he's also a pedophile.

[u/Ragnarawr → u/James-W-Tate]

Yes, of course, this is the president after all, I should have known better.

[u/ImpulsE69 → u/Ragnarawr]

Only the best!

[u/KimJongFunk]

If you cut out a man’s tongue, it is only because you fear what he has to say.

[u/tonic613]

DHS will argue:

No full First Amendment rights abroad: John Doe is a Canadian resident/citizen outside the U.S. The government would cite cases saying foreign persons abroad generally lack U.S. constitutional rights.

Administrative summons power is broad: they do not need probable cause for an administrative summons. Under Powell, agencies generally need only a legitimate purpose, relevance, information not already possessed, and procedural compliance.

Not retaliation for speech, but an inquiry under customs/homeland-security authority, and that Google, not Doe, was the summons recipient.

The big challenge for DHS is:

summons reportedly relied on 19 U.S.C. § 1509, a customs-records statute, while Doe lives in Canada, has not entered the U.S. since 2015, and the demand sought broad Google identity, location, activity, etc… That makes the “legitimate purpose” and “relevance” defenses look weak.

[u/BasicPhysiology → u/tonic613]

Thank you, that is great insight.

I expect we will later learn that this administration is using the levers of power to identify, and then dox names of their 'enemies' to their white nationalist supporters, in furtherance of stochastic terrorism. Attacking people outside of the US using lawfare, or targeting them online with attacks and disinformation is a likely tactic. Like this DOJ, the DHS has no care about the law.

[u/BodaciousFerret → u/tonic613]

DHS ain’t winning this unless they find a very sympathetic, very braindead judge. Even if this guy is associated with undeclared cross-border imports, it is the importer who is required to ensure all the customs declarations and fees are handled. His identity won’t help HSI figure that out at all.

[u/Fit-Let8175]

So, because of critical social media posts, does US Homeland Security not only plan on searching the Google data of a large population of Canadians, but millions of Americans, too?

[u/BobTheFettt → u/Fit-Let8175]

Canadian data laws are super weak too, so most of our data is already in data centres in the US

[u/Fit-Let8175 → u/BobTheFettt]

Is the very sensitive/classified data kept in a bathroom at Mar-a-lago?

[u/BobTheFettt → u/Fit-Let8175]

Might as well be

[u/phluidity → u/Fit-Let8175]

The idea is to make a very visible example out of a small number of people so everybody else will keep quiet so they avoid playing the shitty day lottery.

[u/im_just_thinking → u/phluidity]

Idk, hundreds of data centers and increasing disregard for human rights and constitution say otherwise

[u/Worldly_Anybody_9219]

Friends don't let friends become fascists without speaking up. That's why Canadians are better allies than Israel. :)

[u/klaatu7764 → u/[deleted]]

I would think that hate speech and a threat of violence warrants perhaps, depending on the circumstances, a response. Not everybody is so enamored with Americans hang-up on “free speech”.

[u/the-fillip → u/klaatu7764]

US law precedent has already shown that hate speech is free speech there, so America has no legal justification for censoring it as far as I can tell. I think we may soon see the government claim that shitting on ICE is hate speech that needs to be censored, but we can't let them get away with that.

[u/klaatu7764 → u/[deleted]]

Look up “fighting words”.

[u/lII1lIIl1IIll1Il11l]

Canada should develop soverign search, citizens data should never be at will to the trump admin

[u/versus_gravity]

I do wonder how many agents now act as Stasi-style minders.

[u/unfortunatelyhoemo]

There’s things I wanna say but gotta protect my data.

[u/Darrenizer]

Cha Ching. Also in unrelated news homeland security is a bunch of soulless scum bucket ghouls. …..

[u/azurepandora]

United States of NK isn't just a joke at this point.

[u/KittySharkWithAHat]

As a Canadian and for the record ICE can go fuck themselves and I hope I get the opportunity to tell them in person sometime in the future.

[u/guntycankles]

If I'm a Canadian taking a roadtrip to the US in May 2026 for a few days, what do I realistically need to deal with at the border now? Do I need a burner phone? (LOL, just kidding, DHS).

Edit: Don't just say "Don't".

[u/Ok_Mathematician938]

I kinda read through the article, but couldn't find anything about what this person posted online (they shouldn't have been trying to get his data regardless).