A class-action lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Maine accuses Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and the Trump administration of violating First Amendment rights through the use of facial recognition software and other surveillance tools. The complaint alleges that federal agents targeted citizens recording their activities in public spaces during immigration enforcement operations. Plaintiffs seek an injunction to halt these practices and expunge related records.
The 46-page complaint, filed on behalf of two legal observers in Maine, details incidents in January 2026 where federal agents allegedly collected biometric data, license plate information, and issued threats to deter citizens from documenting enforcement actions.
On January 21, 2026, Portland resident Elinor Hilton was recording federal law enforcement in a public parking lot when officers captured her biometric data and vehicle details. One agent reportedly warned her, "If you keep coming to things like this, you are going to be on a domestic terrorist watchlist. Then we're going to come to your house later tonight."
Two days later, Colleen Fagan experienced a similar encounter while recording in a public space. Agents collected her information and stated, "We have a nice little database. And now you're considered a domestic terrorist, so have fun with that."
In another January 21 incident in Westbrook, a woman filming an arrest followed an agent's vehicle, only to find agents at her home. An agent approached her car with a smartphone and said, "This is a warning. We know you live right here."
The lawsuit links these actions to broader surveillance practices. It notes that in May 2025, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection began using the Mobile Fortify app for facial recognition via smartphone cameras, with over 100,000 uses by January 2026. In November 2025, the Mobile Companion app was deployed to scan license plates and access personal data like addresses and social media.
The complaint cites a July 2025 DHS press conference where Noem described videotaping agents as "violence" and "threatening their safety." It argues this represents a deviation from a May 2019 DHS memorandum that prohibited such record collection on protected activities.
Additional reports include a Minnesota observer whose Global Entry status was revoked after facial recognition identification, and an agent telling a detained observer that the vehicle owner would face travel difficulties.
The suit contends these tactics force citizens to forgo constitutional rights or risk being labeled domestic terrorists. Plaintiffs request a court declaration of First Amendment violations, an injunction against further retaliation, and expungement of records.
