ICE Has Been Dumping Protester Photos Into a Palantir Database
DHS agents not only tracked and intimidated people observing ICE activity in Maine, but stored information about them in a Palantir-built database, newly unsealed court filings say.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is denying a lawsuit filed by observers who claim they were intimidated and had their photos added to a Palantir database by the government. The plaintiffs argue that DHS agents engaged in a pattern of intimidating protesters and observers, including conducting drive-by checks on their homes and requiring them to undergo secondary border inspections.
The lawsuit, filed under seal in September, includes details of alleged misconduct during "Operation Catch of the Day," an immigration enforcement surge in Maine in January. One DHS agent, identified as "Agent J.C.," allegedly used the Investigative Case Management (ICM) database to flag observers and circulated their photos to fellow agents for facial recognition searches.
The observers are seeking an injunction to stop these practices, prevent the use of their records against them, and prohibit agents from threatening them with watchlists or following them to their homes.
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