Kenneth Glad
The reported actions have prompted renewed debate over the balance between government enforcement powers and constitutional protections. The case has also drawn attention to how federal agencies respond to online activity involving public officials.
ICE’s internal oversight office was built to police misconduct inside the agency, not to become the public face of disputes over online criticism.
Its reported involvement in cases against civilians has pushed that role into contested First Amendment territory, according to WIRED.
Office beyond oversight
The Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) traditionally serves as ICE’s internal watchdog, handling employee misconduct reviews, detention inspections, applicant vetting and security-related duties.
In an April court declaration reviewed by WIRED, an ICE official said OPR investigated 131 cases involving alleged doxing and threats against ICE employees from January 2025 to March 2026.
Syracuse.com first reported one case involving Paigelynne Gonyea, a poll worker approached by ICE agents during New York’s June primary voting.
Gonyea said agents questioned her about an Instagram post in which she credited the Minnesota Star Tribune with identifying Jonathan Ross, the ICE agent who shot and killed Renee Good in Minneapolis.
The agents asked her to sign a notice warning that threats against federal officials are illegal and requesting that she remove the post or stop the conduct. “My signature would have been an admission of guilt,” Gonyea says. “I refused to sign it.”
Subpoena dispute
WIRED reported that OPR was tied to at least one administrative subpoena sent to a technology company seeking details about an anonymous online critic.
Court filings said lawyers for the poster argued the subpoena violated speech rights. The government later withdrew it instead of defending it in court.
An ACLU attorney told WIRED that people have a First Amendment right to criticize the government online, including anonymously.
The Trump administration has said threats against ICE officers have increased. A 2025 Los Angeles Times analysis questioned a widely cited claim that attacks had risen by 1,000 percent.
A DHS privacy notice update said, according to the New York Times, that ICE may collect social media posts, account information and location-related data involving people accused of credible threats against ICE personnel or facilities.
Gonyea told WIRED she plans to fight the administration in court. “This is literally about protecting all Americans’ right to free speech.”
At issue is the line between investigating genuine threats and monitoring criticism of government agents. Civil liberties advocates say that distinction matters because political speech, anonymous criticism and recording officials in public are core forms of protected expression.
Sources: WIRED, Syracuse.com, Los Angeles Times, Minnesota Star Tribune
