In re Grand Jury Subpoena to Reddit, Inc. (anonymous ICE critic)
U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (federal grand jury); related challenge in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
- Court
- U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia (federal grand jury); related challenge in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
- Parties
- U.S. Department of Justice / ICE v. Reddit, Inc.; anonymous Reddit user J. Doe (Tired_Thumb), an Oregon resident represented by the Civil Liberties Defense Center
- Claim type
- privacy
- Filed
- 2026-03-31
Summary
As part of a broader effort to identify anonymous online critics of ICE, a federal grand jury in Washington, D.C. issued a March 31, 2026 subpoena commanding Reddit to turn over personal data on a pseudonymous user who had posted comments critical of ICE, including resurfacing already-public details about an ICE agent. The grand jury subpoena followed a failed earlier ICE administrative summons that was challenged in the Northern District of California and withdrawn. Reddit was given an April 14, 2026 compliance deadline and said privacy is central to how it operates, but did not state whether it would challenge the demand. Attorneys for the user argue the posts and the user's anonymity are protected by the First Amendment, and reporting noted parallel DOJ demands to X for other anti-ICE users.