A Redditor Criticized ICE. Trump Is Trying to Unmask Them by Dragging the Company to a Secret Grand Jury.

The Intercept
by Ryan Devereaux
April 10, 2026
7 min read

Quick Insights

The Bottom Line

The Trump administration is using a secret grand jury to force Reddit to reveal an anonymous ICE critic.

How This Affects You

Your online anonymity and free speech could be threatened if the government forces platforms to unmask anonymous critics.

AI Summary

Social media giant Reddit has been ordered to appear before a grand jury in Washington, D.C., as part of a federal effort to unmask an anonymous online critic of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. According to a subpoena obtained by The Intercept, Reddit has until April 14 to provide personal data on a user identified in court records as John Doe. This marks an escalation after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents previously failed to identify the user in a Northern California federal court. Attorneys for John Doe argue their client’s posts are protected under the First Amendment, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation notes that free speech protections are weakest in a grand jury context. The subpoena suggests the government may be moving toward a significant criminal case against the user.

What's Being Done

Attorneys for the user argue their posts are First Amendment protected, and the Electronic Frontier Foundation notes grand jury contexts weaken free speech protections.

Following this story?

Get notified when new coverage appears

Should this be getting more attention?

You Might Have Missed

Related stories from different sources and perspectives

Democrats grow bolder on talk about removing Trump from office after his Iran threats - AP News
Politics

Democrats grow bolder on talk about removing Trump from office after his Iran threats - AP News

<a href="https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiogFBVV95cUxQR0ttWWNEX1YxdDUxRG5BQ2VXS3hTUjM4eVlmdTlZM2RGNlEwVHFiNzg0a2VBWnNMXzJvQXdyNG5vcXA1c19TM0pOOXV3bUU0ZXB2Y3l6U09faVYzd1FLT2JUT3hmQXJydXhCR3U0NVpkWWQzQ003QUN5OWRrRzRHTkgtSlB2MzNfaVM4Q0lUVDZzRXB4NXBUVHROalkyWlRGT3c?oc=5" target="_blank">Democrats grow bolder on talk about removing Trump from office after his Iran threats</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<font color="#6f6f6f">AP News</font><strong><a href="https://news.google.com/stories/CAAqNggKIjBDQklTSGpvSmMzUnZjbmt0TXpZd1NoRUtEd2ptMy1EdEVCR1N4ZzJiR3lZU1NpZ0FQAQ?hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US:en&oc=5" target="_blank">View Full Coverage on Google News</a></strong>

AP NewsApr 9
Moms for Liberty wanted a seat on the school board. Trump gave them a voice in the White House - AP News
Politics

Moms for Liberty wanted a seat on the school board. Trump gave them a voice in the White House - AP News

<a href="https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiuAFBVV95cUxOYVVUU1NEcnlKdFNkZVlUSVJFektUc05yU1E0dXJtMVFRZmNGLXNTdy1yUjZqbm5kZzNGWFVZZ3RScVY2Wk54WVNhemF0MkdubjRCeXBQR1BHMlliTTJLVGpSa1hoX0R5LVZQbzhGRndOdU5hTEZrVkRDekpQWHNSWGhiYkdnOXpQRnl6X0Z5d2diV3JmanRFY2kwTVZiNFpBNkcwMXhEM1JrNmRNcnhZWE0zVFV3V0ZL?oc=5" target="_blank">Moms for Liberty wanted a seat on the school board. Trump gave them a voice in the White House</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<font color="#6f6f6f">AP News</font>

AP NewsApr 4
Only Trump knows why he replaced Bondi as attorney general, new leader of Justice Department says - AP News
Politics

Only Trump knows why he replaced Bondi as attorney general, new leader of Justice Department says - AP News

<a href="https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMiqwFBVV95cUxPczZqM0ZFRzh5UHBIY3lya3JvTGEteGpqejVkZzFVTTIwVG4tdFF3dktObWhsZEpMMTY4U3RoSHo1Z2FKT0d6VXZkU2ZQczF6bG9DNmN1bHVNbS1STm9JanAzdHlteGxBSFI5b3FVNGI2SWN6eUZfdkpnajBkNExKd0xnajBxSFF3b2NIelBqN2xibmZrVHpDemV1ZW5IaEp6eExfdmYwclNpazg?oc=5" target="_blank">Only Trump knows why he replaced Bondi as attorney general, new leader of Justice Department says</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<font color="#6f6f6f">AP News</font>

AP NewsApr 7
Colleges are trying to boost student voting. A Trump probe freezes data for that work
Politics

Colleges are trying to boost student voting. A Trump probe freezes data for that work

To figure out how to boost student voting, colleges have relied on a study about campus voter registration and turnout rates. A Trump administration investigation has cut schools off from new data.

NPRApr 8
Democrats grow bolder on talk about removing Trump from office after his Iran threats
Politics

Democrats grow bolder on talk about removing Trump from office after his Iran threats

While President Donald Trump eventually pulled back on his threat and agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran, Democrats face growing demands to oppose the Republican president in the strongest possible terms.

PBS NewsHourApr 9
‘Not some piece of ice’: Greenland hits back at Trump insult
Global

‘Not some piece of ice’: Greenland hits back at Trump insult

PM Nielsen calls Greenland a proud nation seeking to maintain global order, after US president calls it 'piece of ice'.

Al JazeeraApr 9
Read Next
US defense official overseeing AI reaped millions selling xAI stock after Pentagon entered agreement with company
Government Transparency

US defense official overseeing AI reaped millions selling xAI stock after Pentagon entered agreement with company

<p>Expert said federal law bars officials from taking actions in their jobs that benefit their own financial interests</p><p>A high-profile US defense department official who oversees the agency’s <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/artificialintelligenceai">artificial intelligence</a> efforts made a profit of up to $24m selling a private investment he held in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/elon-musk">Elon Musk</a>’s AI company earlier this year, according to government ethics records released this month. The value of his stake totaled a maximum of a million dollars when he joined the department.</p><p>Emil Michael, who is the Pentagon’s under secretary for research and engineering under the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/trump-administration">Trump administration</a>, oversees negotiations with AI companies and has been pushing the defense department to rapidly increase the widespread use of AI.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-...

Continue reading

Did this story change how you see things?

Stories like this only matter when people see them. Help us get verified journalism in front of more eyes.

Share this story

Get the daily digest

Save for later

The Verity Ledger curates verified investigative journalism from trusted sources only.

See our sources