Daijiworld Media Network – Washington

Washington, Nov 15: A former federal contract worker with the U.S. Coast Guard — and one-time Team USA fencing athlete — has filed a lawsuit against the American government, alleging he was wrongfully terminated over comments he made on Facebook regarding the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, states that 35-year-old Peter Souders, an engineer and project manager with Advanced Concepts Enterprises Inc. (ACES), was dismissed “in retaliation for his private speech on a matter of national interest,” which he argues is protected under the First Amendment.

Souders had been posted at the Coast Guard headquarters since July. He previously represented the United States as part of the national fencing team until 2016.

The suit names multiple federal authorities as defendants, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Defense, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Senior officials Michael Cogar and Greyson McGill, involved in federal personnel policy and DHS management, respectively, were also named.

According to the complaint, Cogar emailed McGill on September 17, alerting him to “inappropriate behavior” by a Coast Guard contractor. McGill then contacted DHS security officials to confirm whether Souders was affiliated with the department.

Upon confirmation, federal personnel allegedly received orders to “execute all necessary offboarding and access termination actions without delay,” effectively ending Souders’ work at the Coast Guard.

The lawsuit indicates that the controversy stemmed from comments Souders posted on Facebook around September 10 about Charlie Kirk’s assassination. While the lawsuit does not reproduce his statements, screenshots attributed to him circulated widely on social media platform X on September 11. In them, Kirk was described as opposing civil rights and abortion and labeled an “Islamophobe,” “Putin operative,” and “Nazi.” Another comment suggested that one “cannot be pro-punching Nazis and then pretend it’s a bad thing when someone actually does.”

Souders’ attorney, Mark Zaid, confirmed that the posts were his but noted uncertainty about which specific comments federal officials acted upon.

The lawsuit stresses that Souders did not identify himself on Facebook as a government contractor or federal employee.

Souders was formally terminated on September 18. According to the complaint, ACES leadership informed him that the federal government had directed his removal from Coast Guard work and that, due to his specific contract role, they had no option but to dismiss him entirely.