Former federal employee sues government after allegedly being fired for Facebook comments about Kirk's assassination

Source: NBC News

Nov. 14, 2025, 10:05 PM EST / Updated Nov. 15, 2025, 10:20 AM EST


A former federal contract worker for the U.S. Coast Guard and Team USA athlete is suing the government after he says he was fired for making comments on Facebook about Charlie Kirk's assassination.

Peter Souders, an engineer and project manager for government contractor Advanced Concepts Enterprises Inc. (ACES), alleges that he was fired "in retaliation for his private speech on a matter of significant national interest and attention," violating his First Amendment rights, the lawsuit states. The 35-year-old had been working at the Coast Guard's headquarters since July. Souders was also a member of the USA fencing team up until 2016.

The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Wednesday and names the Department of Homeland Security and Department of Defense, as well as Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as the defendants. The deputy assistant secretary of defense for civilian personnel policy, Michael Cogar, and the chief of staff to the undersecretary for management at the DHS, Greyson McGill, were also named as defendants.

According to the lawsuit, Cogar emailed McGill about alleged "inappropriate behavior" from a Coast Guard contractor on Sept. 17. McGill then contacted the office of the chief security officer about "a social media post linked to Peter Souders," asking it to confirm if he was a DHS contractor.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-federal-employee-sues-government-charlie-kirk-comments-rcna243956