[fiatmoney]

"Lavabit told them they couldn't comply"

That's not accurate. Lavabit offered to construct a backdoor for that particular user at well below cost. Instead the government demanded they destroy their business model by making all users insecure.

Imagine you run a hotel. The police are looking for a fugitive that's been known to check in occasionally. You offer to build a system that notifies the police if that user checks in. They refuse. Instead they demand you place a camera in each room.