Questions: Society & Politics

App That Tracks ICE Raids Sues U. S., Saying Officials Pressured Apple to Remove It

The developer of ICEBlock, which notifies users of ICE agent sightings, said Attorney General Pam Bondi censored his free speech.

For six months, Apple distributed an app called ICEBlock that allowed users to alert people when they saw Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. But after the Trump administration complained that the app endangered officers, Apple removed it.

On Monday, the app’s developer, Joshua Aaron, sued top Trump administration officials, accusing them of pressuring Apple to stifle his free speech and his right to create, distribute and promote ICEBlock.

The suit, which was filed in the U. S. District Court for the District of Columbia, claimed that Attorney General Pam Bondi abused the government’s power when the Justice Department contacted Apple and demanded it remove the app, which she said she had done in a statement to Fox News in October. She said that Apple removed the app after her request.

The legal action could reveal more about Apple’s decision making and compliance with edicts from the Trump administration. According to Apple’s own public reports, it has removed apps at the request of authoritarian governments like China and Russia, but not from the U. S. government.