• by Wendy Davis , February 9, 2026

A Democratic lawmaker is demanding answers from the Department of Justice about its "coercion and censorship campaign" that led Apple and Google to remove apps such as ICEBlock, which enable people to report activities of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

"These apps are perfectly lawful," Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Maryland) says in a letter sent last week to Attorney General Pam Bondi. "The First Amendment guarantees the people the right to record, report, discuss, and criticize the actions of our government -- including the deployment of federal agents in their communities."

His letter refers to ICEBlock as well as other apps taken down from app marketplaces -- including the Android app Red Dot, which is comparable to ICEBlock, and Eyes Up (removed by Apple), which stores videos of immigration enforcement activity.

"The coercion and censorship campaign, which ultimately targets the users of ICE-monitoring applications, is a clear effort to silence this Administration’s critics and suppress any evidence that would expose the Administration’s lies, including its Orwellian attempts to cover up the murders of Renée and Alex," Raskin added, referring to Renee Good and Alex Pretti, who were killed last month by immigration agents in Minneapolis.

Raskin is seeking records of communications about the apps between the Justice Department and the tech companies, and between the Justice Department and White House or Department of Homeland Security.

His letter comes around four months after Apple removed ICEBlock from the app store. The app, developed by Joshua Aaron, enabled people to report public sightings of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents.

The same day Apple expelled the app, Attorney General Pam Bondi took credit for its removal, telling Fox News, "We reached out to Apple today demanding they remove the ICEBlock app from their App Store -- and Apple did so."

She alleged that the app was "designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs."

Late last year, Aaron sued the Trump administration, arguing that government officials violated the First Amendment by allegedly making "unconstitutional threats and demands" that coerced Apple into removing the app.

Aaron said in the complaint that the app was designed "to facilitate community sharing of publicly available information" adding that it broadcasts information about ICE sightings to users who are within a five-mile radius of agents' locations, and that the data is only available for four hours.

The app's "sole function is to provide information and alerts so that communities can stay informed and make safe, lawful decisions," the complaint alleges.

The Department of Justice is expected to respond in March to Aaron's complaint.