Sher Tremonte LLP Sues US Government Officials on Behalf of ICEBlock App Developer for First Amendment Violations
On Monday, December 8, 2025, Sher Tremonte filed suit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia against Attorney General Pam Bondi, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, Acting Director of ICE Todd Lyons, and White House Border Czar Tom Homan, alleging that these government officials violated the First Amendment rights of software developer Joshua Aaron and his corporation, All U Chart, Inc., which published the ICEBlock app.
ICEBlock is a free app that crowdsources publicly available sightings of ICE operations and alerts the community within a 4-mile radius. ICEBlock had over 1 million users when Apple removed it from the App Store in October 2025 in response to pressure from Defendants repeatedly denounced the app as “illegal,” threatened to investigate and criminally prosecute Mr. Aaron for its development, and denounced media outlets who publicized the existence of the app. Following Apple’s removal of ICEBlock from the App Store, Attorney General Bondi claimed credit, saying she had “demanded” Apple remove it and the company “did so.” The lawsuit alleges these actions constitute unconstitutional censorship, retaliation, and viewpoint discrimination under the First Amendment.
Plaintiffs are represented by partner Deirdre von Dornum, partner and pro-bono coordinator Noam Biale, counsel Alexandra Conlon, associate Kate Ghotbi, and paralegal Anand Chitnis.
Case Status
December 8, 2025: Plaintiffs file complaint and are awaiting Defendants’ response. Read the Complaint here.
Aaron, et al. v. Bondi, et al. in the News
12/09/2025, Legal AF: Trump DOJ HIT with NEW LAWSUIT as OFFICIALS PANIC
12/08/2025, NPR: ICEBlock app sues Trump administration for censorship and ‘unlawful threats’