Overview
- Judge Jorge L. Alonso granted a preliminary injunction that bars Homeland Security and Justice officials from pressuring Apple or Meta to remove the plaintiffs’ projects and lets the creators work with the platforms to restore them.
- The case involves the Eyes Up app and the Facebook group “ICE Sightings – Chicagoland,” which used public information to report Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity and were taken down after outreach by federal officials.
- Alonso found the plaintiffs likely to win on First Amendment grounds, saying officials demanded removals rather than sought reviews and issued thinly veiled threats of prosecution.
- The judge cited the Supreme Court’s 2024 NRA v. Vullo decision, which held that officials cannot coerce private actors to punish or suppress views the government disfavors.
- The order is temporary and the government is expected to appeal, and the outcome could shape how agencies approach speech about law enforcement as organizers now try to bring these community tools back online.