Washington
ICEBlock app maker sues Trump administration for free speech violations
WASHINGTON (AP) — The maker of an iPhone app that flagged sightings of U.S. immigration agents sued the Trump administration for free speech violations on Monday, alleging that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi used her “state power” to force Apple to remove the app.
Apple in October removed ICEBlock and other apps from its app store after Bondi said they put Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at risk by enabling people to track ICE activity in their neighborhoods.
The lawsuit from ICEBlock app maker Joshua Aaron argued that the government’s actions violated the First Amendment.
The lawsuit also asks a federal judge to protect the Texas-based software developer from prosecution, alleging “unlawful threats made by Attorney General Bondi, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, ICE Acting Director Todd M. Lyons, and White House Border Czar Tom Homan to criminally investigate and prosecute Aaron for his role in developing ICEBlock.”
The Department of Justice didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
ICEBlock was the most widely used of the ICE-tracking apps in Apple’s app store until Bondi said in October that her office reached out to Apple “demanding that they remove ICEBlock” and claiming that it “is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs.”
Apple soon complied, sending an email to Aaron that said it would block further downloads of the app because new information “provided to Apple by law enforcement” showed the app broke the app store rules.
According to the email, which Aaron shared with The Associated Press in October, Apple said the app violated the company’s policies “because its purpose is to provide location information about law enforcement officers that can be used to harm such officers individually or as a group.”
Massachusetts
Court hears arguments in lawsuit alleging Meta designed apps to be addictive to kids
BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts’ highest court heard oral arguments Friday in the state’s lawsuit arguing that Meta designed features on Facebook and Instagram to make them addictive to young users.
The lawsuit, filed in 2024 by Attorney General Andrea Campbell, alleges that Meta did this to make a profit and that its actions affected hundreds of thousands of teenagers in Massachusetts who use the social media platforms.
“We are making claims based only on the tools that Meta has developed because its own research shows they encourage addiction to the platform in a variety of ways,” said State Solicitor David Kravitz, adding that the state’s claim has nothing to do the company’s algorithms or failure to moderate content.
Meta said Friday that it strongly disagrees with the allegations and is “confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people.” Its attorney, Mark Mosier, argued in court that the lawsuit “would impose liabilities for performing traditional publishing functions” and that its actions are protected by the First Amendment.
“The Commonwealth would have a better chance of getting around the First Amendment if they alleged that the speech was false or fraudulent,” Mosier said. “But when they acknowledge that its truthful that brings it in the heart of the First Amendment.”
Several of the judges, though, seem to more concerned about Meta’s functions such as notifications than the content on its platforms.
“I didn’t understand the claims to be that Meta is relaying false information vis-a-vis the notifications but that it has created an algorithm of incessant notifications ... designed so as to feed into the fear of missing out, fomo, that teenagers generally have,” Justice Dalila Wendlandt said. “That is the basis of the claim.”
Justice Scott Kafker challenged the notion that this was all about a choose to publish certain information by Meta.
“It’s not how to publish but how to attract you to the information,” he said. “It’s about how to attract the eyeballs. It’s indifferent the content, right. It doesn’t care if it’s Thomas Paine’s ‘Common Sense’ or nonsense.
It’s totally focused on getting you to look at it.”
Meta is facing federal and state lawsuits claiming it knowingly designed features — such as constant notifications and the ability to scroll endlessly — that addict children.
In 2023, 33 states filed a joint lawsuit against the Menlo Park, California-based tech giant claiming that Meta routinely collects data on children under 13 without their parents’ consent, in violation of federal law. In addition, states including Massachusetts filed their own lawsuits in state courts over addictive features and other harms to children.
Newspaper reports, first by The Wall Street Journal in the fall of 2021, found that the company knew about the harms Instagram can cause teenagers — especially teen girls — when it comes to mental health and body image issues. One internal study cited 13.5% of teen girls saying Instagram makes thoughts of suicide worse and 17% of teen girls saying it makes eating disorders worse.
Critics say Meta hasn’t done enough to address concerns about teen safety and mental health on its platforms. A report from former employee and whistleblower Arturo Bejar and four nonprofit groups this year said Meta has chosen not to take “real steps” to address safety concerns, “opting instead for splashy headlines about new tools for parents and Instagram Teen Accounts for underage users.”
Meta said the report misrepresented its efforts on teen safety.
Michigan
Woman accused of driving car through home, injuring young girl
Caris Adell Wade, 21, was arraigned Dec. 4 before Judge Joseph Toia in the Macomb County Circuit Court on charges related to her allegedly driving her car after she drank alcohol and crashing the car through a Centerline home, injuring a young girl.
Wade was arraigned on the following charges: Reckless Driving Causing Serious Impairment Of A Body Function, a 5-year felony; Failure To Stop At Scene Of Accident Resulting In Serious Impairment Or Death, a 5-year felony; Operating with a High Blood Alcohol Count, a 180-day misdemeanor.
The third charge of Operating with a High Blood Alcohol Count was added to Wade’s charges after toxicology results were obtained.
On November 18, 2025, at a Probable Cause Conference before Judge Suzanne Faunce at the 37th District Court in Warren, Wade waived her right to a Preliminary Exam, thereby sending her case to the Macomb County Circuit Court.
It is alleged that on Monday, October 13, 2025, at 2:55 a.m., Wade, of Detroit, was willfully, wantonly, and recklessly driving her vehicle after she consumed alcohol. As a result of her driving, Wade crashed her vehicle directly into the bedroom of a Centerline residence. In the bedroom sleeping was a 9-year-old girl and her 22-month-old sister. The 9-year-old suffered serious bodily injuries. The 22-month-old was unharmed. After crashing into the home, Wade then fled the scene on foot but was later apprehended by the Warren Police.
North Carolina
Honduran man is held without bond in train stabbing
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina judge on Monday ordered a Honduran man to be held without bond in a non-fatal stabbing on a Charlotte commuter train that drew comments from President Donald Trump pointing out the suspect is in the country illegally.
Oscar Solarzano, 33, wearing an orange jumpsuit and appearing via video link, listened impassively as a translator read charges of attempted first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon and others. Mecklenburg County District Judge Keith Smith scheduled his next hearing for Dec. 30.
The public defender in the courtroom declined to comment.
Solarzano, also known as Oscar Gerardo Solorzano-Garcia, is charged with stabbing 24-year-old Kenyon Kareem Dobie in the chest during a fight Friday on the city’s Blue Line.
It was revealed in court that Solarzano had been banned from Charlotte Area Transit Service property in October. CATS spokesman Brett Baldeck confirmed the ban, but did not have any further details. “Our security team is looking into this now,” Baldeck said.
The Department of Homeland Security says Solarzano had been deported twice and has previous convictions for robbery and illegal reentry, but details were not immediately available.
DHS, which recently conducted an immigration crackdown in Charlotte and around the state capital of Raleigh, has lodged a detainer with local authorities.
Attempts by The Associated Press to reach Dobie were unsuccessful. But he told WRAL that he confronted Solarzano for yelling at an older woman.
“I guess it’s better off that it happened to me and not an older person,” Dobie told the station.
“I wasn’t trying to be a macho man,” Dobie said in a TikTok post from his hospital room. “But what I won’t allow is you to attack random people for no reason, especially the elderly.”
The incident comes just a few months after a Ukrainian refugee riding one of the city’s trains was killed in an unrelated knife attack.
Iryna Zarutska, 23, had been living in a bomb shelter in Ukraine before coming to the U.S. to escape the war, her relatives said. Decarlos Brown Jr., has been charged with first-degree murder in state court, and was also indicted in federal court on a charge of causing death on a mass transportation system.
As with the Aug. 22 attack, President Donald Trump and others in his administration point to the incident as proof that Democratic-led cities are soft on crime.
“Another stabbing by an Illegal Migrant in Charlotte, North Carolina,” Trump commented Saturday about the latest stabbing on his Truth Social site. “What’s going on in Charlotte? Democrats are destroying it, like everything else, piece by piece!!!”
Although they have not responded directly to Trump, city officials have defended their efforts to keep the public safe.
“We have invested heavily in increasing security on our transit system and CMPD has been proactive in increasing its presence across our city, including announcing a new multi-agency effort this week,” Mayor Vi Lyles said on Saturday. “There are several aspects of public safety that are outside of the city’s jurisdiction, including immigration policy and enforcement, but we will continue to focus on public safety and ensuring a safe and vibrant community.”
Brent Cagle, CATS interim CEO, said the transit system has taken a “proactive and robust” safety approach since Zarutska’s stabbing, with extra off-duty police officers, private security and new technology.
“We will continue to work with our partners at CMPD as well as our private security team to ensure everyone rides appropriately on public transit,” he said. “We will not compromise on the safety of our customers and employees.”
ICEBlock app maker sues Trump administration for free speech violations
WASHINGTON (AP) — The maker of an iPhone app that flagged sightings of U.S. immigration agents sued the Trump administration for free speech violations on Monday, alleging that U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi used her “state power” to force Apple to remove the app.
Apple in October removed ICEBlock and other apps from its app store after Bondi said they put Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers at risk by enabling people to track ICE activity in their neighborhoods.
The lawsuit from ICEBlock app maker Joshua Aaron argued that the government’s actions violated the First Amendment.
The lawsuit also asks a federal judge to protect the Texas-based software developer from prosecution, alleging “unlawful threats made by Attorney General Bondi, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, ICE Acting Director Todd M. Lyons, and White House Border Czar Tom Homan to criminally investigate and prosecute Aaron for his role in developing ICEBlock.”
The Department of Justice didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
ICEBlock was the most widely used of the ICE-tracking apps in Apple’s app store until Bondi said in October that her office reached out to Apple “demanding that they remove ICEBlock” and claiming that it “is designed to put ICE agents at risk just for doing their jobs.”
Apple soon complied, sending an email to Aaron that said it would block further downloads of the app because new information “provided to Apple by law enforcement” showed the app broke the app store rules.
According to the email, which Aaron shared with The Associated Press in October, Apple said the app violated the company’s policies “because its purpose is to provide location information about law enforcement officers that can be used to harm such officers individually or as a group.”
Massachusetts
Court hears arguments in lawsuit alleging Meta designed apps to be addictive to kids
BOSTON (AP) — Massachusetts’ highest court heard oral arguments Friday in the state’s lawsuit arguing that Meta designed features on Facebook and Instagram to make them addictive to young users.
The lawsuit, filed in 2024 by Attorney General Andrea Campbell, alleges that Meta did this to make a profit and that its actions affected hundreds of thousands of teenagers in Massachusetts who use the social media platforms.
“We are making claims based only on the tools that Meta has developed because its own research shows they encourage addiction to the platform in a variety of ways,” said State Solicitor David Kravitz, adding that the state’s claim has nothing to do the company’s algorithms or failure to moderate content.
Meta said Friday that it strongly disagrees with the allegations and is “confident the evidence will show our longstanding commitment to supporting young people.” Its attorney, Mark Mosier, argued in court that the lawsuit “would impose liabilities for performing traditional publishing functions” and that its actions are protected by the First Amendment.
“The Commonwealth would have a better chance of getting around the First Amendment if they alleged that the speech was false or fraudulent,” Mosier said. “But when they acknowledge that its truthful that brings it in the heart of the First Amendment.”
Several of the judges, though, seem to more concerned about Meta’s functions such as notifications than the content on its platforms.
“I didn’t understand the claims to be that Meta is relaying false information vis-a-vis the notifications but that it has created an algorithm of incessant notifications ... designed so as to feed into the fear of missing out, fomo, that teenagers generally have,” Justice Dalila Wendlandt said. “That is the basis of the claim.”
Justice Scott Kafker challenged the notion that this was all about a choose to publish certain information by Meta.
“It’s not how to publish but how to attract you to the information,” he said. “It’s about how to attract the eyeballs. It’s indifferent the content, right. It doesn’t care if it’s Thomas Paine’s ‘Common Sense’ or nonsense.
It’s totally focused on getting you to look at it.”
Meta is facing federal and state lawsuits claiming it knowingly designed features — such as constant notifications and the ability to scroll endlessly — that addict children.
In 2023, 33 states filed a joint lawsuit against the Menlo Park, California-based tech giant claiming that Meta routinely collects data on children under 13 without their parents’ consent, in violation of federal law. In addition, states including Massachusetts filed their own lawsuits in state courts over addictive features and other harms to children.
Newspaper reports, first by The Wall Street Journal in the fall of 2021, found that the company knew about the harms Instagram can cause teenagers — especially teen girls — when it comes to mental health and body image issues. One internal study cited 13.5% of teen girls saying Instagram makes thoughts of suicide worse and 17% of teen girls saying it makes eating disorders worse.
Critics say Meta hasn’t done enough to address concerns about teen safety and mental health on its platforms. A report from former employee and whistleblower Arturo Bejar and four nonprofit groups this year said Meta has chosen not to take “real steps” to address safety concerns, “opting instead for splashy headlines about new tools for parents and Instagram Teen Accounts for underage users.”
Meta said the report misrepresented its efforts on teen safety.
Michigan
Woman accused of driving car through home, injuring young girl
Caris Adell Wade, 21, was arraigned Dec. 4 before Judge Joseph Toia in the Macomb County Circuit Court on charges related to her allegedly driving her car after she drank alcohol and crashing the car through a Centerline home, injuring a young girl.
Wade was arraigned on the following charges: Reckless Driving Causing Serious Impairment Of A Body Function, a 5-year felony; Failure To Stop At Scene Of Accident Resulting In Serious Impairment Or Death, a 5-year felony; Operating with a High Blood Alcohol Count, a 180-day misdemeanor.
The third charge of Operating with a High Blood Alcohol Count was added to Wade’s charges after toxicology results were obtained.
On November 18, 2025, at a Probable Cause Conference before Judge Suzanne Faunce at the 37th District Court in Warren, Wade waived her right to a Preliminary Exam, thereby sending her case to the Macomb County Circuit Court.
It is alleged that on Monday, October 13, 2025, at 2:55 a.m., Wade, of Detroit, was willfully, wantonly, and recklessly driving her vehicle after she consumed alcohol. As a result of her driving, Wade crashed her vehicle directly into the bedroom of a Centerline residence. In the bedroom sleeping was a 9-year-old girl and her 22-month-old sister. The 9-year-old suffered serious bodily injuries. The 22-month-old was unharmed. After crashing into the home, Wade then fled the scene on foot but was later apprehended by the Warren Police.
North Carolina
Honduran man is held without bond in train stabbing
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — A North Carolina judge on Monday ordered a Honduran man to be held without bond in a non-fatal stabbing on a Charlotte commuter train that drew comments from President Donald Trump pointing out the suspect is in the country illegally.
Oscar Solarzano, 33, wearing an orange jumpsuit and appearing via video link, listened impassively as a translator read charges of attempted first-degree murder, assault with a deadly weapon and others. Mecklenburg County District Judge Keith Smith scheduled his next hearing for Dec. 30.
The public defender in the courtroom declined to comment.
Solarzano, also known as Oscar Gerardo Solorzano-Garcia, is charged with stabbing 24-year-old Kenyon Kareem Dobie in the chest during a fight Friday on the city’s Blue Line.
It was revealed in court that Solarzano had been banned from Charlotte Area Transit Service property in October. CATS spokesman Brett Baldeck confirmed the ban, but did not have any further details. “Our security team is looking into this now,” Baldeck said.
The Department of Homeland Security says Solarzano had been deported twice and has previous convictions for robbery and illegal reentry, but details were not immediately available.
DHS, which recently conducted an immigration crackdown in Charlotte and around the state capital of Raleigh, has lodged a detainer with local authorities.
Attempts by The Associated Press to reach Dobie were unsuccessful. But he told WRAL that he confronted Solarzano for yelling at an older woman.
“I guess it’s better off that it happened to me and not an older person,” Dobie told the station.
“I wasn’t trying to be a macho man,” Dobie said in a TikTok post from his hospital room. “But what I won’t allow is you to attack random people for no reason, especially the elderly.”
The incident comes just a few months after a Ukrainian refugee riding one of the city’s trains was killed in an unrelated knife attack.
Iryna Zarutska, 23, had been living in a bomb shelter in Ukraine before coming to the U.S. to escape the war, her relatives said. Decarlos Brown Jr., has been charged with first-degree murder in state court, and was also indicted in federal court on a charge of causing death on a mass transportation system.
As with the Aug. 22 attack, President Donald Trump and others in his administration point to the incident as proof that Democratic-led cities are soft on crime.
“Another stabbing by an Illegal Migrant in Charlotte, North Carolina,” Trump commented Saturday about the latest stabbing on his Truth Social site. “What’s going on in Charlotte? Democrats are destroying it, like everything else, piece by piece!!!”
Although they have not responded directly to Trump, city officials have defended their efforts to keep the public safe.
“We have invested heavily in increasing security on our transit system and CMPD has been proactive in increasing its presence across our city, including announcing a new multi-agency effort this week,” Mayor Vi Lyles said on Saturday. “There are several aspects of public safety that are outside of the city’s jurisdiction, including immigration policy and enforcement, but we will continue to focus on public safety and ensuring a safe and vibrant community.”
Brent Cagle, CATS interim CEO, said the transit system has taken a “proactive and robust” safety approach since Zarutska’s stabbing, with extra off-duty police officers, private security and new technology.
“We will continue to work with our partners at CMPD as well as our private security team to ensure everyone rides appropriately on public transit,” he said. “We will not compromise on the safety of our customers and employees.”
