Kristi Noem Threatens DOJ Crackdown on Free Speech Over ICE-Tracking App

As volunteers help immigrants avoid detention by moving court hearings to Zoom, a top Trump ally wants to criminalize reporting on ICE.

They’re not just coming for immigrants. They’re coming for the people helping them.

Today, while touring one of Trump’s proposed detention zones—an alligator-lined immigration camp some are already calling “Alligator Auschwitz”—South Dakota Secretary of Public Safety Kristi Noem told reporters that she’s working with the Department of Justice to prosecute developers of an app that tracks ICE agents.

“What they’re doing is actively encouraging people to avoid law enforcement... We’re working with the Department of Justice to see if we can prosecute them for that.” — Kristi Noem

This isn’t just authoritarian rhetoric. It’s a direct attack on freedom of speech, press, and public transparency. And it comes at a time when a growing number of volunteers, students, and civil rights groups are trying to help immigrants safely attend court without risking arrest or deportation.

One of the most effective tools available right now? A free, bilingual national hotline that helps immigrants file motions to move their immigration court hearings to Zoom—dramatically reducing the risk of being targeted at in-person court appearances by ICE.

📞 Hotline Number: 888‑462‑5211
Made possible by: USC’s Agents of Change Civil Rights Advocacy Initiative,
Languages: English and Spanish

📌 Note: They help file motions—not legal advice, and no guarantee the motion will be approved.

This initiative has helped thousands already. And now, Kristi Noem and the Trump camp seem to want to criminalize anyone who makes it harder for ICE to detain people.

📬 Stay Informed. Stay Loud.
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⚖️ LEGAL EXPLAINER: Can the DOJ Actually Prosecute ICE-Tracking Apps?

In a word: No—not legally. Here’s why:

1. First Amendment protection is strong.
Apps that report on government actions—even law enforcement locations—are generally protected speech, like a journalist posting where police are patrolling.

2. The Supreme Court has ruled on this.
In Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969), the Court held that speech can only be criminalized if it incites imminent illegal action and is likely to cause it. An app that shares where ICE vans were seen? Nowhere close.

3. This is political speech.
Helping immigrants avoid abuse is core protected political expression—and targeting those who report on ICE is a clear violation of freedom of the press.

4. No precedent for this kind of prosecution.
Apps like Waze already let people report police locations. Immigrant advocacy apps like Notifica and MigraCam do the same for ICE. None have been successfully prosecuted.

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What This Is Really About

This is not about "avoiding law enforcement." It’s about avoiding unlawful arrest, racial profiling, and family separation. It’s about protecting people from a system that too often treats them like enemies instead of human beings.

And the fact that the Trump camp is targeting volunteers and students for helping immigrants navigate court safely should be a red flag to every American who values liberty.

🗽 Help spread the word. Share the hotline: 888‑462‑5211.
Help your neighbors. Help the truth. And help stop this before it turns into something far worse.

📘 Before You Go...

If they’re going to weaponize the law, we better know it like the back of our hand.

We’re watching political leaders threaten citizens for exercising their First Amendment rights. We’re watching ICE target immigrants in plain sight. And now we’re watching them try to criminalize apps, volunteers, and advocacy itself.

This isn’t just a legal fight. It’s a constitutional one.

That’s why we’re giving away a free digital Pocket Constitution—so you know exactly what they’re trying to silence, suppress, and ignore.

📥 Download your free copy now
Carry it on your phone. Print it. Share it.
Because if they’re going to come for your rights, you damn well better know where they live.