Staff at the Justice Department allege that Carolyn Feinstein was abruptly let go after it came to light that her husband developed a controversial app against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
Feinstein, a forensic accountant based in Austin, Texas, claims her termination last Friday was a form of “retaliation” due to her husband’s involvement with the app, of which she owns a minor share.
“This is retaliation. I lost my job because of my husband’s actions,” Feinstein told a news outlet on Monday.
Her husband, Joshua Aaron, recently stirred up significant backlash after promoting the app designed to alert users about ICE activity.
Following Aaron’s appearance on CNN to discuss the app, high-ranking officials including Tom Homan, a prominent figure in Trump’s administration, urged the DOJ to conduct an investigation.
Feinstein mentioned her husband reported the situation to the DOJ after he began receiving death threats.
“Since we live together, it seemed possible that his outreach to my employer was related. The DOJ was going to keep me informed about any threats,” she explained.
A week later, Feinstein noted that the U.S. trustees’ office started inquiring about the app.
She confirmed that she holds a minority stake in the company behind the app, All U Chart, Inc.
However, she stated that she would only be able to shut down the app if her husband was deemed “incompetent.”
A DOJ spokesperson revealed they had been probing the connections to Feinstein’s situation for “a few weeks” after it was discovered she was linked to the company.
“Ice Block is an app that undocumented individuals use to evade arrest, putting ICE officers in danger,” the spokesperson said, underlining that the department “does not condone threats against law enforcement.”
Despite this, Feinstein argued that her contributions to the DOJ have been “fair.”
“I feel shame because I have committed my career to serving American citizens, and now the DOJ suggests I am a threat to them. That’s simply not the case,” she remarked.
