Human Impact Project

19-year-old Javier Salazar, a Venezuelan who came to the U.S. as an unaccompanied minor in 2022, was arrested in Maryland and detained by ICE on suspicion of gang membership based on a photo showing what may have been a toy water pistol. A Supreme Court intervention blocked his deportation to El Salvador hours before he was to be removed. His legal battle continues as the Trump administration seeks to expedite his removal.

Mohsen Mahdawi, a lawful permanent resident and Columbia University student, was detained by ICE on April 14, 2025, immediately after his naturalization interview at a USCIS field office in Vermont. Federal Judge Crawford ordered his release on April 30, 2025, after finding that the government arrested him in retaliation for his pro-Palestinian speech and activism, violating his First Amendment and due process rights. The Trump administration had targeted him for lawful political speech deemed contrary to U.S. foreign policy. Mahdawi was released on bail pending resolution of his habeas petition, though he may still face deportation proceedings.

Loic Adandedjan, manager of Dottie's Coffee Lounge in Pittsfield, decided to self-deport to Benin in late April after living in the U.S. for a decade without permanent legal status. His decision was prompted by intensified anxiety over ICE enforcement, particularly after his coworker was detained by ICE on April 22. Adandedjan had initially come to the U.S. on a tourist visa for medical treatment and was working toward a green card when he chose to leave.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is conducting nationwide operations targeting unaccompanied immigrant children. According to internal documents, the operations include deportations and pursuit of criminal cases against them and their sponsors. The Trump administration has directed ICE to track down and deport this group and to share sensitive data from the federal agency monitoring these children. Legal advocates state this constitutes family separation and is causing trauma and fear among immigrant families.

Three U.S. citizen children under age 10 were deported to Honduras with their mothers. One child had Stage 4 cancer and was deported without medication. Another 2-year-old was given to a mother after less than two minutes of phone time with her husband to decide on the deportation. Trump administration officials claim the mothers requested their children accompany them. Attorneys report the mothers felt forced and were denied access to lawyers and family members.

Alfredo Linares, an undocumented immigrant, and his American wife Raegan Kline relocated to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico after 20 years in the United States. Linares had worked as a cook at a Michelin-star restaurant and operated a catering business with his wife. The couple left the United States due to concerns about ICE detention and deportation under President Trump's immigration enforcement policies.

The DEA conducted a multi-agency raid at an underground nightclub in Colorado Springs on Sunday, resulting in the arrest of 114 undocumented immigrants who were placed on buses for processing and deportation. The operation also resulted in the seizure of drugs and weapons. More than 200 people were in the club when arrests began around 3:45 a.m.

ICE deported an immigrant mother of an infant and three U.S. citizen children, according to lawyers. The woman had four children who are U.S. citizens at the time of her deportation.

A federal judge found strong suspicion that a Louisiana-born two-year-old U.S. citizen was deported to Honduras without due process after being apprehended with her undocumented mother at a New Orleans immigration office on April 22. The child and her family were removed despite a pending custody transfer request filed by the girl's father. In a separate case, a Cuban woman with a U.S. citizen husband was detained and deported.

ICE deported at least two families including three U.S. citizen children aged 2, 4, and 7 from New Orleans in early morning operations on April 25, 2025. The families were held without legal access. One child with metastatic cancer was deported without medication and a pregnant mother was deported without prenatal care arrangements. The deportations occurred after ICE reversed course and expedited the process before courts reopened. A habeas corpus petition had been filed.

Seven migrants died in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody during the first three months of Donald Trump's presidency, including Marie Blaise, a 44-year-old Haitian woman who died at a Florida detention center after complaining of chest pains. An ACLU investigation found that 95% of deaths at ICE-operated facilities between 2017-2021 could have been prevented with appropriate medical care. The deaths occurred across multiple states as detention centers became overwhelmed, operating 17% over capacity.

Marie Ange Blaise, 44, a Haitian woman, died on April 25, 2025, after spending more than 10 weeks in ICE custody. She was detained after being stopped at an airport in Saint Croix, Virgin Islands in mid-February without a valid immigrant visa. Blaise was held at multiple facilities including San Juan, Krome North Processing Center in Miami, a Louisiana facility, and finally Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach. Other detainees reported allegedly inhumane conditions including handcuffing, overcrowding, and denial of medical care.

A U.S. citizen was detained by ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations agents near Marts Donuts on W. El Norte Parkway in Escondido, California on April 25 around 7:40 a.m. Two other individuals with unknown legal status were also detained. The U.S. citizen was later released.

Martín Majín was detained by federal agents outside his barbershop in Pomona on Tuesday, with the arrest captured on security camera video showing agents approaching with weapons. He was released Wednesday after an immigration judge granted his release without bail. Majín, who was deported nearly 20 years ago and returned to the United States unauthorized months later, is scheduled to appear before an immigration judge again on May 29 in Los Angeles court.

Terez Metry was detained by immigration agents during a routine meeting at the Department of Homeland Security office on Brick Church Pike in Nashville. She had submitted Form I-130 as the first step toward obtaining a Green Card to become a U.S. citizen like her husband of three years. Her husband believes she is being taken to Louisiana for removal proceedings despite following immigration procedures carefully.

ICE arrested a Dominican national in Providence on April 24 after he became combative during an attempted arrest. Officers deployed a taser when he allegedly attempted to grab an officer's belt. The man was brought to Rhode Island Hospital, where about 85 protesters gathered. His attorney reported being denied access to his client despite having legal representation documentation.

Sergio Cerdio Gomez, a 42-year-old Pasco food truck owner, was detained by ICE during a scheduled immigration interview in Yakima on April 24, 2025. He was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant while attending the interview with his U.S. citizen wife regarding his pending green card and citizenship application, which they had filed in 2022.

Rosmery Alvarado, 42, a Kansas resident born in Guatemala, was arrested by ICE agents immediately after completing a spousal green card interview at the USCIS office in Kansas City on April 23, 2025. She is now facing deportation to Guatemala and is being held in detention, despite her family believing her petition had been approved. The arrest occurred after ICE agents waited for her husband to step out of the interview room before detaining and handcuffing her.

The Dominican Republic conducted a major enforcement operation deporting over 130 Haitian women and children, including approximately 48 pregnant women and 39 new mothers, from hospitals across the country. The deportations were carried out under a new immigration policy implemented by President Luis Abinader requiring hospital patients to provide identification and proof of residence at 33 public hospitals. Medical professionals, human rights groups, and the UN issued statements regarding the action. The crackdown is part of the government's broader effort to reduce undocumented migration.

Unaccompanied migrant children, including a 4-year-old girl, are appearing in immigration court proceedings without legal representation after the Trump administration terminated a $200 million federal contract funding legal services for minors. Data shows nearly all children without attorneys are deported, compared to 23% of those with representation.

Daniela, known as Ari on social media, was detained by ICE agents on April 22 while attending her scheduled monthly immigration check-in appointment. Her family and friends have launched a fundraising campaign to cover legal fees and support efforts to secure her release.

ICE agents conducted an enforcement operation outside a Home Depot in Pomona, Los Angeles County on the morning of April 22, 2025, detaining between 10 and 20 day laborers. The operation initially targeted one individual with an active arrest warrant and resulted in the detention of additional undocumented migrants. LA County Supervisor Hilda Solis directed the LA County Office of Immigrant Affairs to provide support and resources to those detained. Community groups and immigration advocates gathered at the scene to demand information and assist affected workers.

Florida launched Operation Tidal Wave, a major immigration enforcement initiative utilizing 287(g) agreements that allow local police to exercise federal immigration authority. The operation, which began in April 2025 and continued through January 2026, resulted in over 10,400 arrests across the state targeting individuals with final deportation orders and serious criminal records. The effort involved coordination between Florida state and local law enforcement with federal agencies including ICE, CBP, FBI, DEA, ATF, and U.S. Marshals Service.

Brandon Gonzalez has lived in Arizona since infancy. His family came to the United States from Mexico in 1999. On July 14, Gonzalez was detained by immigration enforcement.

Juan Carlos Lopez Gomez, a 20-year-old U.S. citizen, was arrested in Florida under a new state law criminalizing unauthorized entry into the state. He was held for pickup by ICE even after his mother presented his birth certificate to a judge, who dismissed the charges. ICE requested he remain in custody for 48 hours despite having no legal authority over U.S.-born citizens.

Juan Carlos Lopez Gomez, a United States citizen, was arrested in Florida for allegedly being in the country illegally and held for pickup by immigration authorities. Despite proving he was born in the United States, he was detained by ICE.

A Mother Jones investigation reports that approximately 60 Venezuelan detainees at the Bluebonnet Detention Facility in Texas were nearly removed to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act on April 18, 2025, based on accusations of gang membership. The men, including barber Stiven Prieto Viera and delivery driver Omar Cárdenas Martínez, were given one-page removal notices in English only with no opportunity to contest allegations that they were members of Tren de Aragua. The ACLU filed legal intervention and a Supreme Court order blocked the removals, preventing the detainees from being sent to El Salvador's CECOT prison. The Trump administration deported more than 100 Venezuelan and Salvadoran immigrants to El Salvador on March 15, 2025, using the 1798 Alien Enemies Act and designating them as members of the gang Tren de Aragua, a foreign terrorist organization. The State Department declared Tren de Aragua a foreign terrorist organization on February 20, 2025. Family members and lawyers claim some deported individuals were not gang members and some were living in the U.S. legally, with the administration using flawed criteria like tattoos to determine gang affiliation.

Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez, a 20-year-old U.S. citizen born in Georgia, was arrested by Florida Highway Patrol on April 16, 2025, following a traffic stop for speeding. He was charged under Senate Bill 4C, a state immigration enforcement law that had been temporarily blocked by court order. Despite presenting valid identification documents including a birth certificate and Social Security card, he was held on an ICE detainer at Leon County Jail without food. A judge verified his citizenship and confirmed he had committed no crime, but initially stated the court lacked jurisdiction to release him due to ICE's detainer request. He was released after approximately 24 hours following public advocacy from civil rights advocates, journalists, and elected officials.

Josue Coreas-Chavek, 29, from El Salvador, was arrested by ICE Buffalo on April 18, 2025, immediately after his release from Wyoming Correctional Facility. He had been sentenced in January 2025 to three years of incarceration and five years of supervised release for second-degree attempted robbery, conspiracy, and criminal facilitation. He faces additional pending charges including robbery, kidnapping, assault, coercion, unlawful imprisonment, and grand larceny, and is in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.

Carlos, a Venezuelan national with approved Temporary Protected Status, was detained by ICE in February despite having valid TPS. He describes detention conditions as prison-like, with expensive phone calls and inadequate medical care. Nearly 48,000 people are currently in ICE custody, the highest number since 2019, as advocates demand releases and an end to mass detention expansion.

Manny, an 18-year-old U.S. citizen from North Carolina, was detained by masked armed ICE agents on November 19, 2025, while sleeping in his work truck. He was later interviewed by The Hometown Holler.

Two hundred migrants, including 80 children from Afghanistan, Russia, Armenia, Iran, China and other Asian countries, were deported from the United States on two flights and detained at Costa Rica's CATEM immigration detention center in February 2025. Many were separated from family members still in the U.S., not informed of their deportation destination, and experienced abuse and rights violations in U.S. detention before being sent to Costa Rica.

A Houstonian who fled Honduras due to threats related to his sexual orientation was detained by ICE. Political groups have spoken out against the detention.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 206 undocumented immigrants during an enhanced enforcement operation in and around New York City from April 6-12, 2025. Of those arrested, 121 individuals had serious criminal histories or pending felony charges including murder, rape, assault, gun crimes, and drug trafficking. The operation focused on neighborhoods with high violent crime rates and individuals with alleged gang affiliations. The enforcement action sparked debate about local-federal cooperation and sanctuary city policies.

The Nevada Immigrant Coalition reported increased ICE enforcement activity across southern Nevada, leading to the closure of Broadacres Swap Meet, one of North Las Vegas's largest employers. Immigration advocates documented plainclothes ICE officers operating in unmarked vehicles across major Las Vegas areas, with over 30 people detained during earlier enforcement operations. The coalition urged community members to know their rights and develop family preparedness plans amid ongoing immigration enforcement activity.

Erasmo Zavala Almanza, a 50-year-old undocumented Mexican immigrant, was arrested by ICE agents at his home in April 2025 after cooperating with Berks County police in investigating the fatal shooting of his 20-year-old daughter and wounding of his granddaughter in February 2025. Despite applying for a U visa with support from the District Attorney's Office and receiving a favorable bona fide determination from USCIS along with deferred action and work authorization, ICE detained him at Moshannon Valley Processing Center and initiated deportation proceedings. His case reflects a shift under the Trump administration from prior guidance that discouraged arrests of crime victims and witnesses. A federal judge issued a temporary bar on removal while considering whether to grant a preliminary injunction to block deportation.

Dario Quevedo Marquez, a Venezuelan immigrant, was arrested by federal immigration agents on April 15 as he left a South Side Chicago courthouse after a hearing on a misdemeanor battery charge. His wife said agents told her to stay quiet or face arrest herself. The arrest occurred at a courthouse, violating state law and a Cook County judge's order banning civil immigration arrests without warrants at local courthouses.

Department of Homeland Security agents attempted to speak with students at two Los Angeles elementary schools (Russell Elementary and Lillian Street Elementary) stating they were conducting welfare checks on unaccompanied minors. School principals denied the agents access. House Democrats have requested a briefing regarding the agents' claim of having parental permission and regarding four of the targeted students who were not unaccompanied minors.

Juan Francisco Mendez, a 29-year-old Guatemalan immigrant, was released from the Strafford County Jail on May 15, 2025, after being detained for 30 days following his April 14 arrest in New Bedford. An immigration judge set his bail at $1,500, the lowest amount possible, and Mendez was released wearing an ankle monitor. ICE agents had smashed his car window with an ax during the initial traffic stop while Mendez and his wife waited for their lawyer. Mendez is now working toward reunification with his wife and 9-year-old son.

Jessica Flores Marin, 44, a mother of three who has lived in the United States for 22 years, was detained by ICE on April 13 near her family's home in Georgia. She was taken into custody while an ongoing T visa application was being processed. Her detention came after an immigration judge denied her motion to reopen a decades-old deportation order from 2004.

Hugo, a father of five and husband of a U.S. citizen veteran who had lived in the U.S. since age 16, was detained by ICE at a courthouse during what should have been a final hearing for permanent residency. Despite being in an active legal process and authorized to be in the U.S., officials ordered him to continue his case from Mexico and deported him. ICE later admitted the detention was a mistake, but Hugo has been separated from his family.

Aled Damien Carbonell-Betancourt, a 27-year-old Cuban man, died in ICE custody in Florida on April 12, 2025, in what appeared to be a suicide attempt. His family launched a fundraising campaign in May 2026 to raise $3,000 for cremation and to repatriate his ashes to his parents in Cuba, who cannot travel to the United States. He is the second person to die by suspected suicide in ICE custody in Florida in less than a month, with at least 49 people having died under ICE custody since Trump took office in January 2025.

A Florida woman, Latrance Battle, impersonated an ICE agent and kidnapped her ex-boyfriend's wife from her workplace on April 10. The victim, who was in the process of becoming a legal U.S. resident, believed Battle was an ICE agent when approached. Battle took the victim to an apartment complex instead of the sheriff's office, where the victim escaped and contacted law enforcement. Battle was arrested and charged with kidnapping, robbery, impersonating a law enforcement officer, and felony probation violation.

A disgraced former Milwaukee police officer with serious credibility issues, Charles Cross Jr., signed a report claiming a gay Venezuelan makeup artist was affiliated with the Tren de Aragua gang based on tattoos. The report played a key role in the man's deportation to El Salvador's Terrorism Confinement Center. Cross had been flagged by prosecutors as having credibility issues due to accusations of lying and breaking the law.

María Alejandra Rivas Martínez, a 19-year-old Venezuelan, was detained by ICE on April 10 after a state police officer notified the agency following a traffic accident in Miami where she was struck by another vehicle while transporting her partner to a medical appointment. She had entered the U.S. legally in 2019 with a tourist visa at age 13 and currently holds a valid work permit, Florida driver's license, and has a pending asylum case. She was transferred to Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach, where she awaits an immigration hearing. Her family has launched a fundraising campaign to cover legal costs for her defense.

Jose Hermosillo, a 19-year-old U.S. citizen, was wrongfully detained by Border Patrol in Arizona for 10 days at Florence Correctional Center after approaching an officer for help following a medical emergency. The Department of Homeland Security claimed Hermosillo stated he crossed the border without authorization and was a Mexican citizen, but Hermosillo disputes this account, saying he cannot read and did not understand the document he signed. His family provided his birth certificate to secure his release after a court hearing.

Jesús Eduardo Marín, a Venezuelan national who has lived in the United States for 12 years with his wife and three children, was detained by Border Patrol agents on April 8 during a traffic stop in Miami, Florida. Although Marín had an active asylum case pending and was residing legally under that framework, authorities detained him after determining he lacked citizenship or permanent residency status. He was subsequently transferred to a detention facility.

Jose Hermosillo, a 19-year-old U.S. citizen from Albuquerque, was arrested by Border Patrol agents on April 8 near Nogales, Arizona, and detained for 10 days at Florence Correctional Center on suspicion of illegally entering the country despite having U.S. citizenship. His family located him after extensive searching and provided his birth certificate and social security card to officials. A magistrate judge dismissed his case on April 17, and he was released that night.

Priya Saxena, an Indian graduate student at South Dakota Mines, received notification on April 7, 2025 that her visa was revoked as part of a Trump administration criminal records check of international students. The revocation was triggered by a misdemeanor traffic conviction from 2021 for failing to pull over for an emergency vehicle in Meade County; a related DUI charge from the same traffic stop was dismissed after her blood alcohol tested within the legal limit. Saxena had previously disclosed these legal matters when obtaining her most recent visa in 2022. She filed a temporary restraining order against the government seeking a court order to remain in the country after completing her master's and doctoral degrees at the institution.

ICE agents detained a 76-year-old Indonesian father and his 47-year-old son outside the Philadelphia Criminal Justice Center on April 7 while the father attempted to drop assault charges against his son in court. The father was released shortly after, but the son remained in immigration detention over two weeks later. Advocates argue the incident demonstrates how immigrants risk deportation when participating in the justice system and have called for restrictions on ICE activity at the courthouse, where dozens of immigrants have been arrested in the past 15 months.