Human Impact Project

Two separate ICE detention cases involved individuals serving critical caregiving roles. Maher Tarabishi was detained while being the sole caregiver for his son with Pompe disease, who is completely immobile and dependent on his father for all daily care. Josué, a day laborer from El Salvador, was detained by ICE agents and reported that his heart condition went unaddressed during detention, with medication withheld and inadequate medical attention provided despite his history of heart attacks.

John Bol Ajak, 26, a former Syracuse University basketball player who fled civil war in South Sudan, was arrested and detained by federal immigration agents. Ajak's student visa had expired and he was no longer enrolled as a student. He is being held at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Pennsylvania.

A new report based on interviews with 364 people in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Costa Rica documents the experiences of migrants deported from or forced to return by the U.S. and Mexico. The report documents detention conditions, deportation processes, and third-country removals, with findings showing 44% were detained or deported by the U.S., 20% by Mexico, and 34% forced to return due to fear of detention. Interviewees reported torture, cruelty, family separation, denial of food and water, excessive force, and degrading treatment during detention and deportation.

Between June 2025 and March 2026, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained at least 46 people outside Elmwood Correctional Facility in Milpitas by monitoring publicly posted inmate release lists. The detentions occurred despite Santa Clara County's sanctuary policies prohibiting cooperation with ICE. On March 4, 2026, approximately 80 protesters gathered at the facility to oppose the practice. Community leaders and county officials criticized the detentions, with some asserting that sheriff's deputies facilitated the practice by maintaining publicly available release information. The sheriff's office stated it does not cooperate with ICE.

Over 1,100 Afghan refugees, many of whom served alongside U.S. forces, are at Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar. Since February 28, 2026, residents have experienced missile attacks and are housed in shipping containers. President Trump suspended their refugee resettlement program in 2025. The refugees remain in Qatar with unresolved immigration status.

The Trump administration is taking steps to close Camp East Montana, the sprawling tent facility at Fort Bliss in El Paso that was once the largest center in ICE detention network. An internal ICE document shows the agency is drafting a letter to terminate the $1.24 billion contract with Acquisition Logistics LLC, a Virginia company with no prior detention experience. The facility population has dropped to about 1,500, roughly half its January peak, and was under measles quarantine with 14 active cases and 112 in isolation along with prior COVID-19 and tuberculosis outbreaks.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in southwestern Arizona issued over 100 citations to legal immigrants, including permanent residents, visa holders, international students, and DACA recipients, for not carrying immigration documents under a 1952 federal law. The citations were primarily issued by Yuma Sector Border Patrol agents during traffic stops and at checkpoints and carry fines around $80. The citations can complicate green card renewals and citizenship applications and remain in federal records for 30 years.

Federal agents arrested Arnoldo Jose Marquez-Pulido, a 33-year-old Venezuelan man, outside a Sam's Club in Utica on March 4, 2026, after he allegedly resisted arrest during a scuffle. The U.S. Attorney's Office charged him with assaulting, resisting, and interfering with a federal officer, as well as illegal possession of a firearm. The arrest occurred during surveillance of the Sam's Club based on allegations that undocumented immigrants were working as delivery drivers there.

Irvin Cruz Nape, a father of four, died on March 4, 2026, days after being released from the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. Cruz Nape reported heart attack-like symptoms while in custody but allegedly did not receive proper medical treatment. He had been detained by ICE agents in the fall after being mistaken for another target, and was granted bond and released in late February.

ICE is deporting crime survivors who have long been protected by Congress through programs like the U-Visa, Violence Against Women Act, and T-Visa for trafficking survivors. A multi-state class-action lawsuit challenges the Trump administration's 2025 ICE guidance that rescinds policies protecting these groups from deportation. Plaintiff Yessenia Ruano, a former Milwaukee teacher's aide with a pending T-Visa application, self-deported to El Salvador with her U.S. citizen children after ICE threatened her during a check-in.

Federal immigration enforcement officers with ICE and Border Patrol have shot 14 people since September 2025 during deportation operations nationwide. The shootings have resulted in at least four deaths, including two U.S. citizens in Minneapolis. The incidents involve a mix of suspected criminals, undocumented immigrants, and U.S. citizens, with limited public information on investigations or discipline.

Alejandro Jose Petit Poleo, a noncitizen who had been previously released on bond or conditional parole, was re-detained by immigration authorities on March 3, 2026. The court found that the Due Process Clause requires the government to provide a pre-deprivation bond hearing before a neutral arbiter when re-detaining someone who was previously released. The court ordered Petit Poleo's immediate release with the same conditions he had prior to detention.

Mohamed Moula Ye was re-detained on March 3, 2026 after previously being released on bond or conditional parole. The court found that the government violated due process by re-detaining him without providing a pre-deprivation bond hearing before a neutral arbiter. The court ordered his immediate release with the same conditions he had prior to detention and required the government to provide seven days' notice and a proper hearing before any future re-detention.

Changes in US deportation policy, including Executive Order 14159, have led to increased enforcement actions against Bhutanese refugees resettled in the US between 2007-2017. ICE data shows a 500% increase in arrests of Bhutanese individuals from February 2025 onward. The Trump administration implemented a new ICE policy allowing detention of refugees who have not yet obtained permanent residency for a 'rescreening' process. A federal judge in Minneapolis blocked attempts to arrest settled refugees in Minnesota. The enforcement actions raise concerns as stateless Bhutanese individuals face persecution risk in Bhutan, and the immigration system fails to identify statelessness as a protected category.

Records obtained by The Washington Post show that Immigration and Customs Enforcement cut its basic training program while simultaneously expanding hiring to accelerate deportation efforts under the Trump administration. A whistleblower previously made claims about concerns regarding the quality of ICE agent training.

The ACLU of Colorado reported that ICE has detained thousands of people at nine facilities across Colorado without proper oversight or transparency, operating in violation of the agency's own internal policies.

Daniel Pino Alfonso, a Cuban national who unlawfully entered the U.S. in 2022, was arrested on March 3 in Spring Hill, Tennessee for allegedly stealing approximately $6,000 worth of shoes and possessing $3,400 in cash. ICE issued a detainer for Pino Alfonso, who remains in county jail pending deportation proceedings. Pino Alfonso and his accomplice were observed conducting organized retail theft from multiple stores using specialized tools to disable anti-theft devices.

Two bounty hunters, Garrett C. Willis and James R. Willis, were charged with felony threats of violence after confrontations with anti-ICE protesters in Minneapolis on March 3. During two incidents—one in the Phillips West neighborhood and another outside Hennepin County jail—the men pointed replica firearms at protesters and fired pepper ball munitions. Both men admitted to carrying weapons that resembled real firearms and using them against protesters.

Chicago's immigration court has lost nine of 21 judges through resignations, buyouts, and terminations since January 2025, leaving only 14 permanent and 2 temporary judges to handle record case backlogs. Former judges cited changing court procedures, pressure from the Trump administration, and concerns about fair application of immigration law as reasons for departure. The exodus mirrors a larger national trend of immigration judge departures during Trump's second term.

ICE arrested a father near a Boise daycare approximately one month prior to the agency's public response. ICE stated the arrest was targeted and based on the man's 2024 conviction for theft by alteration. The agency clarified that officers were not at the preschool itself but detained the man about 200 yards away. The man's family requested anonymity.

Darwing Inocente Xitumul Morales, a Guatemalan worker, was returned to ICE custody after an immigration judge ruled he was a danger to the community and denied him bond on March 2. Morales had been arrested in New Bedford on February 11 and briefly released after a federal judge ordered his release and a bond hearing. He is now being held at Plymouth County Correctional Facility pending a hearing scheduled for April 23.

Asylum approval rates were fewer than 3% in January 2026, down from 18% a year earlier. Immigrants have increasingly skipped their court hearings. Nationally, 20% of asylum seekers missed their hearings in January compared to 10% a year prior. Los Angeles County showed 56% no-shows. The Trump administration has intensified mass deportation efforts, reopened previously closed cases, and conducted enforcement actions at courthouses. Asylum seekers report fear of deportation, contributing to rising case abandonment rates.

Luis Muñoz Pinto, a 27-year-old Venezuelan man, was deported by the Trump administration to El Salvador's Cecot prison in March 2025. He was accused of gang membership based on rose tattoos he obtained to honor his twin sisters. U.S. immigration officials identified the tattoos as Tren de Aragua gang symbols. A federal court later ruled that Muñoz Pinto and over 100 other deported Venezuelans must be allowed to return to the U.S. for due process.

Jimmy Jhunior Mayta Huarhua, a Peruvian citizen, entered the U.S. without inspection in May 2022 and was released on humanitarian parole three days later. After complying with supervision requirements for nearly four years, he was re-detained by ICE at a scheduled reporting appointment on March 2, 2026, without written notice terminating his parole. The court ordered his release, finding his detention without a hearing violated due process.

A protester in Minneapolis was shot in the face by an ICE agent during an incident at an immigration enforcement-related protest.

Masked federal agents pulled over Willy Wender Aceituno Medina, a Honduras-born U.S. citizen, and forced him from his vehicle. The incident was posted on Instagram by Democracy Now, a news organization.

San Juanita Guerra, a 73-year-old lawful permanent resident and Mexican national, was detained by ICE on March 2 at the Progreso International Bridge after authorities flagged a 1994 conviction involving an unloaded firearm found in her purse at an airport. She was held at El Valle Detention Center in Raymondville for over three weeks before being released on bond on March 23. Guerra says she had already completed probation and community service for the conviction decades ago.

Homeland Security Investigations agents executed a search warrant on March 2 at a north Phoenix residence, discovering 19 people who had been illegally smuggled across the U.S.-Mexico border. Three men were arrested, including two load drivers and an overseer of the smuggling operation. The 19 smuggled individuals were taken to the ICE Phoenix Field Office for processing, with at least one indicating Tennessee as their final destination.

Emmanuel Damas, a 56-year-old Haitian asylum seeker, died on March 2, 2026, at a Scottsdale hospital from sepsis caused by an untreated tooth infection. Damas had been detained at Florence Correctional Center in Arizona for four months and reported tooth pain to facility staff multiple times starting February 12, but received only ibuprofen and was denied timely medical care. In a separate case, Daphy Michel, a 31-year-old Haitian asylum seeker, was found unresponsive at a Pittsburgh bus shelter days after being released from ICE detention and placed in an Alternatives to Detention program with an electronic ankle monitor. A federal judge had dismissed charges against Michel before her release. The Haitian Bridge Alliance called for an independent investigation into Michel's death and the circumstances of her release and supervision. Emmanuel Cleeford Damas, a 56-year-old Haitian man, died in ICE custody at an Arizona detention facility after an untreated toothache spiraled into serious medical conditions. More than 100 people gathered at a memorial service in Boston to honor Damas, who had arrived legally through the Biden Administration's Humanitarian Parole program. His family and community leaders called for accountability, with Boston City Councilor Ruthzee Louijeune stating that ICE must be held responsible for the failure in care.

Xiaofei Wang, a Chinese citizen who fled persecution for his political views and applied for asylum in 2022, was abruptly re-detained by ICE in March 2026 after complying with immigration reporting requirements for over three years. Wang had been released on parole since arriving in September 2022 and has no criminal history. The court granted a preliminary injunction ordering his immediate release, finding his re-detention without a pre-deprivation hearing violated due process rights.

Taeha Hwang, a 39-year-old who has lived in the U.S. since he was 3 months old, was detained by ICE on October 29 during his green card interview in downtown Los Angeles. His wife, Xelena Diaz, says they were following all proper procedures and were not expecting the detention. Hwang has no criminal record and is being held at the Adelanto Detention Center with his next court hearing scheduled for March 2026.

Amy Lucia López Belloza, a 19-year-old Babson College freshman, was detained by ICE at Boston Logan Airport on November 20, 2025, while attempting to board a flight to Texas for Thanksgiving break. A federal judge issued an emergency order on November 21 blocking her removal and prohibiting her transfer outside Massachusetts for 72 hours. ICE transferred her to Texas that evening and deported her to Honduras on November 22, in violation of the court order. The Trump administration later apologized in court for the violation but argued it should not affect her deportation case. In February 2026, the government offered her a return flight to the United States, which she declined, leading to the dismissal of her habeas corpus lawsuit in March 2026.

A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of over 130 Venezuelan men who were deported to El Salvador's CECOT megaprison under the Alien Enemies Act in March 2026. The men were held for approximately four months and later transferred to Venezuela in July as part of a prisoner swap. Judge Boasberg ruled the government must allow the men to return to the United States for their immigration proceedings, offer boarding letters and cover travel costs for those in third countries, or accept them at U.S. ports of entry to challenge their deportations. The men were accused of gang membership but were denied due process rights, and detainees reported physical and psychological abuse during their detention.

ICE agents arrested a 22-year-old man on March 1 while he was on his way to work in Hopkins, Minnesota. Agents surrounded his car, broke the windows, and forcibly detained him. He was transported hundreds of miles away to Georgia, leaving his wife alone with their 4-year-old twin sons, one of whom has asthma and convulsions requiring a nebulizer.

A Colorado Times Recorder investigation mapped the detention journeys of approximately 2,800 individuals held in ICE's Colorado hold rooms between January and October 2025. The analysis tracks specific cases including a 36-year-old Colombian woman detained in Grand Junction on May 20, 2025, who was shuttled through 10 facilities across multiple states before deportation, and a 19-year-old Brazilian college student, Caroline Diaz Goncalves, whose detention led to a class action lawsuit against ICE leadership.

A family of four from Mexico, including three teenage brothers who perform in a mariachi band, was detained by ICE on February 25, 2026, during a routine immigration check-in. The family had legally entered the United States through the CBP One app in May 2023 while pursuing asylum claims and had followed all required procedures. The family was released from detention facilities in Raymondville and Dilley, Texas on February 28, 2026, following intervention from bipartisan congressional members.

Juan Diego Lopez Macias, a 19-year-old Enid High School senior, was arrested during a traffic stop for speeding on February 28, 2026, and subsequently transferred to ICE custody after being charged with driving without a valid license. He was transferred to the Bluebonnet Detention Facility in Anson, Texas, where he awaits immigration court proceedings. Student walkouts and protests occurred across Oklahoma following his detention, with classmates and family members gathering at the state Capitol on March 16.

Fan Zhang, an asylum seeker from China, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement on February 27, 2026, and detained at the Mesa Verde ICE Processing Center in Bakersfield, California. Zhang had previously been released on recognizance after entering the U.S. in December 2023, but was later arrested for DUI in November 2023. The court granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered the government to provide him with an individualized bond hearing within 14 days.

Rabbiatu Kuyateh, a 58-year-old woman from Sierra Leone working as a nurse, was detained during a routine ICE check-in in July 2025. Despite a U.S. court order prohibiting her return to Sierra Leone, ICE deported her to an undisclosed location. She was held in shackles during a 10-hour flight. Videos documented her being dragged by individuals after resisting deportation. Her son contacted CASA seeking her return to the United States.

A 20-year-old Venezuelan single mother seeking asylum was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents on Wednesday while en route to work at Backyard Farms greenhouses in Madison. This was the second immigration enforcement operation at the facility in recent weeks. The detainee has filed a habeas corpus petition challenging the legality of her detention, claiming she fled political violence in Venezuela and has been awaiting an asylum decision.

Ellie Aghayeva, a senior at Columbia University, was detained by Department of Homeland Security agents at a university residential building on Thursday morning. University officials alleged agents used false pretenses and entered without a warrant, claiming to search for a missing child. DHS stated Aghayeva is undocumented with a terminated student visa from 2016. She was released after approximately nine hours and filed a habeas corpus petition in federal court. An ICE arrest at a Maryland home prompted student protests in the city. The incident sparked community response from students who demonstrated against the enforcement action.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents reportedly detained two people in Lawrence on February 27, including near the University of Kansas campus. Approximately 80 protesters gathered outside Strong Hall. The university stated it was still gathering information about whether any KU students or employees were involved.

Four volunteers were detained and cited by Federal Protective Service officers at the San Diego federal building after an overnight rule change prohibited standing in hallways. The volunteers, who had been documenting ICE arrests and supporting immigrants at court hearings for months, were cited for failure to comply with official signs and directions, each receiving a $284 fine. Faith volunteers attempting to support immigrants in the building were also confronted by officers.

Darius Reeves, an ICE retiree with 20 years of experience, expressed concern about changes in ICE training and tactics under President Trump's deportation push. Law enforcement experts have commented on violent encounters with ICE officers in cities like Minneapolis. Congressional hearings have addressed officer training. Leaders like former Dallas Police Chief Reneé Hall have cited aggressive policing and excessive use of force.

Willy Wender Aceituno, a U.S. citizen, filed a $1.25 million lawsuit against federal immigration authorities after an alleged confrontation with ICE agents in Charlotte, North Carolina. According to the complaint, agents shattered his truck window, forcibly removed him from the vehicle, and abandoned him injured two miles away. The lawsuit alleges violations of constitutional amendments and claims of assault, battery, false imprisonment, and negligent supervision.

Four volunteers were detained and cited by Federal Protective Service officers at the Edward J. Schwartz Federal Building in downtown San Diego while observing immigrants attending scheduled ICE appointments. The volunteers, part of a faith ministry, were cited for violating regulations against loitering in hallways and public areas, with each receiving $284 fines for failing to comply with official signs and security directions. The volunteers stated they were not obstructing hallways and were present to document arrests and provide support to immigrants with court hearings. An overnight rule change prohibiting loitering was used to justify the enforcement action. These volunteers had previously observed and offered prayers during ICE check-ins without receiving citations.

Two separate immigration enforcement cases resulted in deportations that disrupted legal processes. Oscar Polanco was detained at a green card appointment in October and deported to Guatemala after nearly 20 years away, separating him from his wife Geraldine for three months before they reunited in Peru. In a second case, Dallas resident Adayomi Ademuyiwa was deported to Nigeria by ICE in January 2026 before standing trial on federal fraud and identity theft charges, despite being released on conditions by a federal judge months earlier, preventing both his trial and potential restitution to alleged victims.

Ahmed, a nursing student and certified nursing assistant with legal status and a work permit, was detained by ICE while attending a routine immigration check-in. He immigrated to the United States around 2023 from Dadaab refugee camps. Project Relief is raising funds for legal representation to secure his release and prevent his transfer to another state.

Suraj Vasal, an Indian national who came to the U.S. seeking asylum four years ago, was detained by ICE after a traffic stop for failing to stop at a weigh station. After a district court ordered ICE to provide him a bond hearing, his attorney alleges ICE and immigration court engaged in "malicious compliance" by giving Vasal only 30 minutes notice of the hearing and proceeding despite his request for time to obtain legal representation. The immigration judge denied Vasal's bond request, and his attorney is now seeking a new hearing with adequate notice and opportunity to prepare.

The Trump administration deported approximately 17 migrants to Cameroon between January and February 2026, including individuals who had legal protections preventing deportation to their home countries where they faced persecution. Two Moroccan women, who were LGBTQ+ refugees fleeing persecution, were subsequently deported from Cameroon back to Morocco despite judicial orders protecting them. The remaining detainees are held in poor conditions in Cameroon without due process, and a federal judge ruled the third-country deportations illegal.