Human Impact Project

Senator Adam Schiff released a report documenting that ICE and CBP committed more than $144 million to weapons, ammunition, and tactical gear during the first year of Trump's second term, with ICE increasing weapons spending by 360 percent and CBP doubling its spending compared to 2024. The purchases include AR-style rifles, pistols, thousands of rounds of ammunition, and less-lethal weapons like tear gas and TASERs.

ABC7's special report investigates rampant prostitution and human trafficking along a four-mile stretch of Figueroa Street in South Los Angeles known as 'the Blade.' LAPD vice units patrol the area, focusing on identifying underage victims and connecting adults with resources rather than arrests. Officials are stepping up enforcement efforts as the city prepares to host major global events.

Immigration agents are using 18 U.S. Code 111, a federal statute, to detain American citizens who protest or document their operations. The Trump administration has increased use of the statute, with federal prosecutors charging approximately 12 times as many people under it in the first year compared to Biden's last year. Many cases have been dismissed or resulted in acquittals. Agents have charged individuals for recording and following officers. Senior administration officials have stated that recording agents in public does not violate federal law.

A federal judge issued a ruling criticizing the Trump administration's immigration enforcement actions for violating the law in its efforts to deport millions of people living in the country illegally.

A 3-year-old girl was separated from her mother at the U.S.-Mexico border and placed in federal immigration custody, where she was sexually abused by an older child in an ORR-funded foster home. Her father, a legal permanent resident living in Chicago, filed a habeas corpus petition to expedite her release after ORR delayed the reunification process for five months despite his sponsor application. The girl was released to her father two days after the petition was filed.

A 3-year-old girl crossed the U.S.-Mexico border with her mother and was separated from her parent and placed in federal immigration custody in Harlingen, Texas. While in a foster home, she was sexually abused by an older child. Her father, a legal permanent resident, filed a habeas corpus petition in federal court after experiencing months of delays in the reunification process. ORR officials did not initially inform the father about the sexual abuse, referring to it instead as an "accident." The girl was forensically examined and the allegations were reported to law enforcement. Following the legal petition, the father was reunited with his daughter two days after filing, after which he noticed behavioral changes including nightmares.

Maria de Jesus Estrada Juarez, a 42-year-old DACA recipient, was arrested and deported to Mexico on February 18, 2026, after attending a green card interview at a USCIS office in Sacramento. Immigration agents cited an expedited removal order from her 1998 entry as a minor, despite her active DACA status and valid work permit. Within 24 hours, she was deported to Tijuana. A federal judge later ordered her return within seven days and restoration of her DACA status.

A Wilson County man spoke out against a rumored ICE detention center, expressing that he feels safer with undocumented immigrants than with ICE agents. Sheriff deputies responded to the man during his protest, though the ICE detention center plan was subsequently abandoned.

A U.S. District Court in Minnesota ordered ICE to immediately release Michael Opeoluwa Egbele, a Nigerian immigrant detained in January 2026, ruling that the government unlawfully revoked his supervised release without due process or prior notification. Egbele had entered the U.S. unlawfully in 2003, was charged with a drug offense in 2012, but was released on supervised release where he remained compliant for over a decade before his arrest during a routine check-in.

Noel Quintana, owner of Señor Machetes restaurant in downtown Madison, was detained by ICE at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport while returning from Mexico on a valid green card. The detention was based on a 2006 cocaine possession conviction that DHS said grounds for revoking his lawful permanent resident status. Community members organized fundraisers that collected over $50,000. Rep. Francesca Hong and other local leaders criticized the detention.

Karla Ruby Quinones Herrera, a noncitizen single mother of two US citizen children, was arrested by ICE on February 17, 2026 in Victorville, California. She was charged as inadmissible under Section 212(a)(6)(A)(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act and detained at the Adelanto Detention Facility without being afforded a bond hearing. The court ordered that she must be provided an individualized bond hearing before an immigration judge within 7 days.

Three women employed at The Dots Corp, a printing and marketing business in Irvine, were detained by ICE officers on February 17, 2026, in a parking lot. Officers surrounded their vehicle, showed a purported warrant through the window, and took the women into custody. The detention occurred days before a planned protest against ICE's new Irvine office.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers detained a mother and her three children, ages 18, 16, and 5, in Soldotna on February 17, 2026. The mother, Sonia Espinoza Arriaga from Mexico, is married to a U.S. citizen and arrived in the United States in 2023 with her children. The family was transported to Anchorage, with the oldest child held at the jail and the mother and younger children held in a hotel room with federal officers. An immigration attorney filed a habeas corpus petition challenging the legality of their detention.

U.S. Representatives Haley Stevens and Hillary Scholten are calling for answers regarding the December 2025 death of Nenko Stanev Gantchev, a 56-year-old Bulgarian national held at the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, Michigan. The lawmakers toured the facility and expressed frustration that the Department of Homeland Security has not responded to their inquiries about Gantchev's death, which ICE attributed to natural causes. A review of the death remains ongoing, and Gantchev's family has sought a private autopsy.

ICE agents in Minnesota are detaining immigrants and confiscating their documents—including work permits, IDs, and passports—then failing to return them upon release. According to immigration lawyers, this practice affects dozens of clients with valid legal status, forcing them to live without proof of authorization despite federal law requiring noncitizens to carry such documents. Judges have found ICE in contempt of court for defying orders to return documents, but the practice continues across cases involving asylum seekers, visa holders, and refugees.

Niury Guerra, a Cuban national and wife of a U.S. citizen, was detained by ICE during a scheduled green card interview appointment in Dallas. ICE cited a 2018 removal after an attempted unauthorized entry with a fraudulent passport and a 2022 unauthorized re-entry as the basis for her arrest. Guerra has no criminal record beyond immigration violations and remains held at a detention center approximately 200 miles from her family, including her 15-month-old daughter. Rafael Alambarrio, a Venezuelan asylum seeker and husband of a McKinney elementary school teacher, was detained by ICE on January 15, 2026 during a routine check-in appointment at the Dallas ICE office. He had a credible fear determination from 2023, was seeking asylum, and was waiting for his green card application to be processed as the spouse of a U.S. citizen. His detention occurred after the Trump administration paused processing of green card applications from 19 countries including Venezuela. He is now held at Prairieland Detention Facility awaiting a hearing scheduled for February 3, 2026.

Juan Martin Espindola Ramirez, a 27-year-old Nashville plumber with a legal work permit and no criminal record, was detained by ICE on February 17 while on his way to work. He has a newborn at home and was reportedly a crime victim granted a U visa; he was applying for a green card at the time of his arrest. The detention sparked community support and a GoFundMe fundraiser, while DHS issued a statement defending the arrest.

Immigration Judge Nina Froes terminated removal proceedings against Mohsen Mahdawi, a lawful permanent resident and Columbia University graduate, after federal authorities failed to authenticate a memorandum allegedly signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The document claimed Mahdawi's pro-Palestinian activism threatened U.S. foreign policy. The case was terminated without prejudice, allowing the government to appeal or refile deportation proceedings.

Omar's father was detained by Customs and Border Patrol in Ontario, California. He is Omar's only source of support. A fundraiser has been organized to help cover Omar's housing and legal fees for his father's case.

Detainees at the Otay Mesa Detention Center run by CoreCivic threw handwritten notes attached to lotion and deodorant bottles over the facility fence to protesters at weekly vigils outside. Notes described going 280 days without fresh fruit, constant illness, cold temperatures, and living in one large room with no windows. San Diego County supervisors were subsequently denied access to inspect the facility, and the notes stopped after ICE restricted detainees from outdoor recreation time during vigils.

Two men were arrested by ICE agents outside a church in Union City, New Jersey over the weekend. According to the church pastor, both men had been in the United States for over 10 years and were active church members. Local leaders and the congressional representative expressed concern about the tactics used, with officials saying the men were targeted for being undocumented.

Ofelia Torres, a 16-year-old Lake View High School junior with stage 4 cancer, successfully advocated for her father Ruben Torres Maldonado's release from ICE detention after he was picked up at a Home Depot in October. While in hospice care, she appealed to authorities and a judge agreed to release him. Three days before her death from cancer, she witnessed a hearing where her father won protection from deportation and the ability to pursue permanent residence.

ICE deported 363 pregnant, postpartum, or nursing women between January 2025 and February 2026, with 86 additional pregnant detainees in custody as of February 16, 2026. The agency reported 16 miscarriages in detention by late September 2025 and acknowledged inadequate medical care access. DHS stated a general policy against detaining pregnant women for administrative violations unless release is prohibited by law or exceptional circumstances exist.

Efrem Yemane Berhe, a Cincinnati business owner and father of two from Eritrea, was detained by ICE agents outside his home on February 16, 2026, after living legally in the U.S. for 15 years. His detention stems from a civil immigration matter related to a prior marriage. A judge denied his bond request on March 5 citing flight risk concerns, and his family is appealing the decision while he awaits a green card hearing scheduled for April 30.

More than 80 Minnesotans filed a lawsuit detailing use-of-force and intimidation by ICE agents. The lawsuit documents incidents involving excessive force and intimidation tactics used during enforcement operations in Minnesota.

Jairo Garcia-Hernandez, a 27-year-old from Guatemala, died on February 16 at Larkin Community Hospital in Miami while in ICE custody. He collapsed unexpectedly and became unresponsive despite life-saving efforts. According to ICE officials, Garcia-Hernandez had a long history of severe medical complications and was in poor health when taken into custody in January 2025 following a 2024 weapons conviction. The exact cause of death remains under investigation.

A grand jury indicted Braulio Jara-Alvarez on federal gun and drug charges after his arrest by Topeka police on an ICE detainer in February 2026. Jara-Alvarez faces charges including unlawful reentry after deportation, methamphetamine possession with intent to distribute, and illegal firearm possession. ICE took custody of Jara-Alvarez on February 20 following his arrest at the Shawnee County Jail.

Dmytro Kulik, a Ukrainian father who fled the war and arrived in the U.S. in late 2023 under the Uniting for Ukraine humanitarian program, was detained by ICE agents near a Walmart in Minneapolis in January while loading groceries. His wife and daughter's applications for conditional release were approved, but his remained pending when immigration authorities arrested him. Kulik fears deportation back to Ukraine where he may be forced to fight, and his family worries they could also be detained.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Border Patrol agents vacated a Coast Guard facility at Terminal Island in San Pedro that had served as a staging ground for immigration raids across Southern California. Harbor Area Peace Patrols volunteers had been tracking agent movements since summer 2025. Rep. Nanette Barragán confirmed the federal departure on February 14-15, 2026. The status of the departure remained unclear, with officials uncertain whether it was permanent or whether operations would relocate elsewhere in the county.

Arturo Gonzalez, a San Diego community patroller, was arrested in Logan Heights. The San Diego ICE/ERO Office had previously released a statement regarding Gonzalez's alleged criminal history, which appears to be unrelated to the arrest.

An NBC News investigation found that Department of Homeland Security officers conducting Trump's immigration crackdown used less-lethal weapons including rubber bullets, tear gas, and pepper spray on protesters. Officers shot 13 people with guns and injured hundreds more. Courts in at least four states found that force was used inappropriately and indiscriminately. The use of these weapons began in late spring and summer in California and Oregon, expanded to Chicago in the fall, and reached Minneapolis where officers shot and killed two protesters.

Diana Butnarciuc was arrested by ICE agents during a U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services interview for a permanent resident card in Las Vegas. Her husband, Patrick Baja, a Marine veteran, is seeking her release from Henderson Detention Center. Butnarciuc arrived in the U.S. in 2008, has no criminal record, works, and pays taxes, but faces deportation based on a 2018 removal order after her asylum claim was denied.

A 24-year-old Colombian woman, Nicolth Hernandez-Lucero, was detained by federal immigration agents in Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday night while driving home. Her husband, Noah Lazega, recorded the detention and shared the encounter with NBC6. According to her attorney, Hernandez-Lucero entered the U.S. legally and has been in the country since age 15 with no criminal record, going through the asylum process with her family. Randy Cordova Flores, a 36-year-old Peruvian national with a pending asylum case, was pulled over by Springdale Borough police for a turn-signal violation and subsequently detained by ICE agents at the police station. Flores has no criminal history, valid work authorization, and has been complying with his asylum process for three years. His sister contends the stop was coordinated with ICE and that due process was not followed.

A 10-year-old U.S. citizen named Dylan recounted fleeing during an ICE operation that began near his school bus stop in Lindenwold, New Jersey on Thursday morning. Children waiting at the bus stop panicked and ran when they saw ICE enforcement vehicles, with Dylan running home in fear. The Lindenwold School District said the presence of multiple enforcement vehicles caused significant fear and confusion among fourth- and fifth-graders.

ICE agents were reported at a Boys & Girls Club in Olathe, Kansas on Friday morning, with teachers saying four or five agents looked through windows of the facility around 7:15 a.m. Children were moved to interior spaces without windows for safety. Community members quickly mobilized to gather outside the center in support, with approximately 40 people showing up to protect families and prevent wrongful detentions, including Kansas state Senator Cindy Holscher.

A judge dismissed the deportation case of Narciso Barranco, an Orange County landscaper and father of three U.S. Marines, who was detained by Border Patrol agents in June 2025. Video showed agents pinning him to the ground and punching him during the detention in Santa Ana. The judge ruled Barranco is eligible for lawful status due to his three sons serving in the military, and his attorney is now working to secure permanent residency and a work permit.

Maria Antonia Guerra Montoya, a 9-year-old Colombian girl, was detained at Miami International Airport on October 2 while traveling alone to reunite with her mother for a planned Disney World Halloween vacation. She and her mother were held for 42 hours at the airport before being transferred to the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas, where they spent nearly four months in detention despite the mother applying for a green card and the child having a valid tourist visa.

Ofelia Torres, a 16-year-old U.S. citizen from Chicago, died from metastatic alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma on February 13, 2026. Her father, Ruben Torres-Maldonado, an undocumented immigrant, was detained by ICE agents during the Trump administration's 'Operation Midway Blitz' immigration enforcement initiative. In October 2025, Ofelia posted social media videos calling for her father's release from custody. Three days before her death, an immigration judge ruled that Torres-Maldonado was entitled to cancellation of removal based on the hardship his deportation would cause his U.S. citizen children.

The Department of Homeland Security expanded its use of undercover techniques to infiltrate social media, introducing a new program called "masked engagement" that allows over 6,500 federal agents to assume false identities and interact with users in private groups. The policy permits officers to friend users, join closed groups, and access private postings without the rigorous legal oversight required for formal undercover operations.

Three U.S. citizens—George Retes from California, Aliya Rahman from Minnesota, and Gina Christ from Minnesota—report being detained by ICE and CBP agents during immigration enforcement operations. The incidents involved physical force, pepper spray, flashbangs, and prolonged detention without proper legal procedures, with charges ultimately not filed against any of them.

Terez Metry, a 28-year-old dental assistant with no criminal record, was detained by ICE in Alabama immediately after receiving I-130 approval during a routine immigration interview at a Department of Homeland Security office in Nashville. Metry, who had fled Egypt as a teenager at age 13 and received a removal order at that time, was separated from her U.S. citizen husband Dominique Flemister during the interview. Metry had been living and working in Nashville since 2018 and the couple believed they were following proper legal procedures for her immigration case.

U.S. District Judge Nancy Brasel ordered ICE to dramatically revamp conditions at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, where detainees had been denied attorney access, rapidly transferred out of state without notice, and pressured to sign self-deportation papers without legal counsel. The court found ICE likely violated detainees's constitutional rights and ordered: detainees must receive their A-number within one hour of arrival, must have confidential phone access, cannot be transferred for the first 72 hours, and attorneys must have in-person access seven days per week. One detainee had access to only two flip phones shared among 72 people in a single holding cell. ICE agents arrested Jesus Emmanuel Flores-Aguilar after disguising themselves as women with car trouble to lure him from his Minnesota home. The family claims the agents used deception to trick Flores into coming outside, where he was surrounded by additional ICE vehicles and arrested. DHS stated Flores was a previously deported individual with gang affiliations, while his family emphasized he is a hardworking father supporting six U.S. citizen children.

Despite border czar Tom Homan's announcement that Operation Metro Surge would end on February 12, Minnesota residents and officials report ICE continues operations in Twin Cities suburbs. Agents are using disguised vehicles, smaller groups, plain clothes, and deceptive practices including posing as environmental canvassers. Community observers document ICE presence at hotels, bus stops, apartment complexes, and interactions with those documenting enforcement activities.

Leonel Eduardo Lopez Ramos, who entered the United States in July 2017 and worked in the pipeline industry for five years, was detained by ICE on February 12, 2026. The petitioner is the father of a U.S. citizen residing in Florida and had previously been in removal proceedings that were closed in January 2024. The federal court granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release, finding that his detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(1) was improper since he had been continuously present in the U.S. for more than two years.

Two ICE agents have been suspended and are facing a criminal investigation for allegedly lying to a jury about the shooting of Venezuelan immigrant Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis during a traffic stop on January 14. The officers claimed Sosa-Celis and his cousin attacked them with a snow shovel and broom, but video evidence contradicts this. A federal judge dismissed felony assault charges against the cousins after the U.S. attorney acknowledged the officers made false statements under oath.

Mauro Yosueth Henriquez, 18, an HISD senior soccer team captain, was detained by ICE on December 16, 2025, during a routine check-in with his father. He was held at Montgomery Processing Center in Conroe and later transferred to a federal detention facility on February 12, 2026. His detention prompted Houston students to march in protest, calling for his release so he could graduate with his class. Elected officials also responded to the case. Henriquez was subsequently deported to Honduras.

An immigration enforcement raid in Idaho resulted in the use of zip ties on detainees, according to NBC News. An ACLU lawsuit has been filed against ICE in relation to the incident.

ICE agents rammed a parked car containing a Minneapolis resident and her husband. The husband, a Hispanic U.S. citizen, was intensely questioned by ICE agents and asked to provide citizenship paperwork. After the incident, a police report was filed and authorities discovered that one of the ICE vehicles' license plates could not be located in police systems.

At least 32 children entered foster care over the past year after their parents were detained or deported by ICE, officials in seven states told NOTUS — including four toddlers in Vermont, ten children in Kansas, and nine in Maryland. Advocates note this may be an undercount since no federal dataset tracks family separations caused by immigration enforcement, and some states worry that collecting the data could expose families to further risk. More than 71,000 people are in ICE detention.

Two Colombian girls, including 9-year-old María Antonia Guerra Montoya, were detained for over 113 days at an ICE family detention center in Dilley, Texas. María Antonia had traveled from Colombia to visit her mother in the United States. Letters written by detained children reveal harsh conditions and homesickness. Both the girl and her mother were eventually released and returned to Colombia.