Human Impact Project

A migrant man died while attempting to cross the Rio Bravo into the United States and was found floating in the river in Piedras Negras, Coahuila. Rescue teams and Mexican and U.S. authorities coordinated to recover the body. Authorities are investigating whether the victim is José Antonio Sánchez Ríos, 35, from Guanajuato, who disappeared while crossing the river earlier in the week.

Adonay Mancia Rodríguez was detained by ICE agents near his home in Morristown, New Jersey on January 11, 2026, during an enforcement sweep while picking up a dinner delivery. His six-year-old daughter Annabella was found wandering the streets alone following his detention. According to DHS, ICE took 11 individuals into custody during the operation who were undocumented and facing deportation.

ICE agents conducted a raid on January 11, 2026 at a laundromat in Morristown, New Jersey, detaining several people. At least one father was taken into custody, leaving his 6-year-old daughter alone on the street. The laundromat is located in the Hispanic community.

Five-year-old Génesis Ester Gutiérrez Castellanos, a U.S. citizen, was deported to Honduras on January 11, 2026, alongside her mother Karen Guadalupe Gutiérrez Castellanos despite being born in the United States. ICE agents acted on an administrative deportation order against the mother issued in 2019, before the child was born. The two were detained for nearly a week in a hotel without access to legal representation or a judge hearing before being deported. The mother plans to send her daughter back to the U.S. with a relative, as the child is a U.S. citizen.

A vigil was held in Springdale, Arkansas on Friday night to protest increased ICE enforcement activity in northwest Arkansas under 287(g) agreements. Data shows more than 450 people were arrested by ICE at the Benton County Jail alone from January through October 2025—nearly two arrests per day in a county of roughly 300,000 people. Community organizers report that many arrests involve people with no criminal records or only misdemeanor charges, and that individuals are being arrested while commuting to and from work, separated from their families. The Arkansas Department of Corrections signed a 287(g) agreement in 2025, and Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed a law requiring all county sheriffs to cooperate with ICE.

ICE officers in Minneapolis conducted multiple "show me your papers" encounters with residents in public spaces. In one incident last weekend, officers approached a man pumping gas and demanded to see documentation of U.S. citizenship. The man refused initially but eventually provided a driver's license; officers continued questioning whether he was naturalized and when. In another incident, officers questioned a man at a vehicle charging station about his citizenship. These encounters were recorded on video and shared on social media, prompting criticism from public figures. The Department of Homeland Security did not provide information on the citizenship status of the people approached or details about these specific incidents.

A 21-year-old protester named Kaden Rummler was struck in the face by a nonlethal round fired by a Department of Homeland Security agent during a protest outside a federal building in Santa Ana. The impact left shrapnel embedded in his eyes and face, resulting in permanent blindness in his left eye and a fractured skull. The incident occurred during demonstrations against the fatal shooting of Renee Good by a federal immigration agent in Minnesota.

Khadra Muse Mohamed, a 25-year-old Somali refugee and single mother, was pulled over by undercover ICE agents on January 10, 2026, one day after Operation PARRIS began. She had legally arrived in the U.S. in April 2024, passed security screenings, and was living in St. Cloud with her 7-year-old son and extended family including her disabled stepfather. After her arrest, she was transferred to a detention facility in Texas before her family could secure legal representation, separating her from her young son and elderly relatives who depend on her care. She was released on January 19 after nine days in detention.

Border Patrol detained Guatemalan father Arnoldo Tiul Caal and his 10-year-old daughter Karla on January 10 in Spokane, alleging he missed multiple required immigration check-ins while seeking asylum. The pair were transported to a detention facility in Texas but were released Friday by a federal judge. The father had been living in Spokane since 2019 with his daughter, who was a fourth-grader at Logan Elementary School.

Parady La, a 46-year-old Cambodian refugee and longtime Philadelphia-area resident, died in January 2026 after being detained by ICE. La was arrested by ICE on January 6 outside his home and held at the Federal Detention Center (FDC Philadelphia), where he was treated for severe drug withdrawal. On January 7, officers found him unresponsive in his cell, administered CPR and Narcan, and transported him to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, where he was diagnosed with anoxic brain injury, shock, and multiple organ failures. He died on January 9. His family and organizations including the ACLU of Pennsylvania and CAIR-Philadelphia demanded accountability and transparency, with the ACLU filing a Freedom of Information Act request for records related to his detention, medical treatment, and death.

Arlit Martinez-Carrada's 15-year-old son, Kevin Mendoza Martinez, died of cancer two days after she was arrested by ICE agents outside her workplace in Maryland. Martinez was denied release to be with her son during his final days and learned of his death while in ICE custody at the Baltimore federal building. She was later released on $12,000 bond and attended her son's funeral. Martinez has now decided to self-deport, with her attorneys working on the voluntary departure process.

Everyone had their case dismissed that afternoon which meant ICE could now take them at anytime. With only one way out of the building and ICE sitting in cars throughout the parking lot I knew what was going to happen. The mother’s friend-who had been sitting in the car next to mine-stepped out and met them by the front entrance, just a few feet from where I stood with the Priests. For a second, I couldn’t tell if the mother realized what was about to happen. But it only took that second. Suddenly, the ICE agents-every one of them a masked man-began walking toward us. Toward her. And that’s when it started. The little girl saw them first. “Mommy! Mommy!” she screamed, and burst into tears. Then her brother realized what was happening and started crying too. ICE doesn’t like to take children when the Priests are present and watching. ICE -asked whoever is with the kids to follow them to a different location, so they can take the children too. Because the kids are also in removal proceedings. Please donate so The Sidewalk School can continue to document and record these “disappearances” To donate: SidewalkSchool.org ***Video recorded by The Sidewalk School

Rachel Dionne-Thunder, who is Plains Cree and co-founder of Indigenous Protectors Movement, was stopped and questioned by ICE agents near Powwow Grounds coffee shop on January 10, 2026 without being given a reason for the stop. She locked her vehicle doors and refused to comply with agents' orders to show ID or exit the vehicle, citing Know Your Rights training. Community members came to her aid and the agents left.

ICE agents in Maryland used the state's driver's license database to conduct license plate checks in January 2026 without a traffic violation or warrant, detaining Santos Alvarenga-Rodriguez, 47, a Salvadoran citizen, based on license restrictions. The operation, part of "Operation Take Back America," ran checks on approximately 10 vehicles, with nine resulting in no enforcement action. Nearly a quarter-million Maryland drivers carry similar license restrictions, which can indicate various factors unrelated to immigration status. Alvarenga-Rodriguez resisted during the encounter and was charged with assaulting and resisting officers.

Maria Loya Medina, a 44-year-old mother of two U.S. citizens, was detained by ICE agents on January 10, 2026, in an Albany, Oregon parking lot during Operation Black Rose. She has been held at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Washington for over two months. After being denied bond at a February 4 hearing, her attorneys with Innovation Law Lab filed a habeas corpus petition on March 6, 2026, arguing violations of her Fifth Amendment due process rights and the Immigration and Nationality Act. The petition emphasizes her strong community ties, employment history, family responsibilities including caring for her stroke-afflicted husband, and lack of flight risk or danger to the community. Medina has resided in the United States since 2005.

Jorge Elieser Gonzalez Ochoa, a 27-year-old Colombian national seeking asylum, was arrested by plainclothes ICE agents at Bread Garden Market in Iowa City on September 25, 2025, while working and wearing a court-ordered GPS monitor. Agents charged him with document fraud and misuse of immigration documents. A federal judge ruled the DHS actions "indefensible" and found Gonzalez Ochoa was illegally detained, noting agents attempted to circumvent a court order and violated procedural requirements. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to time served plus one day. After several months in federal immigration detention, Gonzalez Ochoa was released following sustained community organizing and protests by groups including the Iowa City Catholic Worker and Escucha Mi Voz Iowa.

Jose Manuel De Paz Cruz, a 31-year-old father with no criminal record, was arrested by ICE agents in Sunset Park on January 10, 2026, while walking home from work to attend his step-son's birthday party. After being detained in Brooklyn, Cruz was transferred to multiple locations including Manhattan, New Jersey, Arizona, and California.

An Eritrean single mother of three with a pending green card application was detained during Operation PARRIS operations beginning January 9, 2026. During a five-hour interview with USCIS officers, she was questioned about her application materials and reasons for fleeing her country. Her attorney reported that the USCIS officer conducting the interview stated he had no knowledge of why she was detained or authority regarding her detention. She was released a few days after arrest and returned to Minnesota, and her green card application was approved while she was in detention.

Beginning January 9, 2026, the Department of Homeland Security launched Operation PARRIS, targeting approximately 5,600 Minnesota refugees without green cards for re-vetting through new background checks and merit reviews of refugee claims. Approximately 150 refugees with legal admission status were arrested during the operation and rapidly transferred to detention facilities in Texas before families could secure legal representation. The arrested refugees had already passed security screenings before initial admission to the U.S. Local immigration attorneys noted little historical evidence of fraud in the refugee resettlement program and stated the rapid transfers to Texas made it difficult for detainees to communicate with counsel and file federal release petitions.

Four Native American men, all citizens of the Oglala Sioux Tribe, were detained by ICE agents under a bridge near Little Earth, a Native American housing complex on Minneapolis's southside. According to tribal President Frank Star Comes Out, the men were homeless and unable to provide sufficient documentation of their citizenship and tribal membership during the encounter. At least one of the men was released after a 12-hour hold, but the community was unaware of his whereabouts. Tribal attorneys have been working to locate the men and provide documentation of their citizenship and tribal status.

Rachel Dionne-Thunder, co-founder of the Indigenous Peoples' Movement, was detained by ICE agents on Friday morning while sitting in her car near the Powwow Grounds coffee shop in Minneapolis. Coffee shop workers intervened and stopped the agents, and Dionne-Thunder recorded the incident on Facebook live. She is a Native American and U.S. citizen.

Jose Roberto Ramirez, a 20-year-old descendant of the Red Lake Nation, was detained by ICE agents on January 8, 2026, after being pulled over at a Hy-Vee grocery store in Robbinsdale, Minnesota. According to one account, agents struck him on his face and body during the arrest despite his aunt identifying him as a citizen and Native American. Ramirez is not enrolled in the Red Lake Nation due to the tribe's blood quantum requirement and had no tribal identification. He was released after his mother provided his birth certificate. ICE later claimed he assaulted a federal officer; Ramirez denies the charge and has since been charged with assaulting a federal officer. Red Lake Nation's legal department provided assistance with documentation of his citizenship and family tribal connection.

Jose Pablo Trejo Guzman, a 42-year-old Salvadoran national, was arrested by ICE agents on January 9, 2026, when he and his wife appeared at the Santa Ana Field Office for a scheduled interview regarding their pending I-130 petition. Guzman had been living in the U.S. since 2004 and was previously released on his own recognizance in 2011 after removal proceedings were initiated. He is the primary financial provider for four U.S. citizen children. The court granted his application for a temporary restraining order and ordered his immediate release from custody.

On January 8, 2026, ICE agents fatally shot 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good during an encounter in Minneapolis. Federal authorities claimed the officer fired in self-defense after being run over, but video analysis from multiple angles showed the SUV was turning away from the agent when he fired three shots at close range. Protesters gathered Thursday at the ICE Field Office (Whipple Building) in St. Paul, where federal agents deployed pepper balls, mace, and tear gas.

The Department of Homeland Security announced Operation PARRIS on January 9, 2026, targeting up to 5,600 lawfully admitted refugees in Minnesota for investigation. Following this announcement, lawfully present refugees including families and children were subjected to warrantless arrests, unauthorized detention, and coercive interrogation. IRAP filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of refugees seeking to end DHS's illegal policy of arresting and detaining lawfully present refugees who have not yet obtained LPR status.

Jose Avendano, a 62-year-old dishwasher from El Salvador with temporary protected status and a valid work permit, was arrested on January 9, 2026, while driving to work. He told officers he had legal authorization to be in the United States, but was detained and transferred to El Paso. Avendano has lived in the U.S. for 32 years, has a heart condition requiring daily medication and a pacemaker, and missed a critical medical procedure due to his arrest. A federal judge ordered his release after his lawyer filed suit, but ICE kept him in custody for three additional days in violation of the court order.

This is a legal filing in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon in which plaintiffs M-J-M-A- and Victor Cruz Gamez seek a preliminary injunction against DHS and ICE officials. The case challenges what plaintiffs characterize as an 'Arrest First, Justify Later' policy regarding immigration enforcement operations. The filing argues this policy has caused extensive harm and requests expedited hearing and oral argument.

A father in Minnesota was separated from his child by federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The incident was documented on social media. Community organizers in Minneapolis erected makeshift barricades in neighborhoods to monitor and slow ICE vehicle movements by tracking license plates. Minneapolis police dismantled at least five of these barricades, citing concerns about emergency response times and traffic obstruction. Residents repeatedly rebuilt the barricades.

Britain Rodriguez, 31, an Orange County resident and after-school program supervisor, was shot in the face with a less-lethal round by Homeland Security officers during an anti-ICE protest in downtown Santa Ana on January 9, 2026. The projectile damaged his iris, cornea, and lens, causing a cataract and severe vision loss. Officers gave no warning before firing at protesters demonstrating against ICE deportations and the killing of Renee Good in Minnesota. Rodriguez was unable to work or drive following the injury and faces uncertainty about his vision recovery.

Boris Armand Che Fombang, a noncitizen, was arrested on January 9, 2026, for driving under the influence, transporting an open container of medical marijuana, and possession of medical marijuana without a license. He was detained by immigration authorities immediately following his release from custody on these drug-related charges. The court granted his habeas petition and ordered respondents to provide him a bond hearing within 14 days before an immigration judge, where the government must prove by clear and convincing evidence that he is a flight risk or danger to public safety, or he must be released on the same terms as his previous release.

Alejandro Perez, a Ballwin resident, pleaded guilty to unlawful re-entry into the United States in federal court and was sentenced to deportation to Mexico with a 20-year bar on re-entry. His U.S. citizen wife, Janie Perez, and their two daughters plan to relocate to Mexico to remain together as a family following his deportation, which is expected to occur within three to ten days after his sentencing in March.

Mauricio Martínez was detained by ICE agents during a traffic stop on January 9 and transferred to a detention facility in El Paso, Texas. His wife Nancy Parra and their three children have remained largely confined to their home. Parra reported that her husband is held in conditions including overcrowding, spoiled food, and poor sanitation. The family experiences financial hardship without his income.

Jose Roberto Ramirez, a 20-year-old member of the Red Lake Nation, was forcibly removed from his aunt's car by ICE agents in Robbinsdale, Minnesota, and struck during the encounter. He was detained for approximately 10 hours. Tribal leaders and members of the Minnesota state legislature's Native American Caucus reported that federal agents were racially profiling Native Americans—U.S. citizens with dual tribal and federal citizenship—mistaking them for immigrants based on skin color. The incident was recorded on camera.

On January 8, 2026, Border Patrol agents entered a Target store in Richfield, Minnesota, and detained two U.S. citizen teenagers employed at the store: Jonathan Aguilar Garcia and Christian Miranda Romano. Despite the detainees presenting a U.S. passport and asserting their citizenship, agents proceeded with detention. Both were later verified as U.S. citizens and released without charges. Christian's family remained in contact with ICE during the detention, and the incident prompted protests calling for accountability and restrictions on agent access without warrants.

A U.S. Border Patrol agent kneed a man identified as Juan Carlos at least five times in the face while other agents held him on the pavement in Minneapolis on January 9, 2026. Video evidence showed the incident occurring on Chicago Avenue near 24th Street. The man was taken to the Whipple Federal Building and then to a hospital due to difficulty breathing.

On Wednesday morning, ICE agents attempted to enter Little Earth, the first Native American community housing project in the United States, located on Minneapolis's southside. Property managers turned the agents away. Later that same morning, community members reported and documented video evidence of ICE agents removing at least three individuals from the facility. According to one community member, agents appeared to be targeting maintenance workers and parents dropping children off at the Little Earth Daycare center.

Ahmed Bin Hassan, a Somali American Uber driver and U.S. citizen, was accosted by over a dozen Border Patrol and ICE agents at Minneapolis-St. Paul airport. The agents approached him citing his accent, which Bin Hassan later characterized as evidence of racial profiling. During the viral confrontation, Bin Hassan remained defiant, refusing to provide identification and questioning the agents' authority, before they ultimately walked away.

Federal officers drove through a crowd of protesters outside Hartford's federal building on January 8, 2026, striking at least one person with their vehicles. The protest was held as a vigil for Renee Macklin Good, who was fatally shot by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. Hartford police are investigating potential hit-and-run and assault charges against the federal officers involved.

ICE agents arrested Alberto Castañeda Mondragón near a St. Paul shopping center on January 8, 2026, and claimed he suffered severe skull fractures and brain hemorrhages by running headfirst into a wall while handcuffed. Medical staff at Hennepin County Medical Center, including doctors and nurses, stated his injuries were inconsistent with that account and suggested he was mistreated by federal agents. Disagreement exists between ICE and hospital staff regarding custody practices and restraint policies.

A man named Julio, an ImmDef Law Center client and father of a U.S. military servicemember, died on February 25 after his health rapidly declined following ICE detention. Despite having a lawful pathway to permanent residency and being medically vulnerable, ICE refused to release him and he was handcuffed to a hospital bed during his final days. His attorney secured his release but the damage to his health was irreversible.

Under President Trump's administration, the Trump administration has detained and transferred asylum-seekers to out-of-state detention centers before they receive final removal orders. This represents a change from previous administrations' practice of allowing asylum-seekers to remain in the U.S. during court proceedings.

Ricky Chandee, 52, a Laotian refugee and Minneapolis city engineer, was detained by federal immigration agents on January 24 and faced deportation based on a conviction from over 30 years ago. The Minnesota Board of Pardons unanimously granted him a pardon on May 4, 2026, one day before his scheduled deportation, potentially removing the legal basis for his removal.

Leonela Liliana Gomez Hernandez, a 27-year-old in her eighth month of pregnancy, was detained by ICE on Wednesday while traveling to a prenatal appointment at a clinic in South Central Los Angeles and was deported to Nicaragua on Friday morning. She called a friend around 1 p.m. on the day of her detention to report her apprehension by federal immigration agents.

Dulce Consuelo Díaz Morales, a 22-year-old Maryland mother, was detained by ICE on December 14, 2025, and held for 25 days across facilities in Louisiana, Texas, and New Jersey. She presented a U.S. birth certificate and other documentation to support her citizenship claim, but DHS maintains she is not a citizen and crossed the border without authorization in 2023. Following legal intervention, a federal court judge issued an order preventing her immediate deportation, resulting in her release with an ankle monitor requirement and reunification with her 5-year-old son. She remains subject to ongoing deportation proceedings with a hearing scheduled for July 2026.

Xingang Zhao, a Chinese national who filed for asylum in 2017 based on religious persecution, was detained by ICE agents when he appeared for his asylum interview at the USCIS office in Tustin after waiting over nine years. He was served with a Notice to Appear for overstaying his visitor visa and has been held at Adelanto Detention Center since January 2026. The court granted his habeas petition and ordered his immediate release, finding the government violated his due process rights by detaining him without notice and opportunity to be heard.

Wendy Hernandez Reyes was arrested by ICE on January 8, 2026, during a traffic stop in Mobile, Alabama, while traveling to work. Though she requested to take her 3-year-old U.S. citizen son Orlín with her when deported on January 26, ICE denied her request. She was forced to leave him in the care of her brother-in-law, who subsequently killed the boy. Hernandez Reyes is now in Honduras grieving the loss of her son.

Thi Dua Vang, who legally came to the U.S. in December 2023 and is awaiting green card approval, was detained by ICE agents on January 8, 2026 at her St. Paul home. She was transferred to detention facilities in Texas for nearly two weeks before an immigration judge ordered her release on bond. Since her release and required check-in with ICE, agents have reportedly returned to her home three additional times attempting to make contact.

ICE agents arrested Mexican immigrant Alberto Castañeda Mondragón on January 8, 2026, and claimed he suffered eight skull fractures and brain hemorrhages by running headfirst into a wall while handcuffed. Medical staff at Hennepin County Medical Center disputed this account, stating the injuries were inconsistent with such an accident. A federal judge ordered his release from ICE custody, though he faces significant memory loss and ongoing recovery.

Pablo Nieves, a Venezuelan asylum seeker who legally entered the U.S. in 2018 with a work permit, was detained by ICE agents in a Home Depot parking lot in Plymouth, Minnesota on January 8, 2026. He was transferred to a detention center in El Paso, Texas, where he was held for two weeks before being released on bond after a court hearing. The detention occurred during Operation Metro Surge, a federal immigration enforcement initiative targeting asylum seekers with pending applications.

Alberto C.M., a Mexican citizen who entered the country legally on a temporary H2B worker visa in 2022, was arrested by ICE agents in St. Paul during Operation Metro Surge and suffered life-threatening skull fractures and brain hemorrhages. A federal judge ordered his immediate release after 15 days of hospitalization, finding his detention unlawful as he was arrested without a warrant. Hospital records indicate C.M. reported being dragged and mistreated by federal agents, though ICE has refused to provide details about the cause of his injuries, only stating he "got his s*** rocked."