Human Impact Project

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.

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.

The South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, operated by CoreCivic, faced multiple documented problems affecting detained immigrant families and children. Emergency responders handled at least 11 medical emergencies since September 2025, including respiratory distress, seizures, and fever in infants and young children. Detainees reported finding worms, bugs, and mold in food, contaminated drinking water, and inadequate nutrition, leading to a confirmed measles outbreak in early 2026. Children experienced inadequate medical care, 24-hour lighting, and some were detained beyond the 20-day legal limit. A 13-year-old girl denied prescribed anxiety medications experienced a mental health crisis and attempted suicide before deportation. Following media coverage and a January protest, facility staff increased confiscation of art supplies, drawings, and personal items from detainees, and restricted communications with family and lawyers through Google services and video calls. A federal judge ruled some detentions unconstitutional, and medical advocates and congressional representatives called for facility closure.

An ICE enforcement operation in Newark, New Jersey resulted in a multi-vehicle crash on February 25-26, 2026. ICE agents attempted to pull over a van during an arrest operation, prompting the driver to flee. The pursuit resulted in a crash involving multiple vehicles, including one carrying three children who were injured. The van driver was also injured during the chase. Mayor Ras Baraka criticized ICE's actions as reckless and dangerous, stating the operation violated New Jersey state law prohibiting law enforcement vehicle pursuits in densely populated areas without an immediate threat to public safety. ICE agents conducted a raid near a bus stop where fourth and fifth grade students were waiting for their school bus early Thursday morning. Armed and masked agents were present as children ran, with some students reporting that agents followed them home. Ring camera footage captured video of the incident.

Joytu Chowdhury, a 24-year-old former student at Illinois Wesleyan University from Bangladesh, was arrested by ICE in December 2025 after his F-1 student visa status was terminated due to a lapse in his SEVIS record while transferring schools. After months in immigration detention across multiple facilities in Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana, during which he alleged inhumane conditions including inadequate medical care, overcrowding, and poor nutrition, Chowdhury self-deported on February 26, 2026, and returned to Bangladesh. DHS disputed his characterization of detention conditions, stating he received appropriate care.

A 21-year-old Hispanic man identified as Juan Miguel Munoz Penalver died in Louisville Metro jail on February 26, 2026, while subject to an ICE immigration detainer. He had been in custody since February 14 on criminal assault charges and was held under an ICE detainer that could have extended his detention beyond his scheduled release. The death is under investigation by LMDC's Professional Standards Unit and Louisville Metro Police's Public Integrity Unit.

Luis Duque was driving his boyfriend Oscar to work in Charlotte when ICE agents stopped their vehicle during a traffic stop. The agents detained Oscar, who is in the process of becoming a U.S. citizen, without presenting a warrant. Oscar was taken to Stewart Detention Center in Georgia and given the option to self-deport to Mexico or wait months for a court hearing.

Bradley County constables working under ICE authority participated in an Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation in the Heritage Walk neighborhood of East Brainerd on Tuesday morning that resulted in multiple arrests. The operation targeted construction workers, with at least eight workers detained according to immigrant rights organizations. Hamilton County Sheriff Austin Garrett stated his office was not involved in the operation, which was conducted by ICE task force members including Bradley County constables operating outside their county.

Documents obtained by activists reveal that U.S. Border Patrol used the Escondido Police Department's gun range for training at least seven times between February and June 2018, paying $300 per use. The discovery came as the city was scheduled to meet to discuss an ongoing contract between Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Escondido police.

Emmanuel Sackie, a Liberian-born naturalized U.S. citizen, was violently detained by ICE in a Family Dollar parking lot in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, despite possessing a driver's license and photo ID. He was taken to an unknown location and subsequently sent to the hospital. Sackie stated this was his first time in handcuffs and expressed that he was treated unfairly based on his race.

Two Iranian Christian converts seeking asylum were detained by ICE in Houston in December during a routine immigration appointment. Both men have lived peacefully, worked legally, paid taxes, and obtained work authorization. If deported to Iran, they face persecution and death under a regime that has recently killed thousands of citizens.

ICE agents arrested 27-year-old Jack Randmaa on suspicion of vandalism after his tire was allegedly slashed on Carrillo Street in Santa Barbara on February 21, 2026. During the arrest near the Santa Barbara County Probation Office, an ICE agent pepper-sprayed and threw 80-year-old criminal defense attorney Doug Hayes to the ground as he attempted to retrieve Randmaa's backpack and cellphone. Hayes, who verbally confronted the agents during the detention, stated he would pursue criminal and civil rights lawsuits against the federal agents, claiming they interfered with his ability to speak freely and violated his client's rights. Bystanders recorded the encounter. ICE agents conducted an enforcement operation in downtown Santa Barbara on February 19, 2026, involving the detention of a man accused of vandalizing a federal vehicle. During the arrest, ICE agents placed the suspect in a headlock. When defense attorney Doug Hayes and other bystanders intervened, agents pepper-sprayed Hayes and at least one other person. The incident occurred outside the Santa Barbara County Probation Office on Carrillo Street, with crowds gathering to record and protest the enforcement activity.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested four people at the Mecklenburg County Courthouse on Tuesday. Three attorneys were present during the arrests and were accused of interfering, with one attorney attempting to physically stop the process. ICE warned that anyone impeding arrests in the future could face arrest themselves. Federal authorities have opened a criminal investigation into whether two ICE officers committed perjury by lying under oath about a shooting in Minneapolis. All charges were dropped against two Venezuelan men involved in the incident.

Multiple individuals, including pregnant women and infants, were deported from the South Texas Family Residential Center (Dilley detention facility) in Texas during February 2026. A woman named Juana was deported while 36 weeks pregnant with two small children; U.S. Congressman Joaquin Castro alleged ICE concealed pregnant women from him during a facility inspection, and reported the deportation occurred over a weekend in late February. A two-month-old infant named Juan Nicolás developed bronchitis after nearly a month in detention and was hospitalized; despite his medical condition, he was discharged and deported to Mexico with his parents and 16-month-old sister, eventually reaching Guatemala with assistance. Additionally, staff at the facility conducted raids on dormitories to confiscate and destroy letters and drawings from detained children describing conditions inside, following a ProPublica article published February 9 detailing children's accounts. Many detained children exceeded the 20-day maximum specified in the Flores Settlement Agreement.

Kelvin Martinez Bermudez, a citizen of Nicaragua, was arrested during his scheduled ICE check-in on February 24, 2026. ICE did not set bond and Petitioner did not receive custody review by an Immigration Judge as required under Matter of Yajure Hurtado. Under a recent DHS policy, he was classified as an 'applicant for admission' subject to mandatory detention. The court granted a temporary restraining order requiring ICE to provide a bond hearing by April 7, 2026 or release him.

An ACLU legal fellow visited the North Lake Processing Center in Michigan to meet with a detained Venezuelan woman seeking asylum. The author describes arbitrary security screening practices, including being required to remove her underwire bra, and documents severe detention conditions including inadequate food, limited outdoor access, medication costs passed to detainees, and a recent death at the facility. The detained woman, who entered the U.S. legally through CBP One screening and a port of entry, was separated from her 3-month-old infant after a false accusation by an abusive ex-partner and faces an impossible choice between deportation to Venezuela or relocation to Ecuador without her child.

A West Virginia federal judge ordered the immediate release of Eduardo Tinajero Rodriguez from ICE custody, finding his detention violated federal law and the Constitution. The judge found serious procedural failures including ICE's use of a document showing marijuana convictions from 2009 when Rodriguez was only four years old. Rodriguez was detained following a traffic stop based on an illegible license plate and an officer's call to ICE due to a language barrier.

Bruno Guedes da Silva, a Brazilian seeking asylum with valid work authorization, was detained by ICE agents in Sewickley, Pennsylvania on February 21, 2026. ICE stated he was wanted on a warrant for felony charges related to firearms and falsification of documents, though he possessed a Social Security number and driver's license. His 6-year-old daughter, Maria, began chemotherapy treatment for Hodgkin's lymphoma shortly after his detention. He was held at Northern Regional Jail in Moundsville, West Virginia.

A class-action lawsuit was filed on behalf of five individuals against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and its agencies (ICE, CBP, USBP) for conducting warrantless immigration arrests across North Carolina. The plaintiffs include U.S. citizens and a visa holder who were arrested without legal justification during enforcement operations in Charlotte, Durham, Raleigh, and other communities. The lawsuit challenges the conduct of warrantless arrests.

George Retes, a 25-year-old U.S. Army veteran and U.S. citizen, was detained by ICE agents on July 10, 2025, during a workplace raid at a cannabis farm in Ventura County, California. Despite repeatedly identifying himself as a U.S. citizen, he was arrested and held for three days at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles without access to phone calls, legal representation, or a judge appearance. Officers used tear gas and pepper spray against him during the detention. After his release without charges, Retes filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the federal government under the Federal Tort Claims Act and challenged the Trump administration's claimed absolute immunity for immigration enforcement officers. In February 2026, Retes attended the State of the Union as a guest of Rep. Mark Takano.

Two Haitian girls, ages 4 and 5, were found dead in a septic tank at Casa Hogar Patos, a migrant transit center in Oaxaca, Mexico on February 24, 2026. The children had been admitted to the facility with their mother while awaiting immigration processing. The Support Group for Repatriated and Refugees (GARR) is demanding an investigation. Two officials have been dismissed but no one has been formally held responsible.

A woman in her 50s, adopted from Iran as a toddler by a U.S. Air Force veteran, is facing deportation proceedings after discovering she was never formally naturalized as a U.S. citizen. She entered the country on a tourist visa and was excluded from the 2000 Child Citizenship Act, despite growing up in the Midwest and having no criminal record. She fears deportation to Iran given her father's military service, her Christian faith, and her lack of family or language connections to the country.

Paulino Martin San Pedro, a handyman who lived and worked in Oregon for years, was detained by ICE agents in late 2025. According to the article title, he subsequently died after being deported to Mexico.

Multifaith leaders held their seventh vigil at Southside Christian Church in Kokomo to oppose ICE detention at Miami Correctional Facility. The vigil came a week after 59-year-old Lorth Sim, an ICE immigrant detainee, died in custody at the facility. Religious leaders called for thorough investigation and better treatment of detainees, noting it was the seventh death in ICE custody nationally that year.

An ICE whistleblower testified before Congressional Democrats during a public forum titled "Our Values at Stake Pt. III: Terrorizing Communities Without Warrants and No Restraint." The whistleblower discussed concerns about defective training practices within the agency.

José Barco, a U.S. Iraq War veteran and legal resident who was not a citizen, was deported to Mexico after serving nearly 16 years in prison for a shooting incident committed while experiencing post-traumatic stress. After his release on parole in January 2025, ICE took him into custody and attempted to deport him to Venezuela, which rejected him. He was ultimately deported to Mexico in November 2025, where he now lives in isolation awaiting asylum processing.

Rep. Dan Goldman requested information from the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons regarding the treatment of over 191 ICE detainees at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Goldman raised concerns about inadequate medical care, barriers to legal counsel, and delays in court appearances, noting he had been denied access for inspections previously.

Court documents revealed that Immigration and Customs Enforcement in San Diego conducted surveillance on activists through Operation Road Flare, targeting individuals who document ICE activities such as Jeane Wong and Arturo Gonzalez. The operation began monitoring activists on October 23, 2025, and documents describe confrontations at the 47th Street Trolley Station on November 18, 2025, where Wong was accused of throwing belongings at agents during a crowd altercation. Wong subsequently pleaded guilty to misdemeanor assault on a federal officer and received home detention.

A 16-year-old asylum-seeker from Ecuador named Sebastian was detained by ICE agents in north Minneapolis in early January and was misclassified as an unaccompanied minor. Instead of being sent to standard detention, he was transported to a Christian youth shelter in Michigan where the government lost track of him for over a week. His father and attorney worked to locate and retrieve him through legal action.

Celestino Adelso Calderon Rodas, who entered the United States in October 2014, was detained by ICE on February 21, 2026, as he was leaving his home to go to work. The detention occurred without any warning, paperwork, or stated legitimate reason. The federal court granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release, while also enjoining ICE from re-detaining him without providing notice and a pre-detention hearing.

Farah, a 21-year-old gay woman from Morocco, fled family violence and sought asylum in the United States. After nearly a year in detention, a federal judge issued a protection order preventing her deportation to Morocco. ICE deported her to Cameroon, where homosexuality is illegal and criminalized with sentences up to five years in prison, before she was subsequently sent to Morocco. The deportation occurred despite the existing court order.

A woman adopted from Iran at age 2 and raised in the American Midwest is facing deportation proceedings despite having lived in the U.S. her entire life and considering herself fully American. She was excluded from automatic citizenship under the 2000 Child Citizenship Act because she entered on the wrong type of visa. She fears deportation to Iran due to her Christian faith and her late father's U.S. military service, and has no family or language connections to the country.

Imperial Valley activists gathered outside the Imperial Regional Detention Facility on February 21 for an interfaith vigil honoring Huabing Xie, a Chinese immigrant, and Luis Beltran Yañez-Cruz, a Honduran immigrant, who both died while in ICE custody in Imperial County. Organizers highlighted conditions of medical neglect, overcrowding, and unsanitary conditions at the detention facility, and called for accountability regarding the deaths.

Federal judges have ordered the release of pregnant and nursing women held by ICE, citing violations of ICE Directive 11032.4, which prohibits detention of pregnant and nursing individuals. Despite this policy, over 1,000 such individuals have been detained since Trump's second term began. Documented cases detail severe conditions including miscarriages without proper medical care, shackling during pregnancy and labor, inadequate medical treatment, solitary confinement, forced family separations, and contaminated food with worms and mold. A Russian family of asylum-seekers, including three children, was released from the Dilley Immigration Processing Center after more than four months in custody following legal challenges and media coverage. Congressional visits to detention facilities have documented medical care violations, prompting legal intervention and judicial action.

Jose Manuel Cordova Lopez was taken into federal custody during an ICE raid on February 9 in Lower Providence Township. Lopez originally came to the United States from Mexico on a legal work visa, though DHS stated the visa expired in 2021. A GoFundMe for the family has raised more than $10,000.

Special education teacher Linda Davis was killed when a man fleeing immigration officers crashed into her car. The incident involved a driver who was being pursued by ICE at the time of the collision.

Greggy Valerio Sorio, a 37-year-old green card holder, was deported to the Philippines after ICE denied his stay request despite severe medical conditions including inflammatory bowel disease, anemia, and a toe amputation requiring wheelchair use. Sorio's deportation stemmed from criminal convictions dating back over a decade, and ICE determined he was medically fit to fly despite advocates' warnings and his recent hospitalization. Community groups and immigrant-rights advocates condemned the deportation as a systemic failure, with 60 protesters rallying outside the detention center, and airline staff initially removing him from the flight after being alerted to his condition.

Alex Ramirez Gonzalez and Yan Vasquez Hidalgo, a married couple who work at SUNY Upstate Medical University, were detained by ICE for four months after appearing for a routine immigration hearing in October 2025. The couple, who arrived in the U.S. from Cuba in 2021 and had approved asylum status, were unexpectedly detained and separated during their detention in Batavia. They were released this week on bail while their asylum appeals are pending in federal court.