Human Impact Project

Jackie Cordova, a 51-year-old U.S. citizen and longtime Santa Ana community member, said federal agents surrounded her while she was conducting her routine early-morning ICE watch outside the federal building, then chased and tackled her, breaking a tooth and leaving her bloodied. Cordova said agents maced her, pinned her against a wall, fingerprinted her, and detained her from about 5 a.m. until 9:45 a.m. before releasing her without clear charges. DHS later called her a 'known agitator' and said she had struck ICE vehicles with a metal object and thrown rocks earlier in the week, an account Cordova disputed as 'an outright lie.' Community members described Cordova as a mentor to local youth and an organizer of community events, and about 20 people protested her arrest outside the federal building afterward.

Daniel's father was detained by ICE and is being deported, leaving Daniel suddenly responsible for household expenses including rent, electric bills, and car insurance for their trailer home. Daniel, who depended on his father financially, is now job hunting while grieving the sudden loss of his father from daily life and is considering leaving school to avoid losing their home. A GoFundMe campaign was launched by his sister to help him stay current on rent and bills during the crisis.

A father was detained by ICE agents around 5:30 a.m. after several ICE vehicles crashed into his car. According to his daughter, agents mistook him for someone else and forced him out of the vehicle despite his compliance. He is described as a hardworking man who supports his wife and children, who now depend on him for financial and emotional support.

Mario Sanchez and Liliana Leon were detained by ICE agents while working in North Miami, Florida, and taken to a holding facility. Both are authorized to work and live in the U.S. and have had a pending asylum case for over 10 years after fleeing government persecution in Venezuela. Their daughter, Stephanie Sanchez Whalen, started a fundraiser to cover legal costs, saying the couple is being held in ICE detention indefinitely with no release date.

Sammy Rodriguez, a 22-year resident of North County, California and father of four, was detained by ICE agents while on his way to work. According to the fundraiser organized by his employer's family, agents attempted to pressure him into signing deportation papers in exchange for money, and he went without food for 29 hours. Rodriguez is the sole provider for his family, who are now facing financial hardship while his attorney works to secure his release.

ICE agents detained four customers of La Princesa Real Bakery in Kerman during an early morning operation, which Kerman Mayor Maria Pacheco described as an 'ambush' after the bakery owner's son said ICE followed the customers' van into the parking lot. One of the detained individuals was later released after it was determined he had lawful immigration status, though he was shaken by the encounter. Pacheco confronted the masked agents on camera, and the video was shared widely on social media; community groups monitoring ICE activity in the Fresno area say agents have relied on racial profiling and patrols near sites frequented by immigrant workers rather than targeting individuals with warrants.

Magdaleno Benitez, a grandfather in Fresno, California, was detained by ICE on October 8, 2026, while on his way back from work. He is currently being held at a facility in McFarland, California. His family, who had recently celebrated his wedding, is raising money online to help cover legal fees.

A construction worker's father was detained by ICE agents while working alongside his son at the Riverstone Lennar development in Madera County. The son, who asked not to be identified, described the arrest: "I see my dad; he drops himself on the floor and I see all three ICE agents come get him." He said his father had no criminal record and is being held at the Golden State Annex detention facility in McFarland.

A federal judge in Nevada ordered the release of Cuban national Roberto Miranda Moya, who had been held at the Southern Nevada Detention Center after ICE took him into custody following a local arrest on domestic violence charges. Miranda Moya arrived in the U.S. in 2016 seeking political asylum, and was issued a deportation order to Cuba in March 2026 after his late appeal was dismissed. Judge Jennifer A. Dorsey ruled that the government failed to show his removal to Cuba was reasonably foreseeable, citing the Supreme Court's Zadvydas v. Davis precedent limiting indefinite detention, and ordered his release under supervision with protection against re-detention absent a realistic deportation plan.

Jhon Maykel Correa-Sangucho, a Honduran national, was arrested by ICE agents in Harrison, New Jersey, after officers said he refused repeated commands to exit his vehicle during a traffic stop. Witness video showed two children inside the vehicle crying and clinging to him as agents carried out the arrest. The Harrison mayor and Town Council called the scene 'heartbreaking' and asked the school district to provide counseling to affected students. DHS said Correa-Sangucho remains in ICE custody pending removal proceedings, and said a female passenger and a bystander are under investigation for allegedly interfering with the arrest.

Christian Coronado, a father of seven, was detained by ICE agents on his property in Edinburg, Texas. His wife, Anel, told N+ Univision that three of their children witnessed the arrest and said one of the agents struck Christian in the shoulder during the detention. Their 13-year-old daughter learned of her father's detention while at school, after videos of the operation began circulating on social media. "She came home from school and said, 'Where's my dad?'" Anel recounted.

Gilbert Antonio, a 32-year-old lawful permanent resident from El Salvador who has lived in the U.S. since childhood, was stopped by immigration agents near a pharmacy in Mendota and asked to show his papers. Antonio, who makes his living harvesting cantaloupe and watermelons, said he believed he was targeted because he is Latino and avoided detention only because he was carrying his documents at the time. He described Mendota as feeling like a 'ghost town' amid an enforcement surge, saying workers are too afraid to go to their jobs or even pick up their children from school, with only those carrying documentation willing to go outside.

Isaac Gallegos, a 2024 graduate of Orange High School in Orange County, N.C. who came to the U.S. from Honduras with his mother in 2016 after gang members killed relatives there, was detained by ICE agents on October 7, 2026 during what his family described as a routine, annual check-in tied to his pending asylum case in Charlotte. His parents, who were waiting outside, said he never returned and was later transported to a detention facility in Georgia. Gallegos played varsity soccer at Orange High, has no criminal record, has paid taxes, and had worked since age 16, taking on extra hours to support his mother and younger sibling after his father was seriously injured in a car accident. DHS confirmed his arrest and said he will remain in custody pending immigration proceedings. His sister launched a GoFundMe for legal expenses that has raised over $14,000 as the family seeks his release.

Javier Ramirez, who became a U.S. citizen 30 years ago, said he was racially profiled by an ICE agent last year at a Home Depot in Baldwin Park, California. Ramirez works as a street vendor at the site, where he also helps connect day laborers with work trucks and watches out for them amid ongoing immigration enforcement activity. He said his citizenship did not make him feel untouchable, but years of navigating harassment from law enforcement as a street vendor kept him from being afraid during the encounter. Javier said conditions have grown increasingly difficult due to combined pressure from ICE presence and extreme heat, which has reduced pay and worsened conditions for laborers and hurt his own business.

Adela Nohemy Castellanos, who gave birth two months earlier, is detained with her 10-year-old daughter Sofia at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, separated from her husband and three other children. According to her family, Adela cannot tolerate the facility's food, is under significant stress, and is unable to sleep while recovering from childbirth. Her attorneys have filed an appeal of her deportation.

A Border Patrol tactical unit confronted protesters blocking construction activity at the Arizona border wall. A protester described agents as wearing gas masks and wielding pepper spray, saying they were assaulting demonstrators rather than communicating with them. The confrontation highlights ongoing tensions between border communities and militarized enforcement at wall construction sites.

A resident of Kerman was detained by ICE agents on Thursday morning while stopping to buy a pastry and coffee, according to local officials who informed California Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria. Soria said she was "deeply disturbed" by the Trump administration's immigration enforcement operations and reports of racial profiling in the community, saying "no one should be targeted because of their color of their skin, the language they speak, their accent, or their last name."

An unnamed man was arrested by ICE agents in Mendota on Thursday morning without being asked any questions, according to Linda Martinez, an organizing coordinator with the United Farm Worker Foundation. He was released from ICE's downtown Fresno office later that afternoon after agents found his work permit in his wallet. The arrest occurred amid a broader ICE enforcement surge that advocates say has involved racial profiling of immigrant workers in the Fresno area this week.

An Angolan asylum seeker living in Maine was taken into ICE custody after negotiating a swap with immigration agents who had first detained his wife. The couple arranged the exchange so their 10-year-old son would not be left without a parent at home. Court records describe the arrangement as part of a broader pattern of federal agents tracking down immigrants with legal status at homes and workplaces in Maine, with lawyers noting Maine has stood out among New England states for this type of enforcement activity.

On October 19, 2025, more than 200 officers from roughly 14 federal and local agencies raided La Catedral Arena, a horse track in Wilder, Idaho, under a warrant covering only five gambling suspects. About 400 attendees, including children as young as 7, were zip-tied and detained for hours; 105 people were taken into ICE custody and five were arrested on gambling charges. Lead plaintiff Juana Rodriguez, a U.S. citizen, said she was restrained for nearly four hours while holding her 3-year-old son. Anabel Romero said her children, among more than a dozen American minors detained, remain deeply shaken, with her 7-year-old son later warning his older sister ahead of another race, 'Watch out for ICE, make sure you have your phone to film — I'll come save you.' A lawsuit alleges officers used racial epithets and denied food, water, and medical care; four protesters were also arrested, with most charges later dropped. U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill ordered 15-16 detainees released, ruling mandatory detention violated due process, and awarded about $87,000 in attorneys' fees.