Human Impact Project

Two workers assisting with wildfire firefighting in Washington state's Olympic National Forest were detained by Border Patrol agents on charges of unauthorized entry and reentry. One of the detainees had a pending U-visa application and a previous removal order. The detentions occurred while the workers were engaged in firefighting efforts on the Bear Gulch fire, an approximately 9,000-acre wildfire. Democratic lawmakers, including Senator Patty Murray and Representative Emily Randall, made statements regarding the operation. Randall was subsequently denied entry to the ICE facility where the men were being held.

Lorenzo Antonio Batrez Vargas, a 32-year-old Mexican national, died on August 31, 2025, at Mountain Vista Medical Center near Phoenix while in ICE custody at Central Arizona Florence Correctional Complex. He was arrested by Flagstaff police on August 2 on drug paraphernalia charges, then transferred to ICE custody in Phoenix before being moved to the Florence detention facility. During detention, Vargas, who had diabetes, contracted COVID-19 and developed respiratory problems. He was found unresponsive and resuscitation attempts were unsuccessful. He was declared dead at 7:02 a.m. His family remembered him as a loving and tender person with a generous heart who brought joy to those around him. His death marked the 14th migrant death in ICE custody in 2025, the highest number in five years.

A U.S. judge blocked the government from deporting Guatemalan children who had crossed the border without their families. The children were already on the tarmac awaiting deportation when the court order was issued.

ICE, aided by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, raided the El Corralón nightclub in the Berclair neighborhood of Memphis at 1 a.m. on August 30, targeting illegal gambling operations and a Honduran national suspected of running criminal activity there. Agents shut down the music, seized slot machines, and checked immigration status of patrons on the dance floor, ultimately arresting 121 people for lacking proof of legal status, though only five had criminal histories. Defense attorneys and the ACLU of Tennessee questioned whether the gambling-related warrants provided sufficient legal basis for the immigration arrests.

Rodrigo Preciado, who had lived in the United States for 37 years and was awaiting a U Visa and green card, was detained by local police and transferred to immigration authorities. He was deported to Mexico without being given a court hearing or due process. His family, including his wife and four children, is seeking legal representation to fight for his return and financial support during his absence.

Joaquin Herrera Avila, a Mexican national, was detained in Minneapolis by ICE without bond after failing to produce legal credentials. A lower court in Minnesota had granted his habeas petition, but the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned that decision, ruling that immigrants in removal proceedings are not entitled to bond hearings and can be held in mandatory detention without judicial intervention.

A man was detained at 7:20 a.m. on August 29. A community member observed the detention and noted interaction between the man and officers.

Immigration attorneys and relatives reported conditions at ICE's field office in Northern Virginia, including detainees receiving only one meal a day, 40-90 people in single rooms with no beds, and some held for up to seven days without bathing. The facility, designed as a temporary holding office, has become overcrowded due to increased immigration arrests in Washington D.C. since mid-August. Attorneys reported detainees are being denied legal representation, medical care, and basic hygiene access.

Detainees at Florida's 'Alligator Alcatraz' immigration detention facility reported that guards deployed teargas and beat detainees indiscriminately with batons during an alleged uprising. The incident occurred after migrants began shouting for 'freedom' upon learning of a relative's death. Florida and ICE officials denied the reports and stated detainees receive safe conditions. The facility faces a court-ordered closure within 60 days.

Seven deportees were transferred to Rwanda in early August 2025, with the Trump administration not announcing the transfer until August 28. No information has been disclosed about their identities, countries of origin, charges, or current whereabouts. Rwanda has agreed to receive up to 250 migrants from the United States. Their lawyers allege they are being held in high-security facilities in isolation, cannot communicate with anyone, do not know what crimes they are accused of, and fear torture given Rwanda's poor human rights record.

Jemmy Jimenez Rosa, a 42-year-old legal permanent resident from Peru with a valid green card for over 20 years and mother of four, was detained by CBP and ICE for 10 days after returning from a family vacation in Mexico on August 11, 2025. Her detention was based on a marijuana possession conviction from over 20 years ago that had been pardoned and her record sealed. Rosa was initially held at Boston Logan International Airport for four days without proper medication or access to basic necessities, then transferred to a detention center in Maine without being informed she had legal representation despite CBP agents promising to relay that information. She experienced an anxiety attack during detention. She was not entered into any federal detainee database for three days, making it difficult for lawyers to locate her or seek a bond hearing. Her attorney challenged the detention as unconstitutional, leading to her release on August 28, 2025.

Jean Carlos, 37, has lived in Miami for 31 years and is a father of two. He is a DACA recipient who is currently detained. Multiple DACA recipients are currently in detention. Children of detained immigrants are being separated from their parents.

Henry Rincón, his wife Clara Rincón, and daughter Daniela Rincón, a Colombian family living in Salt Lake City, were detained by immigration authorities on Friday, August 28, as they prepared to board a flight to Arizona from Salt Lake City International Airport. The family are asylum seekers with valid work permits and no criminal record. Relatives describe them as a hardworking, honest, and close-knit family who built businesses in the U.S. and started a GoFundMe campaign to cover legal fees and possible bond costs.

In August, photos and videos showed ICE arresting a man who owns a snack shop in Laguna Heights while he and another person were painting a home. His wife had been deported earlier in the year. The arrest occurred just hours before a protest at the Port Isabel Lighthouse, one of four demonstrations against ICE activity held in the area since July.

Daryn Herzberg, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, alleges he was assaulted by Department of Homeland Security personnel outside an ICE facility in South Portland on August 13, 2025. According to video evidence and his attorney's account, federal agents tackled him to the ground, with one officer grabbing him by the hair and slamming his face into the ground multiple times. Herzberg sustained injuries including a concussion, abrasions, bruising, chest contusions, and breathing issues. On August 27, Herzberg filed a federal lawsuit against DHS alleging battery and unconstitutional use of force. Federal authorities also charged Herzberg with obstructing the facility and throwing objects; his attorney characterizes these charges as bogus and retaliatory.

On August 27, 2025, Vasquez (49) and Ramirez (40), a married couple from Mexico, were arrested by ICE during a traffic stop in Tulsa despite having pending U visa applications and federal deportation protections as crime victims who assisted law enforcement in prosecuting a serial rapist. Ramirez was held for four months at Bluebonnet Detention Facility in Texas, where she was denied access to seizure medication for her epilepsy. Vasquez was detained for over seven months at a CoreCivic facility in Cushing, Oklahoma, and attended 13 immigration court hearings before winning a habeas corpus lawsuit granting him a bond hearing. The prolonged separation and detention resulted in job loss, eviction from their home in Broken Arrow, and approximately $12,000 in accumulated legal debt. Vasquez was released in April 2026 on deferral of removal grounds, followed by Ramirez's release. Both remain without legal status and are working to recover financially while awaiting U visa hearings.

Jorge Cruz, a green card holder and street vendor from Mexico City who has lived in the U.S. since age 5, was detained by ICE on August 27 while returning home with his wife from dropping off their four children at school. Cruz, who obtained his green card in 2014 after marrying a U.S. citizen, remains held in a detention center in Adelanto about 90 miles northeast of Los Angeles. His attorney and wife report that the specific grounds for his detention remain unclear, though authorities have referenced past dismissed charges related to street vending infractions and a verbal altercation with another vendor that resulted in dropped charges.

Alejandro Theodoro Orellana, 29, a member of the Boyle Heights-based community organization Centro CSO, pleaded not guilty to handing out protective face shields to protesters during an anti-ICE demonstration in Los Angeles. He faces federal charges of conspiracy and aiding and abetting civil disorder. Trial was set for August 26 in LA federal court.

David Antonio Aviles Perez, a 35-year-old Salvadoran national known as 'La Bruja,' was arrested by ICE in San Diego on March 26, 2025, and held at Otay Mesa Detention Center for nearly five months. He had been convicted in absentia in El Salvador for a 2014 gang-related killing and was previously arrested in Monterey, California in 2023 for allegedly swinging a machete at a homeless man before being released from local custody. U.S. District Judge Jinsook Ohta ruled on August 26, 2025 that immigration officials violated his Fifth Amendment rights by detaining him without a bond hearing or individualized assessment of danger or flight risk. Aviles Perez was released from federal custody on August 27, with the court barring ICE from re-detaining him unless an immigration judge independently determines detention is warranted. The ruling did not clear him of wrongdoing or find him non-dangerous.

Luis, a migrant from Ecuador, was arrested by ICE agents after an immigration court hearing on August 26, 2025, as his young daughters clung to him in anguish. The photograph of his arrest, capturing his daughters' faces as they tried to prevent their father from being taken away, won World Press Photo's 2026 'Photo of the Year' award. The image drew international attention for its depiction of fear, terror, and powerlessness during the enforcement action.

Luis, an Ecuadorian mechanic and father of three, was arrested by masked ICE agents on August 26 after leaving a courtroom on the 12th floor of 26 Federal Plaza in Lower Manhattan with his wife Cocha and their children, ages 7, 13, and 15. The family had attended a routine immigration hearing and believed his case had been extended for another year when agents grabbed Luis without explanation. His children leapt onto him, clutching his shirt to stay together, but an ICE agent violently yanked one of his daughters backward to pry them apart. His 7-year-old son was left weeping as a masked agent blocked the family with his arm. The family came to the U.S. from Ecuador 2.5 years ago, making the journey on foot and by car, fleeing local corruption and fearing for their children's futures. Luis works as a mechanic and is the family's sole financial support. Cocha, who stayed home to care for the children, does not know where her husband was taken or what to do without him.

A Guatemalan father of three, a native and citizen of Guatemala, has resided in Los Angeles with his family for many years and has three biological children who are United States citizens. He was arrested by immigration authorities on August 26, 2025, and has been detained at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center since that time. He is pending removal proceedings and is seeking Cancellation of Removal relief. An immigration judge denied bond at two hearings—one on January 12, 2026 (where he bore the burden of proof) and another on March 2, 2026 (where the government bore the burden)—based solely on his prior DUI conviction and immigration history, without adequately considering his family ties, stable residence, or lack of criminal history involving moral turpitude. The federal magistrate judge found the March 2, 2026 bond denial was an abuse of discretion because the immigration judge failed to conduct an individualized assessment, consider mitigating factors, or address alternatives to detention as required by the Rodriguez class action injunction. The court ordered his immediate release on his prior conditions of supervision and enjoined further detention without a compliant bond hearing.

Francisco Hernandez-Corona, an undocumented immigrant who had lived in the U.S. for most of his life, self-deported to Mexico. He was married to a U.S. citizen, but a permanent bar from a childhood unauthorized entry prevented him from adjusting his status while in the country, leaving him with no legal pathway to remain.

Balbino Mayora, an Arizona resident of nearly 25 years and business owner, was arrested by Phoenix police over vehicle registration issues. After his court hearing on August 27, ICE agents apprehended him outside the courthouse and he was transferred to the Eloy Detention Center. Mayora, who entered the US legally on a visa but overstayed, is now in removal proceedings while his family fights for his release.

A Guatemalan man who entered the U.S. without inspection in 2019 was arrested and detained by immigration officials at the Phoenix Police Department on August 25, 2025. He alleges that no agent produced a warrant, explained the reason for detention, or provided any documents. The court ordered respondents to answer his habeas corpus petition within 20 days and denied his motion for temporary restraining order.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents stopped Maria on Thursday morning while she was on her way to pay rent and buy a cake for her grandson's birthday. Sandra Hernández, director of Latinos Unidos Siempre, stated that Maria was racially profiled. The incident resulted in extensive injuries to Maria.

Lesli Marili Samayoa, 26, was arrested after recording ICE agents during an immigration enforcement operation in Fort Myers, Florida. She told N+ Univision she began filming on her way to work to alert her community, but agents surrounded her truck and a Florida Highway Patrol vehicle blocked her path. She livestreamed a 28-second video on Facebook showing agents breaking her vehicle's window before pulling her out by the hair, throwing her to the ground, and pressing their knees against her neck. She was booked into the Lee County jail on a charge of resisting an officer, not an immigration charge, and was held for nine days until September 3, during which she says she lost about 16 pounds. "I feel like I can't trust anyone, I feel abandoned, I feel like I can't call 911. I have anxiety, I don't want to go out; I'm terrified to go outside," she said.

José Ángel, 17, was detained by ICE agents in Edinburg, Texas on August 25 while on his way to retrieve a truck left behind after his uncle's earlier detention. According to José and his sister Regina, 19, who spoke with N+ Univision, their uncle had been detained by ICE while with one of his children, who managed to escape. Their mother asked them to go pick up the abandoned truck, and José was preparing for school when he and Regina went to the location where he was detained.

Adrian Sotelo Guzman was forcibly removed by ICE from M Health Fairview Southdale Hospital in Edina and transferred to a mental health facility in Texas, despite hospital staff determining he was experiencing psychosis related to bipolar disorder and was not stable enough for discharge. A federal judge approved the Department of Homeland Security's request for his removal. Medical providers and advocates raised concerns that Sotelo Guzman could not make independent decisions due to active psychosis and was denied family contact during the transfer. His family and advocacy groups are now seeking to reunite with him and calling for investigations into the circumstances of his removal.

A video captured ICE agents detaining several immigrant workers in Danbury, Connecticut on Monday, August 24, showing an agent kneeling on a man lying face-down on the street with his hands behind his back while pointing an object toward his head. The person who filmed the video, who asked to remain anonymous, told N+ Univision that one of those detained was his friend, whom he had met at a shelter, describing him as "super amable" and someone who always greeted people warmly. The witness said he and his friend were preparing to leave for work with a group of other workers when immigration agents arrived and began detaining people without identifying themselves.

Gustavo was detained by ICE on August 24, 2025, while working at Bubble Hand Car Wash in Torrance. After being held for 7 months, he was granted bond at $17,500. His sister Rosa organized a GoFundMe to raise funds for his legal expenses, noting that Gustavo is elderly with medical conditions including high blood pressure, diabetes, and cirrhosis.

Rodrigo Almendarez, a U.S. citizen born in Canoga Park, was detained by ICE agents outside his workplace in Simi Valley without being identified or told why. He was released after showing his ID and a coworker's intervention. He plans to file a lawsuit over the incident.

An ICE officer fired at a U.S. citizen during an enforcement incident. Video footage shows the officer firing while the citizen stated he had children in his car.

HSI and ICE agents chased a family in Indio, California, causing a couple to crash their vehicle. Agents removed the man from the scene in their vehicles. The children were left at the scene. An ambulance arrived for the mother and children.

Arnulfo Bazan was deported after being intimidated into signing a voluntary departure form. He has returned to his home country. The community organization fielhouston commented on the actions taken against Bazan and his family.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers opened fire during an immigration enforcement operation in San Bernardino, California on Saturday, firing three shots at a departing vehicle. Masked agents in unmarked vehicles surrounded the family's truck with weapons drawn and broke windows without identifying themselves, prompting the driver to flee out of fear. Federal authorities claimed the action was self-defense after the vehicle struck two officers, though no agents were injured. The family later refused to allow agents into their home without a warrant, and federal agents surrounded the residence for several hours.

Heriberto Reyes-Ochoas, known as Eddie, a 34-year-old native of Mexico who has lived in Kiln, Mississippi for nearly 20 years, was arrested by immigration authorities after a minor car accident. He was stopped by a state trooper for failure to yield and driving without a license, held at the Hancock County jail, and then transferred to the Adams County Correctional Center, an ICE facility in Natchez, Mississippi. His wife, Catherine Cool, said the couple has been married 12 years and is expecting their first child, and that Reyes-Ochoas has no criminal record and was in the process of applying for a green card, awaiting an interview when he was detained. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said he will remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.

ICE arrests continue to increase across the Western Pennsylvania region, including areas like Monroeville and Ambridge. Federal immigration authorities are receiving assistance from local police in conducting these enforcement operations. The article references an incident on Tuesday involving more than two dozen workers arrested at a construction site at Mount Nittany.

Former Breitbart editor Milo Yiannopoulos, a United Kingdom national, was arrested by ICE agents at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in Kenner, Louisiana. DHS said he legally entered the U.S. through New York City on May 14, 2019, but overstayed his authorized stay. An immigration judge issued him a final order of removal on July 22 after he failed to appear for his immigration hearing, and he is being held at an ICE facility in Alexandria, Louisiana pending removal.

Federal agents, including Border Patrol's BORTAC tactical unit, ICE, and the U.S. Marshal Service, converged on a shopping center parking lot in Encinitas to apprehend a man from Mexico who had been deported twice before and had a final order of removal from 2019. According to CBP, the man rammed one of the agents' vehicles and fled on foot into a wooded area before being taken into custody. Witnesses described the heavily armed, masked agents and unmarked vehicles as alarming, and the man remains in ICE custody pending removal.

Muhammad Zahid Chaudhry, a disabled U.S. Army veteran from Pakistan who has lived in the United States since 2000, was detained by ICE on August 21, 2025, when he arrived for a citizenship interview in Tukwila, Washington. Chaudhry served in the Washington Army National Guard from 2001 to 2005 and was honorably discharged due to a back injury sustained during training; the injury left him using a wheelchair and experiencing severe pain. He has been living in Lacey with his wife Melissa and their two children, and has dedicated his post-military life to activism, serving on former Governor Jay Inslee's Committee on Disability Issues and Employment and as president of Veterans for Peace Olympia. Federal officials say Chaudhry failed to initially disclose fraud convictions from Australia in 1996 related to using documents that were not his to open a bank account and obtain benefits; Chaudhry's wife states he was coerced into pleading guilty and was told there would be no criminal record, and that the convictions carried a lenient sentence. An immigration judge denied his bond on August 29, 2025, leaving him detained at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma while his removal case moves through the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, where he has an ongoing appeal challenging a 2020 Board of Immigration Appeals decision that overturned an immigration judge's 2018 ruling allowing him to keep his green card.

José Escobar Molina, 47, a Salvadoran native with temporary protected status who had lived in Washington, DC for 25 years, was grabbed and handcuffed without questions by ICE agents in two cars as he approached his work truck. He was held overnight in Virginia before being released. He is a plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit challenging warrantless arrests in DC.

Jediael Amaya Sanchez, 46, was detained by ICE agents outside the Buncombe County Courthouse on August 21 while attending a civil complaint hearing. Armed officers in tactical gear conducted the arrest in an unmarked vehicle without notifying local law enforcement or his public defender. Amaya Sanchez had recently been acquitted in a jury trial and had only traffic-related convictions on his record. The incident occurred amid a reported 170% increase in ICE arrests in North Carolina this year, raising concerns among civil rights advocates and local law enforcement about procedural transparency and safety.

Ricardo and Leonard Chavez, two brothers, were tased and arrested by ICE agents in the middle of Main Street in Norwalk during the Operation Broken Trust enforcement action. A video posted to social media documented the tasing and arrest of the two men by federal agents.

ICE Boston, in coordination with the FBI, U.S. Marshals Service, DEA, and ATF, apprehended 65 people during a four-day enforcement operation from August 12-15, 2025, targeting transnational organized crime, gangs, and offenders with serious criminal histories across Connecticut. The operation, named Operation Broken Trust, included arrests at courthouses in Stamford, Norwalk, and Danbury, as well as street arrests. According to ICE, 29 of the 65 people arrested had been convicted or charged with crimes including kidnapping, assault, drug offenses, weapons violations, and sex crimes. The operation was conducted in response to Connecticut's Trust Act, which limits state and local law enforcement cooperation with ICE. Immigration advocates protested the operation and criticized ICE's tactics, including arrests at courthouses and use of force against protesters.

Cottonwood School of Civics and Science relocated from its location next to a Portland ICE facility. The school experienced exposure to chemicals, munitions, and gases on its grounds during summer 2025, prompting cleanup efforts and enrollment decline. The K-8 charter school moved to a new location on Southwest First Avenue before the school year began on September 2.

Miguel Alvarado-Lopez, a worker at Moonshot Tavern in Portland, was apprehended by immigration enforcement agents on January 24 while sitting in his car at a gas station in Northeast Portland. He was transferred to the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington, then to Arizona, and as of the report was awaiting deportation to Guatemala where his wife and son reside.

Grace Calero, 39, and her 19-year-old daughter Giulianna Carriel were arrested by ICE agents at HCA Florida Poinciana Hospital while being treated after a two-vehicle crash that occurred as Calero drove Carriel to work. Cellphone video shows the women, one still attached to an IV, screaming as agents with help from Polk County deputies detained them; a family member says someone posing as hospital security questioned the women about their immigration status before identifying himself as ICE. A relative's GoFundMe states Calero has a pending asylum case and valid work permit and Carriel holds a visa valid until 2030, though the Polk County Sheriff's Office and DHS said both had overstayed expired visas. The women elected to voluntarily depart and arrived in Quito, Ecuador, exhausted and facing an uncertain future, while community groups protested outside the hospital.

Asma Elhuni, an activist with immigrant advocacy group Resistencia en Acción, followed federal immigration officers for about 19 minutes while honking her horn to alert residents during an ICE arrest of a community member in Trenton. Trenton police subsequently stopped and arrested her, alleging she committed traffic violations, including failing to stop at signs, illegal parking, and fleeing after officers activated lights and sirens. She was released after a few hours but received multiple traffic tickets, which she is disputing with a criminal defense attorney. The Trenton Police Department denies coordinating with ICE, and the Mercer County Prosecutor's Office has been asked to review the arrest due to public concern.

Luis Fernando Hong, a 20-year-old Venezuelan man from Coro, Falcón, was detained by ICE on August 20 in Hallandale Beach, Florida. He arrived in the U.S. in 2016 at age 10 as part of his family's asylum application, which was filed three months after their arrival, and has a pending asylum case along with a valid work permit and no criminal record. Hong works at Wells Fargo as a personal banker, and was intercepted by immigration agents outside a Walmart after going to the gym following his work shift. He is currently held at the Miramar processing center. A family member described him as 'a good young man' who has lived in the country for more than 10 years while following the law and maintaining good behavior.