Human Impact Project

Huabing Xie, a Chinese immigrant, died while in ICE custody at the Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Imperial County. Activists organized an interfaith vigil on February 21, 2026, outside the facility to honor Xie and another detainee who died there, highlighting conditions of medical neglect, overcrowding, and unsanitary conditions at the detention center.

ICE agents arrested a man in downtown Santa Barbara after he allegedly slashed a tire on an ICE vehicle parked on East Carrillo Street. Community members and the man's parent followed ICE agents to the police station and filmed the incident. The Santa Barbara Police Department stated it was not notified in advance of ICE operations in the city.

A Mexican citizen who has resided in the United States since 2009 was arrested on February 21, 2026, in Fort Worth, Texas for driving while intoxicated. He was transferred to ICE custody on March 2, 2026, and held at the Golden State Annex Detention Facility without a bond hearing. The court found he was unlawfully detained under mandatory detention provisions and ordered his immediate release, ruling he should have received a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) as a noncitizen already present in the country, not as a recently arrived applicant for admission.

Michael Opeoluwa Egbele, a Nigerian migrant who entered the U.S. in 2003, was released from ICE custody on February 20, 2026, after a federal court ruled the government acted unlawfully by revoking his supervised release without due process. The U.S. District Court in Minnesota granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release, noting he had remained in compliance with his supervision conditions for over a decade before his January 2026 detention during a routine check-in.

A man entered the United States on June 1, 2019, was initially detained at the border by immigration authorities, and was released on bond after eight months in custody. On February 20, 2026, he was re-detained by ICE. The federal court granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release on the same conditions he had prior to re-detention.

On February 9, 2026, ICE agents conducted a raid at a home in Lower Providence Township, Pennsylvania, targeting Jose Manuel Cordova Lopez, 26, a Mexican national whose work visa expired in 2021. Agents arrived in unmarked vehicles and civilian clothes, forced entry by breaking down the door, and injured a woman identified as Lupe Lopez during the operation. She reported being hit in the head by an officer. Children in the home were left shaken. State Rep. Joe Webster stated agents did not initially have a warrant and described the operation as chaotic. Lopez was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and ramming an ICE vehicle. Following the raid, neighbors provided assistance with door repairs and supplies, and family members called for an independent investigation into the use of force. A GoFundMe established for the family raised more than $10,000.

Jonathan Enrique Meza Ruiz, an Indiana man who came to the United States as an unauthorized minor nearly two decades ago, was ordered released by federal judge Matthew P. Brookman or granted a bond hearing by ICE. The ruling is part of a nationwide legal battle over whether the Trump administration can detain people in non-border areas for immigration violations and hold them without bond under a border-related legal provision.

Amanda Isabel Cardoso, a 22-year-old Cuban immigrant living in Tampa who was awaiting a green card, was arrested in Orlando in August 2024 while pregnant and subsequently detained by ICE for nearly three months at Otero County Processing Center in rural New Mexico. During her detention, Cardoso received minimal prenatal care despite being in her first pregnancy—the facility lacked ultrasound machines and she was denied access to her medical records. After her release in February 2025 following legal intervention by immigration attorney Sam Badawi, Cardoso was diagnosed with preeclampsia and gestational diabetes, conditions medical experts say can be triggered by stress. Cardoso, who fled Cuba after her grandmother was killed in an act of political violence, now faces ongoing uncertainty about her immigration status and potential separation from her baby if detained again.

Nayra Guzmán, an immigrant from Mexico, was arrested by ICE agents in Cicero, Illinois, 15 days after undergoing a cesarean section. She was on her way to visit her newborn daughter, who remained in the NICU with complications from preeclampsia and unable to eat or breathe independently. Despite having a pending asylum application and work permits, Guzmán was detained for 34 hours in a facility intended for short stays. During her detention, she was denied basic postpartum care, including a breast pump and medical assessment for her Type 1 diabetes, and spent her first night without adequate bedding. Guzmán was arrested alongside her mother and brother. Her lawyers successfully petitioned for her release, citing concerns for both her and her daughter's health. The family was released on conditional bail.

Lucia, a pregnant woman detained by ICE after appearing for a regular check-in appointment, began experiencing heavy vaginal bleeding in the middle of the night when she was two months pregnant. She requested immediate medical attention but was not taken to see medical staff for several hours. Instead, medical staff left her alone in a small room without food, water, or pain medication while she bled heavily. After significant blood loss, she was transported to an emergency room with her arms and legs shackled while actively miscarrying. She required a blood transfusion due to the miscarriage. She was returned to ICE custody and continued experiencing abdominal pain and heavy bleeding for another month before being deported.

Julieta, who held a valid visa, was detained for two months at Basile detention center. She was shackled at the ankles, hands, and waist during cross-country transport and feared that poor nutrition and the stress of detention could endanger her pregnancy.

Alicia arrived for a routine ICE check-in in Louisiana and was detained without warning, then sent to Basile detention center. She soon discovered she was pregnant. She received small portions of poor-quality food that left her feeling weak and hungry. By May, she began experiencing severe abdominal pain, cramping, and bleeding. She was taken to a local hospital for a blood test but received no explanation of her medical treatment or interpretation. At the emergency room, medical personnel performed an invasive uterine test without her consent, injected her with an unknown medication, and informed her that she had miscarried. Despite this miscarriage, ICE returned her to Basile that night and detained her for two more months. She continued to experience heavy bleeding, swelling, fever, and severe uterine pain, submitting repeated sick call requests that went unanswered. In July 2025, ICE deported Alicia, separating her from her children, and she later sought hospital care for a severe infection acquired while in custody.

Marie, a graduate student and lawful visitor to the United States, was detained for more than 20 weeks at Basile detention center in Louisiana during her high-risk pregnancy. Although she had informed ICE officers of her pregnancy, she was placed in solitary confinement after being transferred thousands of miles from the U.S.-Canada border. Medical treatment was not provided until other detained women advocated for her. Inside the facility, food was often inedible, and when she asked about missing prenatal vitamins, a nurse told her, 'You won't die if you don't take them.' After her release through legal intervention, Marie developed eclampsia, endured a difficult delivery, and continues to struggle with postpartum depression linked to her detention trauma.

Antonia Aguilar Maldonado, a mother of two from El Salvador, was arrested by ICE while on her way to work and detained at the Kandiyohi County Jail in Minnesota for nearly a month. Her 22-month-old child is still nursing and has acid reflux and allergies to other forms of milk. The jail was not equipped to house a nursing mother and did not have a breast pump upon her arrival, forcing her to manually express milk until the facility purchased one. By the time of her release, her breast milk had started to dry up. Her children were traumatized by her detention. Her attorney successfully argued for her release on bond of $10,000, paid by church members. She is now requesting voluntary departure.

Cary López Alvarado, a U.S. citizen from Hawthorne, California, was arrested by ICE agents while nine months pregnant alongside her husband, an immigrant from Guatemala. ICE held her overnight but released her after discovering her citizenship status. Immediately after her release, Alvarado experienced sharp stomach pains and gave birth a few days later. Footage from the arrest shows federal agents restraining her with her hands held behind her back, despite guidance that officers should not use physical restraints on pregnant individuals. Her husband has since been deported, leaving Alvarado without income and relying on family to help care for her newborn. Alvarado is seeking $1 million in damages from Border Patrol and ICE agents, citing unconstitutional conduct and unlawful arrest.

Angie Rodriguez, a Colombian asylum seeker, was detained by ICE following a routine immigration check-in in July 2025 and discovered she was pregnant while in custody at Mesa Verde ICE Processing Center in Bakersfield, California. While detained, she experienced food insecurity, struggling to eat facility meals due to their appearance and smell, with limited alternatives beyond processed foods like instant noodles and chips. She received no adequate prenatal health care or education for weeks after her pregnancy was confirmed. Rodriguez experienced brown discharge and was transported to an off-site hospital where she miscarried. Upon hospital release, she was placed in medical isolation at the ICE detention center before being released. Her case is among more than a dozen documented by the ACLU of pregnant women held without proper medical care at immigration facilities. Rodriguez filed a lawsuit claiming unconstitutional detention, arguing that the stress of sudden arrest, coupled with inadequate food options and lack of prenatal care, may have contributed to the loss of her pregnancy.

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.

Federal judges have ordered the release of pregnant and nursing women held by ICE at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, citing violations of ICE Directive 11032.4, which prohibits detention of pregnant and nursing individuals. Congressman Joaquin Castro alleged that approximately eight pregnant women are currently being held at the facility and claimed they were hidden from his view during his visit. Castro reported cases of inadequate medical care, including a pregnant woman three months along experiencing heavy bleeding and a teenage boy not receiving proper medical attention for appendicitis. Over 1,000 pregnant, postpartum, and nursing individuals have been detained since Trump's second term began, with documented cases detailing severe conditions including miscarriages without proper medical care, shackling during pregnancy and labor, inadequate medical treatment, solitary confinement, forced family separations, and contaminated food.

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.

Lorth Sim, a 59-year-old Cambodian national who entered the U.S. as a refugee in 1983 and became a lawful permanent resident in 1986, died in custody at Miami Correctional Facility in Miami County, Indiana on February 16, 2026. Sim was arrested by ICE in Boston on December 30, 2025, and transferred to the Indiana facility to await deportation following an immigration judge's removal order to Cambodia. He was found unresponsive in his cell and pronounced dead at 7:10 a.m. His death was the seventh in federal immigration custody in 2026. The cause of death remained under investigation, and organizers reported concerns about medical neglect among ICE detainees at the facility, prompting U.S. Congressman André Carson and other lawmakers to seek answers.