HUMSI — Human Security Initiative

Human Impact Project

A living database documenting reported immigration enforcement incidents and their human impact.

We collect individual stories of people impacted by U.S. immigration enforcement from news reporting, court records, and community accounts into one searchable public database, updated daily and reviewed by our team. The Human Impact Project is run by the Human Security Initiative, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

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4310 incidents with known locations
⚐ Highlighted incident #12415 (not on this page in normal date order)Clear

Two Bismarck restaurant workers detained by ICE, prompting closure and community protest

Sep 25, 2026Bismarck, ND

Two employees of Charra's and Tequila, a Mexican restaurant in north Bismarck, North Dakota, were taken into ICE custody, including the owner's nephew. The restaurant's owner said the workers held permanent resident status and valid, unexpired work authorization, and described remaining staff as "scared" and the team as "in shock" following the arrests, prompting the business to temporarily close. An ICE spokesperson disputed this, stating the two workers had entered the U.S. without legal status and would remain in custody pending immigration proceedings. About 75 people gathered on September 25 to protest outside the William L. Guy Federal Building in Bismarck, opposing increased ICE enforcement activity that left at least 19 people in custody at the Burleigh-Morton Detention Center that week.

ICE Moves Detained Immigrant to Louisiana for Deportation

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Mar 20, 2025Strafford County, NH

ICE began moving a person named Cristofer from Strafford County Jail in New Hampshire to Louisiana, which is described as a deportation flight hub for ICE. Advocates are urging constituents to contact Senators Andy Kim and Cory Booker demanding his immediate return and release.

Two teenagers detained by ICE in Coraopolis, PA

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Mar 20, 2025Coraopolis, PA

ICE detained two teenagers in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania on March 20 while they were riding their bikes to work. Coraopolis police stopped the teenagers and may have called ICE to detain them around 9:00 AM. Frontline DIGNITY shared the report to support community awareness and preparedness.

ICE agents conduct cluster raid in U.S. Virgin Islands

Mar 19, 2025Christiansted, VI

On March 19, ICE and Border Patrol agents conducted a multi-person enforcement operation in the parking lot of a market in Christiansted, St. Croix. Video footage showed agents subduing a man on the pavement with one agent appearing to have his knee on the man's head and neck. Delegate to Congress Stacey Plaskett commented on the enforcement action and the manner in which it was carried out.

Iraqi National Detained by ICE, Granted Habeas Relief After Incarceration

Mar 18, 2025Iraq

An Iraqi citizen and national was detained by ICE on March 18, 2025 after serving sentences for felony firearm possession and assault convictions. He was informed he would be deported to Iraq pursuant to an administrative removal order, but claimed he could not return due to fears of torture. Despite an initial credible fear finding, an Immigration Judge denied his Convention Against Torture relief and ordered his removal to Iraq on November 20, 2025. The court granted his habeas petition and ordered his immediate release from immigration detention.

Honduran SIJS holder deported despite status, ordered returned to detention in Texas

Mar 18, 2025MTHonduras

José Eliezer Martínez-Andino, a young Honduran man with Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and a work permit, was stopped by Border Patrol agents in a car crossing Montana in March 2025 over an alleged forged license plate. Despite trying to withdraw a voluntary departure form he says he signed out of fear, he was deported to Honduras in April, separating him from his 3-year-old U.S.-citizen daughter and family in Raleigh, North Carolina. A federal judge later ordered the government to bring him back, calling his removal a case that 'boggles the mind,' but when he returned in August he was sent to an ICE detention facility in Texas rather than home, and DHS has filed a new removal case against him.

Mexican mother of three detained after ICE reinstates challenged removal order

Mar 17, 2025Aurora, COMexico

A 43-year-old Mexican citizen who has lived in the U.S. since 1997 was detained on March 17, 2025, at the GEO Group's ICE Processing Center in Aurora, Colorado. She is the mother of three U.S. citizen children. In 2011, an Immigration Judge denied her cancellation of removal application but granted her voluntary departure with 60 days to leave. She appealed that decision, which tolled her departure period. In September 2012, while her appeal was pending, she traveled to Mexico to see her dying mother; her departure was deemed a withdrawal of the appeal, triggering her timely compliance with the voluntary departure order. She returned to the U.S. in April 2013 without inspection and was subsequently apprehended and charged criminally. On July 24-25, 2013, ICE issued a Form I-871 purporting to reinstate her prior removal order, but the petition alleges the reinstatement was procedurally deficient because it was signed before she was notified of her right to challenge it. ICE granted her a stay of removal on August 8, 2013, which has been repeatedly extended since then. She is now challenging her detention through a habeas corpus petition, arguing she has no valid removal order and therefore no statutory authority supports her detention.

ICE activity reported in Cranberry, PA area on March 17

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Mar 17, 2025Cranberry, PA

Frontline DIGNITY reported ICE activity in the Cranberry area on March 17 around 10:00 AM, with ICE collaborating with the Butler County Sheriff's Office to detain individuals near Brandt Drive. The organization shared this information to support community awareness and provided instructions for witnesses to report enforcement activity safely.

Chicago high school senior and mother detained at immigration court

Mar 16, 2025Chicago, ILColombia

Ricardo Navarrete, an 18-year-old Chicago high school senior, and his mother Liliana were detained outside Chicago Immigration Court on March 16 after being told to come sign papers. Both had active asylum cases and no criminal records. They were from Colombia and arrived in the U.S. in 2022. Ricardo has been transported multiple times between facilities and placed in solitary confinement; he and his mother are currently separated in different facilities in Kentucky.

Venezuelan man sentenced to federal prison for assault on ICE officer

Mar 16, 2025San Diego, CAVenezuela

Robert Antonio Bastardo Llovera, a Venezuelan national in unauthorized status, was sentenced to eight months and two days in federal prison on March 16, 2025, for assaulting an ICE deportation officer near Mission Bay in San Diego. Bastardo Llovera pleaded guilty on March 3, 2025, admitting he bit an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent on the forearm during a deportation operation on July 15, 2025.

Grand jury issues no bill in South Padre Island officer-involved shooting death

Mar 15, 2025South Padre Island, TX

A Cameron County grand jury issued a 'no bill' on March 15, 2025, in the death of 23-year-old Ruben Ray Martinez, who was shot by a Homeland Security Investigations agent on South Padre Island. Federal officials claimed Martinez attempted to run over an ICE agent, but a passenger's statement indicated the car was moving slowly and the agent fired without warning. Martinez's family requested a federal investigation and release of records.

Venezuelan man deported to El Salvador while awaiting trial on assault charges

Mar 15, 2025Chicago, ILVenezuela

Wilker Miguel Gutiérrez Sierra, 23, was arrested in February 2024 in Chicago on charges of attempted murder, robbery, and aggravated battery after allegedly assaulting a stranger on a train. He pleaded not guilty and was on electronic monitoring awaiting trial when ICE agents arrested him on the street in five black trucks in February 2025. Three days later he was deported to CECOT prison in El Salvador on March 15, 2025, removing him from the criminal justice system before his case could be resolved.

Venezuelan mother with TPS arrested before children, deported to El Salvador, beaten in detention

Mar 15, 2025ColoradoVenezuela

Gladys Yoleida Caricote Tovar, 28, a Venezuelan with Temporary Protected Status and mother of three young children, was arrested in Colorado on December 10, 2024 in front of her mother and children. Her children were placed in foster care and only returned to their grandmother weeks later. On March 15, 2025, she was deported despite a federal judge's order halting deportations. She was told she was being flown to Venezuela but was instead taken to El Salvador, where she was kept on the plane and sent back to the United States the same day. Since returning from El Salvador, she has been held in a Texas detention center where she was beaten a few days ago, covered in bruises, and is locked in solitary confinement following a panic attack.

Venezuelan woman with TPS detained 9 months, deported to El Salvador instead of home

Mar 15, 2025Venezuela

Scarleth Rodríguez, 21, a Venezuelan with Temporary Protected Status, was arrested in August 2024 after turning herself in to border authorities and held in detention for nine months without being allowed to leave. On March 15, 2025, she was deported despite a federal judge's order halting deportations. She was told she was being flown to Venezuela but was instead taken to El Salvador, where she was kept on the plane and sent back to the United States the same day. Since returning from El Salvador, she has been held in a Texas detention center where she was recently beaten. Her mother in Venezuela had prepared a meal expecting her arrival.

Venezuelan migrant deported to El Salvador without due process under Alien Enemies Act

Mar 15, 2025Chicago, ILVenezuela

Maikol Gabriel López Lizano, a Venezuelan migrant working as a mechanic in Chicago, was arrested in February 2025 on suspicion of gang membership in Tren de Aragua. He was deported on March 15, 2025, via charter plane to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 without due process or the opportunity to challenge the allegation. Maikol Gabriel López Lizano, 23, was arrested in Chicago in August 2023 on misdemeanor charges for riding his bicycle on the sidewalk while drinking a beer. He was deported to CECOT prison in El Salvador on March 15, 2025, as part of the Trump administration's mass deportation of 238 Venezuelans. His partner, Cherry Flores, described his deportation as a gross injustice for such a minor offense.

Deported Venezuelan subjected to stress positions and solitary torture in El Salvador

Mar 15, 2025Venezuela

Wuilliam Lozada Sanchez was deported to El Salvador's CECOT prison on March 15, 2025, under the Alien Enemies Act. He described being forced into stress positions for hours with guards watching for movement, and those unable to endure 24 hours on their knees were taken to 'the island'—a dark punishment cell with no light or ventilation where guards regularly beat detainees. He said 'the torture was never-ending.' He was released on July 18, 2025, as part of a prisoner swap.

College student detained at CBP appointment, held in Salvadoran prison four months

Mar 15, 2025Venezuela

Luis Muñoz Pinto, a 27-year-old college student from Venezuela, had a scheduled appointment with Customs and Border Protection as part of the CBP One program but was detained from that appointment. He was deported to El Salvador's CECOT prison on March 15, 2025, under the Alien Enemies Act where he was beaten, forced into stress positions, denied adequate food and medicine, and subjected to 24/7 lighting. He said 'lights were on in the cells 24/7, food and medicine were withheld and the same water they had for bathing and going to the bathroom had to be used for drinking.' He was released on July 18, 2025, and returned to Colombia. He had no criminal record in the U.S.

Food delivery driver with no criminal record detained, tortured in El Salvador prison

Mar 15, 2025Dallas, TXVenezuela

Andry Omar Blanco Bonilla, a 40-year-old food delivery driver and mechanic from Venezuela, was detained at an ICE office in Dallas in February 2024 after notifying them of an address change and being asked about his tattoos—which he said represented his family, not gang affiliation. Released pending deportation when Venezuela would not accept deportees, he was detained again after Trump's inauguration and deported to El Salvador's CECOT prison on March 15, 2025. He endured four months of beatings and humiliation before being returned to Venezuela on July 18, 2025. He had no criminal record in the U.S. and came to the country to support his seven children.

Former technician detained at ICE appointment, subjected to abuse in Salvadoran prison

Mar 15, 2025Venezuela

Juan José Ramos Ramos, a 39-year-old former telephone technician from Venezuela, was detained during an ICE appointment and deported to El Salvador's CECOT prison on March 15, 2025, under the Alien Enemies Act. The Trump administration alleged he was a Tren de Aragua gang member, but he was detected by immigration agents riding in a car with a Venezuela sticker. During his four months in CECOT, he said he endured severe beatings, humiliation, and psychological abuse. He was returned to Venezuela on July 18, 2025. ProPublica's investigation found he had no criminal convictions in the U.S.

Grand jury issues no bill in South Padre Island ICE shooting death

Mar 15, 2025South Padre Island, TX

A grand jury issued a 'no bill' in the March 2025 shooting death of 23-year-old Ruben Ray Martinez by a Homeland Security Investigations agent at South Padre Island, Texas. DHS stated Martinez attempted to run over a federal agent, but a witness affidavit indicated the vehicle was moving slowly and the agent fired without warning. The shooting was not publicly disclosed until February 2026.

Yoderlyn Daviana Acosta Peña deported to El Salvador after ICE arrest and assault.

Mar 15, 2025Chicago, ILVenezuela

Yoderlyn Daviana Acosta Peña, a 21-year-old Venezuelan migrant living and working in Chicago, was arrested in February 2025 on suspicion of gang membership in Tren de Aragua based on subjective criteria including tattoos. On March 15, 2025, while being deported via charter plane, an ICE officer physically assaulted her, grabbing her by the hair and punching her in the face. She was deported to El Salvador under the Alien Enemies Act without due process.