Human Impact Project

Erick Lopez, a 29-year-old Honduran citizen with no criminal record, was stopped by Houston police for a traffic violation on June 17, 2026. According to his lawsuit, officers detained him for more than two hours after the traffic stop, prolonging it until ICE agents arrived to take him into custody. Lopez, who worked in tile and flooring and was supporting a girlfriend and her two children, was deported to Honduras on June 27. He has filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against the City of Houston alleging that police violated his constitutional rights by unlawfully extending the traffic stop solely to facilitate his arrest by federal immigration agents, and seeking damages and an injunction against the practice.

José Padilla, a 41-year-old car wash worker who had lived in the U.S. for over 20 years, was detained by ICE on January 27, 2026 while working in Los Angeles, one of over 1,400 people detained in the LA area that month. He was held in a downtown LA facility before being transferred to Adelanto and then to the California City Detention Facility in Kern County, three hours from his Watts home. His wife, Alma Ramirez, and their children — 17-year-old Alex, who has autism and relied on his father for daily care including bathing, homework help and school meetings, seven-year-old José Jr., and two-year-old Joaquin — struggled emotionally and financially in his absence, with two children starting therapy. Padilla took a job in the detention center kitchen to send money home and avoid burdening his family. On August 4, 2026, after six months in custody, Padilla was released with help from the Immigrant Defenders Law Center and reunited with his family at Union Station in Los Angeles; he continues to fight his immigration case, and the family has kept a GoFundMe open to cover legal fees.

An immigration detainee who had previously been ordered released from ICE custody in a prior habeas case was re-detained by ICE on August 4, 2026, when he appeared for a scheduled ICE check-in appointment. He had resided at his known address, remained available to the government, and appeared for his scheduled ICE appointments after his earlier release. The re-detention stemmed from an in-absentia removal order issued after ICE mistakenly provided the Immigration Court with the address of the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff's Department instead of his home address, causing him to never receive notice of a June 29, 2026 hearing. He was detained without advance notice, an individualized determination justifying re-detention, or any opportunity to contest it. After learning of the error, he sought reopening of his case, and on August 22, 2026, the Immigration Court granted his motion to reopen and rescinded the in-absentia removal order due to lack of notice. Despite this, ICE maintained he would remain detained and could only request another bond hearing, prompting him to file a new federal habeas petition seeking immediate release. The court granted the unopposed petition, ordering his immediate release without restrictions such as reporting requirements, GPS, or electronic monitoring, and enjoined ICE from re-detaining him absent strict compliance with due process.

ICE arrested three undocumented immigrants from Guatemala—Magdalena Gomez-Garcia, Elias Gomez-Garcia, and Eulalia Ordonez-Carmelo—following an investigation into alleged fraudulent use of stolen identities and Social Security numbers. All three had final orders of removal from the U.S., with immigration encounters dating back to 2009. ICE said Magdalena Gomez-Garcia allegedly used a stolen identity to work for a local employer beginning in February 2026.

A woman who has lived continuously in the United States for approximately 21 years was arrested in the interior of the country and is now detained at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. She is being held under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b), which subjects her to mandatory detention, rather than being given an individualized custody determination under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). She filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus seeking immediate release or, alternatively, a bond hearing. She also filed an ex parte application for a temporary restraining order, arguing that continued detention constitutes irreparable harm and expressing concern that she could be transferred to another facility without notice. The court denied the TRO application without prejudice, finding she had not shown the kind of imminent, irreparable harm required to bypass the district's standard expedited briefing schedule for immigration habeas petitions. The court noted that a general order already requires the government to give at least two days' notice before transferring her out of the district, and that she could seek emergency relief if such a transfer were announced. Respondents were ordered to file an answer to the habeas petition by August 11, 2026, after which the matter will be submitted for decision.

The petitioners, a mother and her adult daughter, entered the United States in March 2014 and later applied for asylum, which was denied; they were ordered removed in December 2015, and their appeal was dismissed in 2017. The mother married a U.S. citizen in May 2022, and her husband filed I-130 relative petitions for both her and her daughter in August 2023. Their I-130 interviews were scheduled for August 5, 2026 at the USCIS Field Office in Portland, Oregon. Fearing that ICE would detain and deport them at that interview based on broader administration enforcement policies rather than an individualized assessment, they filed a habeas corpus petition and sought a temporary restraining order. They argued detention and removal would violate their Fifth Amendment due process rights and would preempt a motion to reopen their removal proceedings. The court found a reasonable likelihood they would be detained and quickly transferred out of Oregon, which lacks an immigration detention facility, potentially undermining its jurisdiction. The court issued an order under the All Writs Act barring the government from arresting, detaining, or deporting the petitioners during the pendency of the case, and denied the TRO motion as moot given this relief.

Andrey Kalyakin, who entered the United States legally on a J-1 exchange visitor visa more than sixteen years ago and is married to a U.S. citizen, is being held by ICE at the Winn Correctional Center in Louisiana. In a letter, Kalyakin describes his years living in the U.S. and details conditions in detention, stating he has been denied basic medical care and given spoiled milk and brown tap water.

Protesters are staging a tree-sit in Lochiel, Arizona to prevent Customs and Border Protection contractors from destroying a 200-year-old cottonwood tree in the path of new border wall construction. Contractors working for Fisher Sand and Gravel already crushed three large cottonwoods on July 27. Environmental activists, including members of the Sierra Club, say the wall threatens critical wildlife corridors and have drawn national attention to the demonstration.

An Iranian woman detained at ICE's Stewart Detention Center in South Georgia has received a notice that ICE intends to deport her to the Central African Republic, a country she has never visited and that the U.S. government warns citizens to avoid due to violent crime and civil war. She said she fled Iran after converting to Christianity, an act severely punished there, entering the U.S. without authorization at the southern border in 2024 and settling in Atlanta. "I just started shaking. I was just so scared," she told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I don't have anyone (over) there. I don't know the language, or anything."

Kuya Rob, a Filipino migrant father, was detained by ICE in California and has been held for more than 400 days at the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington. His detention has separated him from his son and elderly mother. Advocates with the Tanggol Migrante Movement have organized a petition campaign, gathering over 439 signatures, citing detention conditions and what they describe as neglect by the Philippine Consulate.

Valentín, a hardworking family man, was detained by ICE for more than seven months in inhumane conditions. During his detention, he endured days without meals and was served cold or contaminated food, including food with worms. He was separated from his family with minimal meaningful communication and was unable to be present when his daughter gave birth, learning only later in custody that he had a newborn granddaughter. After his eventual release and reunification with his family, Valentín faces significant accumulated debt as he works to rebuild their lives.

Selvin Alfredo Ramos Perez, a kitchen worker at a Roanoke restaurant, was arrested by Roanoke County Police on August 4, 2026, for public intoxication. ICE lodged a detainer with the county jail the same day, and Ramos Perez was transferred into ICE custody pending removal proceedings. According to DHS, Ramos Perez entered the United States illegally on multiple occasions beginning in 2011, was removed and deported in 2017, and unlawfully re-entered the country multiple times after his removal. DHS also reported he has a prior criminal record including traffic offenses, public order crimes, fraud charges, and a DUI.

Adela Margarita Angel Melendez, an immigrant from El Salvador living in West Liberty, Iowa, was detained during a routine immigration check-in at the Cedar Rapids Department of Homeland Security office on August 4, 2026. She had been waiting seven years for the office to process a residency petition filed by her U.S. citizen sister. Two additional immigrants were also detained during routine check-ins at the same office that morning, according to advocacy group Escucha Mi Voz, which had been outside the office supporting immigrants at their regular meetings with the department.

Migrant children as young as six years old were detained at the Homestead facility adjacent to Homestead Air Reserve Base, a Superfund site with arsenic and lead contamination, according to over 20,000 pages of records released in federal litigation. The facility, which closed in 2019, also exposed children to constant noise from F-16C fighter jets. Some children detained there were separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border. The federal government agreed to pay legal fees after the lawsuit concluded, with environmental and social justice groups citing the case as part of a nationwide pattern of migrants held in harmful environments.

Edwin Jovanny López Cornejo, a 39-year-old Salvadoran national who had lived in the U.S. for nearly 20 years, died August 1, 2026, at University Hospital in Newark following a medical emergency at the Delaney Hall ICE detention facility. He suffered from epilepsy, diabetes, and high blood pressure requiring daily medication, and leaves behind a 12-year-old U.S. citizen daughter, Ashley. ICE arrested him June 18, 2026, in Plainfield, New Jersey, reviving a 2006 deportation order, though his family said he held a valid work permit. His mother, Maria Cornejo, said he called her feeling very ill with numbness in his face and hand after seeing a facility medical provider, and described him as hardworking and a good father, saying, "I lost him to the hands of immigration authorities." His family alleged he did not consistently receive his medication and called for an independent investigation, while ICE and DHS said he received appropriate medical care and staff responded quickly. His death was the second at Delaney Hall since it opened in May 2025, following months of detainee complaints and lawsuits alleging denial of medication, and prompted Governor Mikie Sherrill and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka to call for the facility's closure.

Kaitlyn Tracey, a 33-year-old Canadian citizen, was arrested on July 3, 2026, after allegedly slapping a teenage girl twice on the Point Pleasant Beach boardwalk during Fourth of July weekend. The confrontation occurred after Tracey objected to the girl's sweatpants displaying political slogans and allegedly verbally harassed her about her clothing. Police documented the assault on video. Tracey had entered the U.S. on April 14, 2024, on a tourist visa that expired September 6, 2024, remaining in the country illegally. She was charged with simple assault, endangering the welfare of a child, harassment, and obstruction. On August 4, 2026, a federal immigration judge ordered her deportation to Canada after she pleaded guilty to assault; she received a one-day jail sentence credited to time served. Her husband, Matthew Geroni, a U.S. citizen married to Tracey for over three years, disputed the characterization of events and alleged the arrest was politically motivated, claiming the viral video had been taken out of context. He launched fundraising efforts and social media campaigns to secure her release, raising $4,857 toward a $10,000 goal.

Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, mother of three, poet, and legal observer, was shot and killed by ICE agent Jonathan Ross on January 7, 2026, while monitoring an immigration enforcement operation on Portland Avenue in south Minneapolis. Good had blocked the street with her Honda Pilot to warn neighbors of ICE's presence when Ross fired three shots at eye level as her car turned away from officers. Her wife, Becca, said they were simply warning neighbors. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem and President Trump claimed Good tried to run over agents and called her actions 'domestic terrorism,' but video evidence, a New York Times analysis, Human Rights Watch, and an independent autopsy found she posed no imminent threat and was shot in the head, arm, and breast. Protesters gathered at the ICE Field Office in St. Paul the following day, where agents responded with pepper balls, mace, and tear gas. The administration blocked a federal criminal investigation, instead launching 'Operation Puppet Master' targeting progressive groups. Good's family later filed a federal tort claim, hundreds of federal agents were withdrawn from Minnesota, and her case was presented at an Inter-American Commission on Human Rights hearing.

ICE conducted enforcement operations in Fall River between July 16 and August 3, 2026, resulting in four arrests. Daniel Narcisse, a Haitian immigrant, was arrested on July 16 after being charged with misdemeanors for DUI, negligent driving, and endangering two children while driving under the influence in May 2026. Alex Morocho Lalvay, an Ecuadorian immigrant, was arrested on July 22 and faces misdemeanor charges of assault and battery on a family member and violation of an abuse prevention order from 2025. Fabiano Silvino Dos Santos, a Brazilian immigrant, was arrested on August 1; he faced a 2024 felony charge of assault and battery on a child under 14 with a dangerous weapon that was dismissed after prosecutors did not pursue it. Miguel Angel Bermol-Hermitano, from Mexico, was arrested on August 3 after being previously removed from the country; Massachusetts court records show two misdemeanor charges for unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle from 2003 and 2005, both dismissed. According to ICE, all four individuals were not living in the country legally.

Claudia Carolina Rodriguez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan who arrived in the U.S. on a tourist visa in 2017, was detained by ICE agents at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on July 17 after passing through TSA security while boarding a domestic flight to North Carolina to watch World Cup matches with friends. Rodriguez held Temporary Protected Status that had expired and had a pending asylum application at the time of her arrest. She was initially held at the Miramar processing facility for eight days, where she reported severe conditions including overcrowding (roughly 47 women in one room sleeping on bare floors), expired or moldy food, inadequate water access, lack of access to showers, and inability to change clothes or go outside. She lost approximately 15 pounds during detention. After transfer to the Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach, an immigration judge granted her bond on August 3, and she was released wearing an ankle monitor. Her family says she has no criminal record and intends to continue fighting her asylum case.

A 54-year-old citizen of India who has lived in the United States for over three decades is being held at the Northwest ICE Processing Center. His wife and their two children are American citizens. He entered the U.S. without inspection in 1992 and has a removal order that became final in 2014; ICE placed him on an Order of Supervision in 2016. He was first re-detained in May 2026, and a federal judge granted habeas relief in June 2026, ordering his release and barring ICE from re-detaining him for invalid reasons or no reason at all. ICE nonetheless re-detained him again in August 2026, citing his final removal order, a valid travel document, and a misdemeanor assault charge — though court records show that charge was closed without any charges being filed. He was promised an informal interview two days after detention but did not receive one until ten days later. He filed a new habeas petition and motion for a temporary restraining order, arguing ICE violated his due process rights by failing to follow its own revocation regulations.