Human Impact Project

A 60-year-old Mexican tamale vendor who had been selling street food in Pilsen for over a decade was detained by ICE agents when she could not provide proof of legal status. She had been supporting herself and her son while managing diabetes since her husband's death in 2023. She was released on October 22, 11 days after filing her habeas case.

Samuel Ochoa Ochoa, a Venezuelan immigrant who entered the U.S. near El Paso in October 2023, was released on his own recognizance after DHS initiated removal proceedings against him, with no later convictions or violations of his release conditions. He filed an asylum application in September 2024, but in June 2025 DHS moved to dismiss those proceedings in order to place him into expedited removal, after which he was detained by ICE for 126 days. A federal judge ordered his release in October, and his habeas corpus ruling has since been cited in 186 other immigration cases filed in the Northern District of Illinois.

Amanda Ungaro, a 41-year-old Brazilian former model who lived in the U.S. for over 20 years, was arrested in June 2025 on fraud charges related to unlicensed cosmetic procedures at a wellness center in Florida. She was detained for approximately three and a half months at ICE facilities in Miami and Louisiana before being deported to Brazil in October 2025. Ungaro alleges that her ex-partner Paolo Zampolli, a Trump special envoy and father of their teenage son, contacted senior ICE officials to ensure her detention and deportation amid an ongoing child custody dispute. Zampolli and the Department of Homeland Security denied the allegations, with DHS stating the removal was based on visa overstay and fraud charges. The case remains open with an arrest warrant issued should she return to the United States.

Stanley Minjale, who immigrated to the United States from Malawi in 2021 on a student visa initially valid through 2022, later received an extension through March 2027, but that status was terminated after he failed to enroll in a university as required. At the time of his detention in October 2025, he held a valid work permit and was employed full-time as a nursing assistant in Indiana. He has a nearly two-year-old U.S. citizen son, and during his nine-month detention at North Lake Processing Center he has missed several of the boy's milestones, including his second birthday. Minjale has received a deportation order but continues to appeal, describing life in detention as a difficult, repetitive routine without freedom.

Kamal Tijani, who arrived in the U.S. from Nigeria in 2017 on a valid student visa, was arrested by ICE in October 2025 for overstaying his visa and has been held for nine months at North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, Michigan. He met his wife, who is from Georgia, while attending college in Chicago, where he worked night shifts as a maintenance technician; after his arrest, she lost their apartment and has not been able to visit him. "I just got married last year," Tijani said, describing feeling abandoned and isolated during his detention. The facility, operated by GEO Group, is the largest immigrant detention center in the Midwest, holding about 1,400 people.

Alberto, a 59-year-old surgical technician who fled to the U.S. in 1990 by running across the border from Tijuana to San Ysidro while his wife and two young sons crossed hidden in a car, later served as a confidential informant for federal immigration agents in the 1990s, collecting names of undocumented farmworkers in exchange for a temporary work permit and a promise of future legal status. After 36 years in Fresno — working first as a hospital janitor, then as a surgical technician, and eventually buying a home — he was arrested in October 2025 during a scheduled green card interview at a USCIS field office when ICE agents entered the room. Released after four days following a successful habeas petition, he was re-arrested at a subsequent ICE check-in appointment in November and detained for nearly four months at Golden State Annex detention center near Bakersfield before being released on bond in February with an ankle monitor.

a 24-year-old Colombian migrant, Angie Rodriguez, suffered a miscarriage in the facility. Upon discovering her pregnancy while in detention, she was provided no medical care or prenatal vitamins. Her diet was also inadequate, forcing her to supplement provided meals with instant ramen, chips, and candy, often purchased at a high cost from the commissary.

A father from an unnamed country who was separated from his daughter at the US-Mexico border in 2017 and reunited with his children in Florida in 2021 was detained by ICE in October 2025 at Alligator Alcatraz in the Florida Everglades and transferred to Camp East Montana in Texas. While detained, he experienced poor conditions including mouldy food with worms and witnessed a fellow detainee's death from asphyxia due to neck and torso compression. The ACLU filed a motion and he was released in April 2026, but remains subject to ankle monitoring and bi-weekly ICE check-ins.

Michael James Garcia, a 39-year-old marine engineer with a valid crew visa, was interrogated by CBP agents aboard a Viking Ocean Cruises ship docked in Charleston on October 1, 2025. Agents claimed his email was linked to child pornography but never provided evidence or filed charges against him. Without a formal criminal proceeding or due process, his visa was revoked and he received a 10-year ban from entering the United States.

Abdullahi Mohamed, a Somali immigrant with 25+ years in the U.S. and valid work authorization, was detained by ICE near Portland, Maine, and held for more than seven weeks in Massachusetts before being rapidly transferred across multiple states, including Mississippi and Louisiana, in December 2025. His family lost contact with him for about five days during the transfers, piecing together his location through a lawyer's email, a call from another detainee's wife, and a brief two-minute call from Mohamed himself at an undisclosed airport, before he was deported to Somalia. According to a Marshall Project investigation, rapid transfers of detainees have become increasingly common under the Trump administration, with transfers of five or more times more than tripling and out-of-state transfers within 24 hours more than doubling since the Biden administration's final year.

A Chicago couple was arrested during Operation Midway Blitz just eight days after getting married. The wife was deported to Mexico while the husband remained in detention in Michigan. Despite being named in a federal lawsuit alleging unlawful arrests, a judge ordered the husband's removal to El Salvador.

Catalina 'Xóchitl' Santiago, a 28-year-old DACA recipient and community organizer from El Paso, was detained by Border Patrol agents on August 3, 2025, at El Paso International Airport while traveling for work with her wife, Desiree Miller, a U.S. citizen whom Santiago married earlier in 2025. Despite holding valid DACA status since 2012—renewed seven times with her current renewal expiring in April 2026—Santiago was subjected to deportation proceedings. Originally from Mexico, Santiago has lived in the U.S. since age 8. On October 1, U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone ruled that Santiago's arrest and detention violated her Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights and ordered her release from the ICE El Paso Service Processing Center. Judge Cardone found that the government presented no evidence that Santiago endangered anyone during her twenty years at liberty, including her thirteen years under DACA, and failed to articulate any individualized reason for her detention. Santiago's brother Jose said the family was deeply affected by her detention and expressed relief at her release.

An unnamed Iranian man in his 40s, who participated in the "Women, Life, Freedom" protests against mandatory hijab laws, fled Iran in 2024 with his wife and another couple. He arrived at the U.S. border later that year; his pregnant wife was released on parole but he remained in ICE custody. On September 30, 2025, despite his resistance and pleas that he would be killed if returned, he was placed in a restraint jacket and forcibly deported on a flight from Alexandria, Louisiana. After the plane arrived in Tehran, ICE handed over his belongings—including his cell phone and communications with his lawyer—to Iranian authorities. The man, who is Kurdish, fled over 300 miles west to Iraqi Kurdistan that first night. His wife and newborn child, who remain in Kentucky, have not seen him since.

An immigrant from Peru was arrested by ICE officers during an asylum hearing at 26 Federal Plaza. The arrest occurred on September 30, 2025, and was documented by journalists present at the facility. The incident escalated when ICE officers shoved and injured multiple journalists who were lawfully documenting the detention.

A cameraman was thrown to the ground and injured by ICE officers at 26 Federal Plaza while documenting the arrest of an immigrant at an asylum hearing. The cameraman was transported on a stretcher by emergency responders as part of the same incident in which multiple journalists were assaulted by federal agents.

A journalist working for a Turkish media outlet was injured and hospitalized after being thrown to the ground by ICE officers at 26 Federal Plaza during the arrest of an immigrant at an asylum hearing. The journalist was transported on a stretcher with a neck brace and remained on the ground for approximately half an hour before emergency responders arrived. FDNY was called at around 10:30 a.m. for a report of injury and transported one person to the hospital.

Broadview Police Chief Thomas Mills announced three criminal investigations into ICE operations at a detention facility in his village, citing repeated exposure of his officers to tear gas deployed by federal agents. Mills and Mayor Katrina Thompson criticized ICE's use of tear gas, pepper spray, and mace during protests at the Broadview Processing Center, stating the chemicals created dangerous conditions for residents and first responders exercising their First Amendment rights.

Photojournalist Olga Fedorova was shoved to the floor by ICE officers at 26 Federal Plaza while documenting the arrest of an immigrant at an asylum hearing. Fedorova, who was lawfully present in the public elevator, was pushed away from the elevator by federal agents. She disputes DHS claims that officers gave warnings before shoving, stating there was no warning and shoving followed immediately.

Miguel Angel Garcia-Hernandez, a 32-year-old Mexican immigrant and father of four with another child on the way, was shot on September 24, 2025, when a gunman opened fire at a Dallas ICE facility's controlled entrance. Garcia-Hernandez, who had lived in the U.S. since age 13 and worked as a painter, was in ICE custody after being arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence on August 8. He died from his injuries on September 30. His widow, Stephany Gauffeny, stated that he was the sole provider for their family and that they had just purchased their first home together.

Josselyn, a California State University, Northridge "Bridge to the Future" scholar double majoring in Psychology and Sociology, was detained by ICE during an immigration hearing on September 30. Her brother was also taken into custody in the same incident. Josselyn has lived in the United States since 2015, graduated with honors from Canoga Park High School, and was named West Valley Boys and Girls Club Youth of the Year in 2025. She volunteers in her community at produce distributions, animal shelters, and cultural events, and supporters describe her as intelligent and compassionate. She is scheduled to be transferred out of state, and community members are raising funds for her legal defense and to support her mother, who is undergoing medical treatment.