Human Impact Project

ICE agents smashed the windows of a car and arrested a man without a warrant while his wife held their crying baby and pleaded with the agents. During the arrest, the man briefly escaped from the ICE van while still wearing handcuffs.

A Chinese national was re-detained by ICE on February 2, 2026, after previously being released on supervised release in October 2023 following a removal order. He had complied with all terms of his supervised release. The court granted his motion for preliminary injunction and ordered his immediate release on the same conditions as his prior supervised release.

Medina, an asylum applicant with a valid work permit, was detained by ICE on February 2, 2026, after appearing at a scheduled court date in San Diego. He was transferred to Otay Mesa Detention Center and is scheduled to remain detained at least until his next court date on February 24. Medina has lived in the United States since adolescence, is married to a U.S. citizen, and has two U.S. citizen children. His detention has caused financial hardship for his family, who lost his primary income.

A 19-year-old anti-ICE protester was sprayed with chemical agent by a federal officer during a protest in Portland. The protester was vocal but nonviolent and standing still when sprayed. Video evidence documents the incident.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained several residents in Hudson County, New Jersey on Sunday using unmarked vehicles. An ICE agent told a city councilman that warrants are not needed to conduct their operations. Local officials reported that ICE arrested at least three people, including two workers at local businesses, without advance notification to local police.

Federal ICE agents were present outside the Ventura County Sheriff's Office on Monday, February 2, 2026, where protesters and observers had gathered. During the encounter, an ICE agent threw a woman to the ground and subsequently used pepper spray on the crowd. Witnesses stated they were documenting the ICE operation and posed no physical threat to officers. At least one person was detained during the incident. The woman who was thrown to the ground declined to speak about what happened.

ICE agents conducted enforcement operations at Hudson Bergen Light Rail Station in Jersey City Heights and Hoboken on Sunday morning, detaining several people. An ICE officer was recorded telling a city councilman he did not need a warrant to make arrests. The incident prompted community meetings and responses from local leaders.

Jhony Gonzalez Merino, a Mexican national from the Triqui Indigenous group, was arrested by ICE agents in Anchorage in February 2026 after dropping off his son at school. He had applied for asylum. After initial detention at the Anchorage jail, Gonzalez Merino was transferred to the federal immigration detention center in Tacoma, Washington, where he remains.

Amalia, an 18-month-old, and her parents, Kheilin Valero Marcano and Stiven Arrieta Prieto, who fled Venezuela after facing persecution for opposing President Nicolás Maduro, were detained after being arrested in El Paso and transferred to the Dilley Immigration Processing Center. Amalia's parents repeatedly sought help at the facility's clinic as she grew feverish and lethargic, receiving only Tylenol, until she lost consciousness and was hospitalized at a children's hospital in San Antonio for over a week with COVID-19, an ear infection, pneumonia, bronchitis and RSV. After her January 28 discharge, she was returned to Dilley, where her parents say she was denied access to prescribed medication despite medical warnings that she remained vulnerable to reinfection. The family was released from Dilley in February 2026 after two months in detention.

Jose Lozano, a 28-year-old Worthington resident with a valid temporary permit allowing him to remain in the U.S. for five years, was detained by ICE agents on February 1, 2026, while attempting to jumpstart his minivan. Lozano, who arrived from El Salvador as an asylum seeker ten years ago, was working as a mechanic and attending college when detained. He was being held in a Minneapolis detention center with a hearing scheduled for February 28, 2026, though an earlier bond hearing was possible.

Federal ICE agents made arrests near the Jersey City-Hoboken border on Sunday morning without advance warning to local police. Multiple detentions occurred at the 9th Street Light Rail Station in a predominantly Latino neighborhood, with at least two people seen being taken into unmarked vehicles. Local officials stated that residents have rights, including the right to refuse entry without a judge-signed warrant.

Johanny Lacruz, a Venezuelan asylum seeker and fiancée of Juan Rodriguez, was detained by ICE at a Border Patrol checkpoint in February 2026 despite having valid work authorization and no criminal record. Rodriguez observed that U.S. Rep. Monica De La Cruz secured the release of Antonio Gámez-Cuéllar, a teenager in the same detention facility with similar legal status, but was unable to obtain similar assistance for his fiancée. Both Lacruz and Gámez-Cuéllar were detained during the Trump administration's deportation operations.

At least two confirmed cases of measles have been reported at the Dilley family detention center in Texas, which houses children and parents in immigration detention. A broader measles outbreak is occurring across the U.S. Democratic congressman Joaquin Castro called for the facility to be shut down immediately, citing detention centers as potential vectors for disease transmission.

A 7-year-old girl from Venezuela was detained with her parents by immigration agents outside a Portland, Oregon hospital in January 2026 while seeking care for a persistent nosebleed. The family, who had entered the U.S. in 2024 under humanitarian parole and settled in Gresham with an active asylum case, spent 21 days in a federal detention center in Texas. They were released after a member of Congress intervened, following public advocacy campaigns, including calls for supporters to contact DHS, that had drawn attention to the case.

According to Senator John Hickenlooper and other Colorado lawmakers, ICE agents left ace of spades cards—symbols historically used by white supremacist groups—in vehicles of up to 11 detainees after a January 21 enforcement action in Eagle County. Hickenlooper demanded a Department of Homeland Security meeting after ICE failed to respond to requests for information about the incident, including details on those detained and the status of an internal investigation.

Amir, a 1-year-old whose Russian parents Alsu and Azat fled Russia fearing persecution for opposing the war in Ukraine, was detained at Dilley Immigration Processing Center for approximately four months after the family presented themselves at a legal port of entry. During detention, Amir developed speech delays and began hitting himself in the face. Staff allegedly forced his weaning from formula despite his age, leaving parents struggling to provide adequate nutrition; they resorted to hiding cereal in their clothing to prevent him from going hungry. The facility lacked age-appropriate toys and Russian-language books. Amir's speech development slowed to just two words—'mom' and 'dad.' After release in January 2026, now 2 years old, Amir is laughing more, speaking more, and has stopped hitting himself, though his parents report he seems to be recovering from the experience.

A 53-year-old coffee shop owner of Palestinian heritage raised in Saudi Arabia was arrested by ICE agents in February while dropping off Lyft passengers near Camp Pendleton, despite holding a valid work permit through 2030 and a pending asylum application filed in 2024. He spent eight days in ICE detention at Otay Mesa before being released on bond with a GPS ankle monitor and required to check in with immigration officials almost weekly. Community fundraising and support have followed his case. He runs Sands Coffee Roasters and holds a doctorate from the University of San Francisco; his next immigration hearing is scheduled for October.

Susanne García Nazco, a Cuban woman who entered the U.S. through the southern border in 2022 and received an I-220A form, has been detained for more than six months at a facility in Louisiana. She says she submitted a document to immigration authorities and a judge that she believed confirmed approval of her parole application, and that ICE agents at their Miramar, Florida office even told her she no longer needed to check in. She was arrested in February 2026 as part of an ICE investigation into alleged immigration fraud and remains held without bond while her family appeals. Her husband, a U.S. citizen, said the family has spent about $30,000 on attorneys and started a GoFundMe campaign to help cover legal costs, while her mother, who is battling cancer, continues to support her case.

A 22-year-old from Guatemala was walking to his job as a vegetable grocer in the Sunset Park neighborhood of Brooklyn when six ICE officers approached him on the street. The officers showed him photos of men and asked, "You're Latino, you look like one of them. Do you know any of these guys?" When he said no and was asked for identification and papers, he gazed at their firearms and felt he had no choice but to respond. The officers then arrested him. In ICE's account, agents claimed they "noticed a person matching the target's biographic information wearing a hooded jacket."

In early February 2026, ICE agents conducted a stakeout operation in Port Richmond, Staten Island, searching for a specific target but mistakenly arrested at least three men who were not the intended subjects. Isaias, 36, from Guatemala, was arrested while agents were looking for a different 25-year-old man from Mexico named Julio. Juan, 21, also from Guatemala, was arrested during the same operation; he had lived in the U.S. for nearly two decades and has two U.S. citizen children. Alejandro, 47, from Mexico, was arrested after leaving a location agents were staking out. Following their arrests, both Isaias and Juan decided to leave the country according to federal court records. Alejandro and Juan both had habeas petitions filed by lawyers challenging the legality of their detention, with a judge ordering Alejandro's release and Juan later being released after filing his petition.