Human Impact Project

Mariana, a Mexican national, entered an immigration office in Fresno believing she had an appointment to advance her legalization process, but ICE agents arrested her there. She was transferred to California City Detention Center, where she spent a month before being released. She reported extremely cold cell temperatures, inadequate medical care for gastrointestinal problems, poor food quality, and detainees having to help each other with emergencies because medical staff was unavailable. A pregnant detainee she witnessed was only given water for a nosebleed and panic attack. Mariana says the experience left her with physical and psychological scars and describes the facility as feeling like a jail.

Sarafinah Bukirwa, a 31-year-old Ugandan immigrant and founder of Sarafinah Sickle Cell Society, a nonprofit treating sickle cell anemia, was detained by ICE on July 22, 2026, at Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville while traveling to a sickle cell anemia conference in California. Bukirwa entered the U.S. legally on a visa to expand her nonprofit work and has a pending asylum claim with valid work authorization. After being held at Grayson County Detention Center in Leitchfield, Kentucky, her family reported she was denied her required sickle cell medication for nearly a week despite having the medication with her, with prescriptions reportedly diluted in water and withheld. She experienced a medical crisis requiring hospitalization at a Louisville hospital the day before her detention. Her brother Isaac Kabunga stated at a press conference that ICE agents claimed she was arrested for overstaying her visa, though U.S. Rep. Morgan McGarvey confirmed she is following proper legal procedures and called for her immediate release, stating her condition could become life-threatening without proper treatment.

Jacob Zapeta-Castro, a Guatemalan national and owner of El Quetzal Bakery in Lake Worth Beach, was detained by ICE agents on July 9, 2026. According to his family and advocates, Zapeta-Castro locked himself and his coworkers inside the business to protect undocumented employees from detention. ICE characterized his actions as fleeing agents. At the time of arrest, Zapeta-Castro held a valid work permit, Social Security number, and driver's license, and had filed for asylum in June 2024 and a withholding of removal petition. Multi-agency law enforcement—including ICE, Florida Highway Patrol, and Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office—surrounded the business with approximately 50 officers while roughly 50 community members protested outside. The standoff lasted hours in extreme heat. He was charged with re-entering the country after deportation and held in ICE detention in Stuart, with his arraignment scheduled for July 29 in federal court in West Palm Beach. His arrest occurred during a four-day ICE operation in Palm Beach County that resulted in 309 total arrests.

Darren Eichler, a U.S. citizen working at Concordia Cemetery in Forest Park, Illinois, was pepper-balled and detained by immigration agents on October 7, 2025, after he and coworker Daniel Greer moved to help a man wading in the nearby Des Plaines River, not realizing the man was fleeing agents, and may have thought he was suicidal. When the men refused agents access to a locked gate and began filming, agents cut the padlock with bolt cutters, sprayed them with chemical agents, and tackled or arrested them. Eichler said his face felt like it was on fire and he developed chest pains and breathing difficulty, pleading for about an hour before agents took him to Rush Oak Park Hospital, where he remained handcuffed until a nurse intervened; agents held his phone and wallet until the next day. Neither Eichler nor Greer was charged, but both say they required follow-up medical care and counseling. In 2026, Eichler filed a Federal Tort Claims Act claim, reportedly seeking $1 million, as part of a coordinated ACLU-led effort involving 54 to 56 people across 17 states. "My story is not just about what happened to me," Eichler said. "It's about the kind of country we choose to be. No one should lose their dignity the moment they come face to face with those who hold power."

Dr. Norma Bowe, a grandmother, registered nurse, and public health professor at Kean University, was assaulted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents outside Delaney Hall while running a mobile health clinic for people visiting detained loved ones. The ACLU of New Jersey filed a Federal Tort Claims Act claim against the federal government on her behalf, part of a coordinated nationwide effort covering 54 claims across 17 states and Washington, D.C. "I was violently attacked by ICE agents while I was trying to provide medical care for people visiting their loved ones in Delaney Hall," Bowe said, adding that ICE agents are acting with impunity.

In a smuggled video from the 1,000-bed South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile, run by GEO Group, detained women describe abuse, medical neglect and family separation. Larina says ICE separated her from her five-month-old daughter after she called police during a domestic violence incident and was arrested instead of her husband; she says she has been ordered deported but has remained detained for three months. Other mothers at the facility say they do not know where their children were taken after being separated, and one Cuban woman remained detained even after winning her case because the Department of Homeland Security appealed. Kelly, a Venezuelan woman with one failing kidney, says the facility denies her testing, medication and specialist care, leaving her with painful urination and fluid retention, unsuitable frozen food and no clean water; other women describe a miscarriage, pregnancy without adequate care, an amputation, and say one detainee was placed in solitary confinement after recording video while others faced hitting and threats for speaking out.

Jose Manuel Rivera-Rivera, 52, was arrested by U.S. Customs and Border Protection during an operation near Thunder Mountain Middle School and held at Lemon Creek Correctional Center from Wednesday through Friday before being transferred to Anchorage Correctional Complex on a federal hold. Juneau Police Chief Derek Bos said his department was not involved in the CBP operation itself but assisted afterward, with an officer transporting Rivera-Rivera away from the area to help de-escalate the situation before returning him to Border Patrol custody. A friend, Kathleen Pollard, who has known him for more than a decade, said he has a family, goes to work, pays taxes, attends church weekly, and was seeking to become a legal citizen. He is the sixth person held in Juneau under a federal immigration custody hold since October, following the detentions of Ernesto Alanzo Haro, Alfredo Gomez-Guzman, Carlos Jara Medina, Peter Verkin, and Darwin Mendez-Cando.

The petitioner was detained by immigration authorities and, according to the government's return, was arrested on July 29, 2026 pursuant to a Warrant of Removal (Form I-205). He filed a pro se habeas corpus petition arguing that his detention is governed by 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), that he was not shown a warrant bearing his name at the time of arrest, and that his continued detention without an individualized bond hearing violates due process. He sought immediate release or, alternatively, a bond hearing. The government acknowledged he is subject to detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). The court declined to order immediate release but found a bond hearing to be the appropriate remedy. The court granted the petition and ordered respondents to arrange a bond hearing before an immigration court within seven days, and denied his motion for a temporary restraining order as moot.

Jose Trinidad Rojas Pliego, 51, a Mexican citizen who has lived in the U.S. since 1998, was riding as a passenger in a van driven by his boss, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, when an ICE officer fatally shot Salgado Araujo during a traffic stop in Houston's Magnolia Park neighborhood on July 7, 2026. Rojas Pliego has no criminal record and is in a common-law marriage with a U.S. citizen, with whom he has several children and stepchildren. He was detained without an individualized bond hearing at the Montgomery ICE Processing Center in Conroe, and in a sworn statement disputed ICE's account of the shooting, calling it "a lie." U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison ruled that his continued detention violated his due process rights and ordered his release, which occurred on July 29, 2026. Rojas Pliego has a pending U visa application as a crime victim and now wears an ankle monitor while his removal case proceeds.

Alberto Enriquez, a Mexican immigrant with longtime ties to Catholic parishes in Denver and Gillette, Wyoming, was arrested by ICE in Tampa, Florida, after traveling there for what he believed was an appointment to secure Military Parole in Place based on his daughter Bettsaida's service in the U.S. Navy. His wife, Karina Gonzalez, and daughter Karibett say he was led to believe the appointment would grant him legal status, but he was instead taken into custody and is now held at Baker County Detention Center in Sanderson, Florida. Married for 29 years with seven children, four still living at home, Enriquez had previously volunteered extensively at St. Cajetan's Catholic Church in Denver and later helped launch a Hispanic ministry at St. Matthew's Catholic Community in Wyoming. His family says his decades-old domestic violence conviction, which he pleaded guilty to under difficult circumstances, is now being used to justify his removal, and they are struggling to find an attorney licensed in the jurisdiction where he is being held before what they fear is a fast track to deportation.

A Nepali national filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus challenging the constitutionality of his detention in federal immigration custody. He is currently detained at the Rio Grande Processing Center. The petition names Miguel Vergara (ICE-ERO Field Office Director), Markwayne Mullin (Secretary of U.S. Department of Homeland Security), Todd Blanche (U.S. Attorney General), and the Warden of the Rio Grande Processing Center as respondents. On August 3, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas ordered respondents to file a response to the petition by August 10, 2026, with evidence from his A-file. The court directed notification to the U.S. Attorney and ordered respondents to notify the court and his counsel of any planned transfer or release.

A 46-year-old Ecuadorian national who has lived in the United States since 2003 and established community roots in Philadelphia with two U.S. citizen children was detained by DHS/ICE on July 29, 2026, after officers showed him a photograph of a different individual they were seeking. Despite his denial that he was the person depicted, officers detained him anyway at the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia. The court granted his habeas corpus petition on August 1, 2026, finding that his detention without a bond hearing violated the Immigration and Nationality Act, ordered his immediate release, and temporarily enjoined re-detention for seven days pending a proper bond hearing.

Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez, a Salvadoran man and father of a 2-year-old daughter, was shot by ICE agents on Interstate 5 at Sperry Avenue in the Patterson area of Stanislaus County, California. ICE acting director Todd Lyons said Mendoza Hernandez was undocumented and an alleged gang member wanted for questioning in connection with a murder in El Salvador. His fiancée Cindy and attorney Patrick Kolasinski disputed the gang allegation, stating he had no criminal encounters since arriving in the U.S. around 2019 or 2020. Kolasinski said he received information from El Salvador that Mendoza Hernandez had been acquitted of the murder charge and there should be no active warrant. The family had not been given updates on his condition or told how many times he was shot. A Stanislaus County Sheriff's Office spokesperson said he was in critical condition. His fiancée believes a recent traffic stop for a cracked windshield may have led to him being targeted. Kolasinski criticized ICE's handling of the confrontation, saying proper protocol would have been a calm approach. The FBI is leading the investigation.

A woman discovered she was pregnant while in ICE detention and subsequently miscarried. After the miscarriage, she was shackled to a hospital bed while officers questioned her. The incident raises serious concerns about medical care and treatment of pregnant detainees in immigration custody.

A father has been detained by ICE and is facing deportation to Laos after spending most of his life in the United States. He is the primary financial provider for his family, leaving his wife to care for their younger son and manage household expenses alone. His daughter organized a GoFundMe to help cover legal and immigration expenses, travel and communication costs to stay connected with him, and basic living expenses while the family adjusts to losing his income.

Diana Avila's 20-year-old brother, who has autism since childhood and is described as intelligent, generous, and a good student, was arrested by ICE during an ongoing legal process and transferred between states. He is currently detained in Texas, where he reports being denied blankets, medicine, and adequate food. He developed a stomach infection and is experiencing high fevers but says staff insults and threatens him when he requests medical care, pressuring him to sign deportation papers. His family is unable to afford legal representation and fears for his safety.

Alma Guadalupe Nunez-Quijada, a 45-year-old Mexican national who has lived in the U.S. since age 4, was arrested by multiple masked ICE agents on North Stone Avenue around 10:15 a.m. Tuesday as she left a hearing at Pima County Consolidated Justice Court for a noise-ordinance violation. The mother of three U.S. citizens was called by name, surrounded and handcuffed; her eldest daughter said she was calm and compliant. The arrest has raised questions about whether it violated a Pima County Board of Supervisors resolution limiting immigration enforcement on county property, and about how agents knew she would be there. An ICE spokesperson cited a 2006 domestic violence conviction, while Pima County records show only minor traffic charges in 2004 and a 2017 failure-to-pay-fine charge.

Cristobal S. was forcefully detained by ICE agents on November 10, 2024, at 7 a.m. when agents smashed the window of his truck and cut him while removing him from the vehicle. He is the sole breadwinner for his family, leaving behind three children and his mother. His family is seeking financial assistance through a GoFundMe campaign to cover bills, legal fees, food, and other basic needs during his detention.

Aurora, 24, and her six-year-old daughter were detained by ICE and sent to a family detention center in Texas. The daughter had arrived at the U.S. border alone and spent more than six months in a child migrant shelter before reuniting with her mother in late March. The detention occurred after the Office of Refugee Resettlement shared information about unaccompanied children, their sponsors, and household members with ICE.

A 14-year-old Brazilian girl with an expired visitor visa was detained by ICE agents on March 11 in a parking lot outside Bethel Presbyterian Church in Marlboro, Massachusetts, after a car was pulled over. Her attorney stated she was with her U.S. citizen brothers, though DHS disputed this account, claiming she was with two Brazilian men suspected of gang ties with no familial relationship to her. ICE said the men's vehicle was connected to an alleged attempted home invasion in Walpole. The girl was taken to the JFK federal building in Boston for 10 hours, then transported overnight to a children's detention facility in New York. At a hearing, Federal Judge Leo T. Sorokin expressed concern about the detention and overnight transfer, stating it was the first time in his 22 years on the bench that he had seen agents detain a juvenile solely because no appropriate person was available to release her to. He ordered her immediate return to Massachusetts, and she was reunited with her maternal aunt, a U.S. citizen, at the JFK building in Boston.