Human Impact Project

A mother was detained by ICE agents on June 29 while walking to a store to buy groceries for her family. Her family has launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise funds for her legal defense, including paying for an ICE custody analyst and legal team to track her intake, pull her records, and analyze her custody status.

A 37-year-old Venezuelan national fleeing political persecution was re-detained on June 20, 2026 when he arrived for a routine check-in at the ICE Los Angeles Field Office. He had been previously released on conditional parole under the Alternatives to Detention program, had complied with all check-in requirements, maintained employment as a payroll manager, and had no criminal history. ICE agents allegedly used excessive force, tackling him during arrest without notice or opportunity to be heard. The court granted his temporary restraining order, ordering his immediate release under the original conditions of supervision and enjoining re-detention without a custody hearing before a neutral arbiter.

An immigration detainee petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus challenging his detention at Golden State Annex Detention Facility. The court found that his case mirrored legal issues in multiple prior cases where the government's detention was found unlawful. The District Court granted the habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release, prohibiting re-detention unless the government demonstrates by clear and convincing evidence at a pre-deprivation bond hearing that he poses a flight risk or danger to the community.

An 18-year-old from El Salvador was detained by ICE on June 29, 2026, and transferred to Golden State Annex Detention Facility in McFarland, California. He entered the United States in May 2019 and was released on his own recognizance. He obtained Special Immigrant Juvenile status in September 2023 and had his removal proceedings administratively closed in October 2023, with no criminal history and no final removal order. The court granted his habeas corpus petition, finding his detention violated the Fifth Amendment Due Process Clause, and ordered his immediate release with restrictions on future detention requiring advance notice and bond hearings.

A 19-year-old Russian asylum seeker who had been paroled and living lawfully in California since April 2023 was arrested by ICE on June 27, 2026, at a worksite without notice or pre-deprivation hearing. He was transported to Adelanto ICE Processing Center. A federal judge granted his habeas corpus petition, finding that ICE violated his Fifth Amendment due process rights by detaining him without a pre-deprivation hearing, and ordered his immediate release.

Oliver was detained by ICE agents on June 27, 2026, while heading to work with his father-in-law. According to his wife Claudia Sotelo, Oliver has no criminal history and was detained unlawfully. This detention occurred months after Claudia's father was also detained by ICE in December 2025 and subsequently released in February 2026. The family is seeking financial support to cover legal expenses for Oliver's case.

Luis Juarez-Trevizo, a Mexican national who has lived in the United States for more than 30 years and is married to a U.S. citizen with four U.S. citizen children, was arrested by ICE at a McDonald's in Fontana, California on June 20, 2026. He had previously been removed to Mexico in 2001 and later reentered without authorization; ICE reinstated his 2001 removal order and provided written notice on Form I-871 the day of his arrest. Juarez-Trevizo filed an emergency application for a temporary restraining order to stop his removal, arguing his arrest was warrantless and his detention violated due process, but a federal court denied the request, finding he had not shown likelihood of success on those claims. On June 26, 2026, he filed a habeas corpus petition against ICE official Todd M. Lyons in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, challenging his continued detention; the case was assigned to Judge Michael Walter Fitzgerald.

A Wapato father was detained by ICE more than two weeks ago after his wife confronted immigration officers at a courthouse. He has lived in the U.S. for about two decades, has no criminal record, and has worked at the same Yakima Valley fruit company for 15 years. He is the sole provider for his wife and five children, who are all U.S. citizens, and is currently held at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma. The family had been working with a Seattle attorney to pursue legal status before his detention.

Wilber Urbina Garcia, an 18-year-old honors graduate of Jordan High School in South Los Angeles, was detained by ICE on June 10, 2026, during a routine asylum check-in at a federal courthouse the morning after his graduation ceremony. His family fled Nicaragua in late 2022 seeking asylum due to political persecution and were in asylum proceedings with valid work permits at the time. Teachers described Wilber as shy but disciplined, with leadership roles by senior year, and he had dreamed of becoming a doctor, registering for pre-med classes at El Camino College. ICE agents told the family Wilber was no longer covered under his mother's asylum case because he had turned 18, though his attorney argued he should remain tied to the case as a derivative applicant filed before age 21. He was held at Adelanto ICE Processing Center for over two weeks in conditions including sewage overflow and insufficient food, where he said older detainees treated him like family. After public defenders challenged ICE's justification, a judge ordered his release on June 26. His mother and eldest brother entered removal proceedings and were fitted with ankle monitors, and an ICE agent told the family his 17-year-old sister would face detention upon turning 18.

Three Mexican citizens without lawful immigration status were arrested by ICE agents on June 26, 2026, in San Francisco after leaving a residence during an operation targeting another individual. The agents conducted warrantless arrests without making any individualized assessment that the petitioners were likely to escape before a warrant could be obtained, violating 8 U.S.C. § 1357(a)(2). The court found the arrests unlawful and issued a temporary restraining order directing their immediate release from custody.

An ICE detainee held at California City Immigration Processing Center filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his detention. He received an initial bond hearing on March 17, 2026, where the immigration court determined he was a flight risk and danger to the community. At a second hearing on May 28, 2026, the immigration court denied his bond redetermination request by claiming lack of jurisdiction based on mandatory detention. The federal court ordered respondent to determine his eligibility for a bond hearing under 8 C.F.R. § 1003.19(e) within seven days and, if eligible, to conduct the hearing within fourteen days, or immediately release him.

A Belizean asylum seeker has been detained by ICE at the California City Detention Facility in Kern County for nearly two years. In a Los Angeles Times op-ed, he described inhumane conditions including forced labor, medical neglect, and retaliation for advocating for others' medical care, and he has filed habeas petitions resulting in the release of several other detainees. His first habeas petition was granted, leading a federal court to order the government to provide him a bond hearing; he has since filed a second petition challenging his continued detention and the constitutional adequacy of that hearing. A federal judge in the Eastern District of California denied, without prejudice, his request for appointed counsel while granting him more time to reply in the case.

A 43-year-old woman from China who came to the U.S. seeking refuge wrote in a court declaration that she was suffering inside Otay Mesa Detention Center and pleaded with a judge for help, stating she never expected to experience inhumane treatment in the country where she sought protection. Her case was documented in habeas corpus petitions filed to challenge detention and detention conditions.

A man from Azerbaijan was detained at Otay Mesa Detention Center and hospitalized for nine days due to acute gastrointestinal distress. He experienced nausea and severe pain and was severely intolerant of the facility's food, causing him to lose approximately 20 pounds while detained. His case was documented in habeas corpus petitions challenging detention conditions.

A 34-year-old Pakistani woman with asthma and anxiety was detained at Otay Mesa Detention Center where she experienced panic attacks that knocked her unconscious and suffered numerous head injuries. She was hospitalized for three days while detained. In a court declaration, she expressed fear that her condition would worsen and stated she feared dying from lack of breathing. Her case was documented in habeas corpus petitions challenging her detention.

A woman from Mexico who uses a cane to walk was injured at Otay Mesa Detention Center after staff mixed up her prescription medication with another detainee's laxative. She rushed to the bathroom and fell, further injuring her knee, back and hips. Her case was documented in habeas corpus petitions filed to challenge detention.

A 33-year-old Iranian man with serious neurological issues was detained at Otay Mesa Detention Center where his treatment was minimally managed by facility physicians. He reported being handcuffed and shackled for extended periods during numerous medical appointments. His case was documented in habeas corpus petitions challenging detention conditions.

A 47-year-old Somali man married to a U.S. citizen was detained at Otay Mesa Detention Center and missed a scheduled hip surgery because of his detention. The case was documented in habeas corpus petitions filed as part of court challenges to detention amid immigration enforcement operations.

A 77-year-old Iranian man with a rare, life-threatening liver disease was detained at Otay Mesa Detention Center and placed in solitary confinement despite doctors recommending his release. He had lived in the U.S. under supervised release for over two decades and had multiple health conditions including sleep apnea, severe diabetes, and hearing loss. While detained for six weeks, he lost 10 pounds, experienced high blood sugar readings, and was denied essential CPAP equipment after staff reported losing parts of the machine. Two doctors and a nurse practitioner wrote letters urging his release. A federal judge ordered his release in January after finding ICE officers violated his due process rights.

Carmen Aracely Pablo Sequen, a Guatemalan asylum-seeker, was arrested by ICE immediately after leaving a routine hearing at San Francisco Immigration Court. She filed a class-action lawsuit, Pablo Sequen v. Albarran, challenging Trump administration policies that allowed ICE to arrest immigrants at immigration court hearings, alleging at least 89 people were arrested at the San Francisco court over a six-month period in 2025. Plaintiffs in the case included asylum applicants from Peru, Guatemala, and Colombia who were detained right after their court appearances. A federal judge in San Francisco later ruled that the policies authorizing widespread civil immigration arrests at courthouses, and allowing migrants to be held in short-term detention cells for up to three days, violated the Administrative Procedure Act. The ruling vacated the policies on a nationwide basis.