Human Impact Project

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.

Two brothers working as kitchen staff at El Nopalito restaurant in Haddonfield were taken into ICE custody in late July. A GoFundMe organized by Inkwood Books owner Julie Beddingfield, at the request of the brothers' families, has raised $26,742 from 478 donors, surpassing its $15,000 goal, though donations are now paused. The funds support the brothers with expenses in custody, including phone calls, legal communications, and hygiene items, as well as their families' housing, food, and utility costs while they are out of work. The brothers have legal advisors and additional legal and travel expenses are expected as they continue through the immigration process.

Erika and Edgard, a married couple and parents of two with a granddaughter, were removed from their car by ICE officers without explanation. Erika was injured during the arrest, sustaining bruises to her hands and arms. The couple have lived in the country as taxpayers with no legal problems and have worked to build a better life for their family. Their daughter Valeria is seeking legal representation funds to help them fight detention and reunite the family.

Luis Angel Cifuentes Rodas of Guatemala was driving a pickup truck on Walraven Drive in Teaneck on Sunday, July 26, around 11:30 a.m. when he attempted to flee from ICE agents. He crashed into a parked SUV, which struck a utility pole and brought down power lines onto the street and other vehicles, trapping a person inside one parked car for about an hour until PSE&G crews secured the scene. Cifuentes Rodas complained of head pain but declined medical treatment, and was arrested by ICE agents and taken into federal custody. He received motor vehicle citations for reckless driving and driving on a sidewalk, according to Teaneck Police Chief Andrew McGurr, and will have his case heard by a Justice Department immigration judge.

Boanerges Flores and his wife, Alba Matamoro, came to Missouri from Nicaragua three years ago to seek asylum, saying it was unsafe to return because Flores had worked for the Nicaraguan government. The couple attended every scheduled check-in with ICE. During a routine appointment last week, agents detained Flores and placed Matamoro on an ankle monitor. Flores is now in deportation proceedings. The couple works in the Maplewood-Richmond Heights school district, where staff described them as model employees. Their 8-year-old daughter attends school in the same district. Matamoro said their daughter has struggled with the separation, and that explaining the family's potential move has been difficult. Court records show no criminal history for either of them.

Raul Raagas, a 63-year-old Filipino immigrant from Cebu City who has lived in the U.S. for over three decades and worked in sanitation in Jersey City, was detained by ICE on July 24, 2026, and held at the CoreCivic Elizabeth Detention Center. As of August 22, 2026, advocates with the Tanggol Migrante Movement said they could no longer locate Raagas through ICE's custody information and that his attorney believes a transfer out of state, possibly to Louisiana, may be imminent. Supporters monitored activity at the Elizabeth facility and Newark Liberty International Airport while the group contacted the Philippine Consulate General in New York for assistance and planned a protest outside the consulate. Raagas's family and local officials, including Jersey City Councilman Rolando R. Lavarro Jr. and Assemblymember Steven Raga, continue pushing for his release amid concern that a transfer could hinder his contact with family and legal counsel.

Five landscaping workers were arrested by ICE on July 23, 2026, during operations on Rutgers Street and Van Reyper Place in Belleville. Each person is accused of being unlawfully present in the United States. ICE stated all will remain in custody pending removal. Belleville Mayor Frank Vélez confirmed that township officials were not given advance notice of the arrests or ICE presence, and the town's police department was not involved in the operation.

Marlon Andres Torres Gomez, a Colombian national, was granted voluntary departure by an immigration judge and ordered to leave the United States by June 11, 2026. He purchased a one-way plane ticket to Colombia departing June 10 and repeatedly contacted ICE to coordinate his departure, but ICE detained him and prevented him from boarding the flight. When the deadline passed, the government argued he was subject to mandatory detention, a position U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz called an "after-the-fact justification" rather than a genuine basis for custody. Farbiarz, who noted an immigration judge had previously found Torres Gomez did not pose a danger to the community, ruled on July 22, 2026, that ICE violated his due process rights and ordered his immediate release, saying he expected Torres Gomez to promptly leave the country voluntarily.

Two brothers from Mexico who worked as kitchen staff at El Nopalito restaurant in Haddonfield were arrested by ICE agents on July 20, 2026, while walking near their home in East Camden. The longtime employees, who sent money home to support family members including children, were taken into custody and are believed to be detained at Delaney Hall in Newark. Local police confirmed they were not involved in the operation, and a fundraiser organized by nearby bookstore owner Julie Beddingfield is collecting donations to help cover the brothers' legal, travel and living expenses while they remain in custody.

ICE agents in Passaic, New Jersey detained a U.S. citizen who repeatedly asked them to verify his identification. According to a neighbor who filmed the incident, the man told the federal agents who he was and pleaded with them to check his ID, but agents forced him to the ground, handcuffed him, and placed him in their vehicle without verifying his identity. A separate video circulating online shows the man continuing to ask agents to check his ID while being handcuffed, which they refused to do.

ICE agents arrested two noncitizens during a targeted enforcement operation in Morristown on July 16, 2026. Marlon Portillo-Masariegos, a Honduran national, was arrested; DHS stated he had been deported twice previously (in June 2018 and September 2018) and had re-entered the country illegally. Eduardo Alonso Guaido Bracho, a Venezuelan national, was also arrested; DHS said he had entered the U.S. illegally in 2024 and had been issued a final removal order on June 3, 2025. Morristown police director Michael Corcoran said ICE agents arrived in unmarked vehicles around 6 p.m. without advance notice and detained several individuals. Residents reported seeing ICE agents chase a young man on foot through backyards.

An immigrant who is married to a U.S. citizen was detained by ICE agents in New Jersey on July 10, 2026. The person's U.S. citizen spouse contacted immigration attorneys for assistance with the case. The detention occurred shortly after the law firm had warned that spouses of U.S. citizens are being targeted by ICE.

Between May 25 and May 30, 2026, ICE arrested nine individuals in New Jersey as part of enforcement operations. The arrests included: Esteban Pastor Montes Navarro (Mexico) on 5/25 with convictions for simple assault and possession of weapon; David Benitiz (Honduras) on 5/26 with convictions for simple assault, obstructing police, and public order crimes; Cesar Augusto Diaz Poveda (Ecuador) on 5/27 with arrests for assault and obstructing police; Jose Manuel Rivera-Mes (Guatemala) on 5/28 with a conviction for voluntary manslaughter and arrests for weapon offenses; Success Bounte (Ghana) on 5/28 with convictions for robbery, burglary, identity theft, and credit card fraud; Ismael Antonio Moreno-Javier (Dominican Republic) on 5/28 with arrests for terroristic threats, assault, child neglect, and fraud; Carlos Javier Llano-Batista (Dominican Republic) on 5/28 with arrests for fraud, larceny, burglary, and robbery; Jacinta Contreras Reyes (Mexico) on 5/29 with arrests for domestic violence, aggravated assault, and weapon-related charges; and Pabline Patricia Da Silva (Brazil) on 5/30 with arrests for burglary, larceny, and property damage. ICE conducted expanded enforcement operations across New Jersey, resulting in the arrests of several individuals. Marvin Miguel Perez, a Guatemalan national, was arrested on July 6 and had prior convictions in Mercer County Superior Court for unlawful possession of a weapon and theft. Jorge Vega-Meza, a Mexican national, was arrested on July 1 and had been previously removed from the United States with prior convictions related to drug distribution and racketeering. Fidel Rodriguez Lemus, a Cuban national, was arrested during the operations after being ordered removed in 2022 and having previously received a federal prison sentence in the Eastern District of Virginia. Kaitlyn Tracey, a Canadian national, was taken into custody by ICE after allegedly assaulting a teenage girl on the Point Pleasant Boardwalk, with the girl allegedly targeted for wearing pro-Trump and ICE clothing.

Approximately 300 immigrants detained at Delaney Hall, a privately operated ICE detention center in Newark, New Jersey, launched a hunger and labor strike beginning May 25, 2026, to protest conditions including spoiled and expired food, inadequate medical care, overcrowding, filthy bathrooms, lack of hot water, and denial of medical treatment. Detainee Elder Guerra, a Guatemalan immigrant, suffered a head injury after slipping in the shower and was placed in isolation rather than receiving proper treatment. Martin Soto, arrested by ICE four months earlier while buying diapers, remained detained despite a judge blocking his removal from the facility. Detainees reported retaliation by facility staff, including beatings, solitary confinement for strikers, and confiscation of personal items. The facility, operated by Community Education Centers, faced scrutiny for a pattern of medical neglect and rights violations, with sustained crowds of protesters gathering outside in solidarity.

A construction business owner with no criminal history was detained by ICE while traveling to work. He is the father of an 11-year-old daughter and an 8-year-old nonverbal autistic son who depends on him for daily care and support. His family is seeking legal representation to fight his detention and reunify the family.

On June 24, immigration agents entered El Oaxaqueño, a family-owned Oaxacan restaurant, bakery and supermarket in downtown Lakewood, New Jersey, through the back door and detained 18 people within about an hour, including six of the business's own workers. Among those detained was Bernarda Hernandez, along with 17 others without legal status, and worker Fermin Velez, who was arrested without a deportation order or arrest warrant and later released with help from a lawyer. The restaurant's owners, including Vicky Santiago, helped secure the release of most of their detained workers and said they would continue to stand up for their employees. DHS said ICE had gone to the parking lot based on a tip about a person charged with theft and forgery, and that some of those detained had prior charges for trespassing, obstruction and traffic offenses.

Three people were arrested during an ICE operation on June 19, 2026 in the Rio Grande section of Middle Township, according to Cape May Immigrant Support. Federal and local officials did not confirm the arrests or provide details about those detained. The operation prompted members of the Spanish-speaking community in the area to stay away from work or keep children home out of fear.

A 10-year-old girl, Nayeli Gomez, protested outside Delaney Hall ICE detention facility in Newark, New Jersey, where her diabetic father has been detained for nearly a year. During her birthday visit, she was denied family visitation by ICE agents. The girl fainted and sustained injuries outside the facility during a confrontation in which a female guard cursed at and insulted her. Her visit occurred amid ongoing labor and hunger strikes by detainees protesting inhumane conditions, including rotten food, lack of medical care, and poor sanitation. Activists expressed concern that a large influx of federal immigration officers entering the facility may signal transfers of detainees to disrupt organizing efforts.

Dionicio Miguel Francisco-Gutierrez was arrested by ICE on Friday, June 14, 2026, while waiting at a bus stop in North Bergen, New Jersey, in front of his two children who were in school uniforms. The arrest was recorded by a bystander. According to federal officials, Francisco-Gutierrez has a prior criminal conviction for violating Pennsylvania's Controlled Substance Act, with previous arrests on drug charges in 2022 and 2023. Following his arrest, his two children were placed in the custody of a legal guardian that he had designated. North Bergen Mayor Nicholas Sacco and Commissioner Hugo Cabrera condemned the enforcement action, with Cabrera stating that "the trauma inflicted on young children witnessing a parent or caregiver being detained is profound and lasting."

Friedrich Castillo-Ormeno self-deported to Peru in March 2026 after receiving a final deportation order and was approved for CBP Home incentive payments ($2,600) in April verifying his departure. In June 2026, ICE mistakenly identified him as a suspect in a violent incident in Stafford Township, New Jersey, where an officer was struck by a vehicle during an enforcement operation on Route 72. Federal prosecutors later charged a different man, Eduardo Cruz Garcia, with the assault. Castillo-Ormeno expressed concern that the misidentification could harm his reputation and affect his ability to legally return to the United States, as well as his U.S.-born daughter's documentation.