Human Impact Project

Seamus Culleton, an Irish national who has lived in the U.S. for nearly 20 years and is married to U.S. citizen Tiffany Smith, was arrested by ICE agents at a Boston hardware store on September 9, 2025, during a random immigration sweep. Culleton entered the U.S. in 2009 on a visa waiver and overstayed, but held a valid work permit tied to a pending green card application as the spouse of a citizen and has no U.S. criminal record. He was held for roughly six months across facilities in Massachusetts, New York, and Texas, including El Paso Camp East Montana, where he and his attorney reported overcrowding, inadequate food, lack of outdoor time, unsanitary conditions, and significant weight loss. A judge approved his release on bond in November 2025, but ICE continued detaining him after claiming he had signed deportation documents, a claim Culleton and his lawyer dispute due to documentation irregularities. His detention caused him to miss a critical green card interview. A 2009 bench warrant from Ireland, related to alleged possession of 25 MDMA tablets and obstructing police, was also reported. In March 2026, a U.S. Court of Appeals judge paused his deportation pending resolution of his petition for review.

Dr. Rubeliz Bolívar Barrios was released on bail after a judge ordered her release following over a month of detention at El Valle Detention Center. The 33-year-old physician, who held a valid work permit through 2030 and was working as a medical resident, was arrested at McAllen International Airport in April 2026 despite presenting valid documentation. Her legal team will continue to appeal the visa violation allegations that led to her detention. Her 5-year-old daughter, a U.S. citizen, was released after nearly 19 hours in custody.

A noncitizen detained at the South Texas Immigration Processing Center filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus in federal court challenging his detention there. The case centers on whether his detention without a bond hearing violates due process rights afforded to noncitizens who have established a presence in the United States. The court ordered respondents to file a response within seven days identifying his country of birth, date of entry and statutory basis for removability, previous immigration detention history if any, and alleged immigration status. The court issued an immediate stay on any possible or anticipated transfer of him outside the Western District of Texas judicial district during the pendency of litigation. The stay does not stay removal proceedings or preclude respondents from taking necessary steps to effect removal, but only prevents the physical transfer of the petitioner at this time.

Luis Gustavo Núñez Cáceres, a 42-year-old Honduran immigrant, died Jan. 5 at a Houston-area hospital after suffering three cardiac arrests while in ICE custody. ICE agents arrested him in Houston on Nov. 17 and held him at the Montgomery Processing Center before transferring him to the Joe Corley Processing Center in Conroe on Nov. 25, where he was treated for chronic conditions including heart failure, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and tuberculosis. He was hospitalized Dec. 23 for an exacerbation of his heart condition and placed in intensive care Dec. 31 after multiple medical emergencies; doctors revived him twice before a third resuscitation attempt failed. A Department of Homeland Security Mortality Review Committee report released Feb. 27 found that medical staff had delayed his diagnostic evaluations by ten days, failed to monitor his weight and medication use, and overlooked documentation discrepancies, including an X-ray later found abnormal for tuberculosis. Staff learned in December that he had been overdosing on a prescribed diuretic but did not test for related complications. A medical examiner ruled his cause of death an acute coronary artery dissection linked to heart disease and high blood pressure.

Nearly a dozen 911 calls placed from the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas since September document medical emergencies involving children in the facility, including infants and young children experiencing respiratory distress, fever, seizures, and other serious conditions. EMS crews were dispatched to the facility at least 11 times, with some children transferred to specialized pediatric hospitals in San Antonio, while Democratic Rep. Joaquin Castro has called for the closure of the detention center.

The South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, operated by CoreCivic, faced multiple documented problems affecting detained immigrant families and children. Emergency responders handled at least 11 medical emergencies since September 2025, including respiratory distress, seizures, and fever in infants and young children. Detainees reported finding worms, bugs, and mold in food, contaminated drinking water, and inadequate nutrition, leading to a confirmed measles outbreak in early 2026. Children experienced inadequate medical care, 24-hour lighting, and some were detained beyond the 20-day legal limit. A 13-year-old girl denied prescribed anxiety medications experienced a mental health crisis and attempted suicide before deportation. Following media coverage and a January protest, facility staff increased confiscation of art supplies, drawings, and personal items from detainees, and restricted communications with family and lawyers through Google services and video calls. A federal judge ruled some detentions unconstitutional, and medical advocates and congressional representatives called for facility closure.

Two Iranian Christian converts have been held by ICE since December after appearing for a routine immigration check-in, despite being vetted at the border, receiving work authorization, and volunteering at a Houston church. One man had evangelized to Muslims in Iran, an offense that can carry the death penalty under Iranian law, and now faces deportation back to the country. Both are currently held at the Houston Contract Detention Facility. The Department of Homeland Security has stated that both men crossed into the U.S. without authorization in 2023 and 2024 and were released under the previous administration.

An 11-year-old U.S. citizen girl recovering from a rare brain tumor was deported to Mexico on February 4, 2025, after immigration authorities detained her undocumented parents and siblings at a Texas Border Patrol checkpoint while the family traveled for her emergency medical checkup. The family was removed despite previously passing through the checkpoint with hospital and attorney letters. Since deportation, her health has deteriorated, with worsening seizures, muscle spasms, and loss of neurological functions, and she has received only one MRI instead of the recommended quarterly scans. Four of the family's five children are U.S. citizens, including an 18-year-old brother left to live alone in the family's Texas home for a year. The family has been living in an area known for kidnappings of U.S. citizens while awaiting a humanitarian parole decision filed through the Texas Civil Rights Project. Congressional members including Reps. Adriano Espaillat, Sylvia Garcia, and Joaquin Castro have advocated for the family's return, and the teenage brother attended the State of the Union as Espaillat's guest, describing his year alone as feeling 'trapped in a coffin.'

Juana Felipe Mateo, a Guatemalan mother of two, was deported from the South Texas Family Residential Center (Dilley) while 8 months pregnant with a third child after three months in detention. She alleges ICE and DHS deceived her into signing voluntary departure papers by offering $15,000 (which she says she never received) and obtaining a doctor's authorization to fly despite her advanced pregnancy. Juana reported that pregnant detainees, including herself, were hidden from U.S. Congressman Joaquín Castro during a facility inspection to prevent them from reporting lack of medical care and alleged mistreatment. She also described being placed in a cold room known as 'la hielera' for five days when her 2-year-old daughter developed fever. She learned of her unborn son's sex only on the day of her deportation.

A Mexican citizen who has resided in the United States since 2009 was arrested on February 21, 2026, in Fort Worth, Texas for driving while intoxicated. He was transferred to ICE custody on March 2, 2026, and held at the Golden State Annex Detention Facility without a bond hearing. The court found he was unlawfully detained under mandatory detention provisions and ordered his immediate release, ruling he should have received a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) as a noncitizen already present in the country, not as a recently arrived applicant for admission.

Federal judges have ordered the release of pregnant and nursing women held by ICE at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center, citing violations of ICE Directive 11032.4, which prohibits detention of pregnant and nursing individuals. Congressman Joaquin Castro alleged that approximately eight pregnant women are currently being held at the facility and claimed they were hidden from his view during his visit. Castro reported cases of inadequate medical care, including a pregnant woman three months along experiencing heavy bleeding and a teenage boy not receiving proper medical attention for appendicitis. Over 1,000 pregnant, postpartum, and nursing individuals have been detained since Trump's second term began, with documented cases detailing severe conditions including miscarriages without proper medical care, shackling during pregnancy and labor, inadequate medical treatment, solitary confinement, forced family separations, and contaminated food.

Nikita, Oksana, and their three children—fleeing Russia due to Nikita's outspoken opposition to President Vladimir Putin—were released from the Dilley Immigration Processing Center after more than four months in federal custody, exceeding the 20-day limit for holding minors set by federal court settlement. The family reported enduring worms and mold in food, hourslong waits for medicine in bitter cold or rain, repetitive and sometimes inedible meals, and nonexistent schooling. Their daughter Kamilla suffered a recurring ear infection that, compounded by what parents described as lax medical care, resulted in partial hearing loss. The family was freed following legal intervention by their attorney, a Columbia Law School professor, and media coverage by NBC News, which documented their case. After their release, other detainees erupted in applause and celebration in the dining hall.

Luis Roldan-Cerda, a DACA recipient, was detained and deported by ICE on February 17, 2026, after attending a biometric appointment for his U visa application at an immigration office in McAllen, Texas. He was deported to Reynosa, Mexico, and spent more than five weeks stranded there, witnessing cartel violence in the city. A federal judge ordered his return to the United States, and he was reunited with his wife Denisse Garcia and their children. Roldan-Cerda, who was brought to the U.S. at age three, said he was grateful to be back with his family and planned to return to his job as an electrician.

Niury Guerra, a Cuban national and wife of a U.S. citizen, was detained by ICE during a scheduled green card interview appointment in Dallas. ICE cited a 2018 removal after an attempted unauthorized entry with a fraudulent passport and a 2022 unauthorized re-entry as the basis for her arrest. Guerra has no criminal record beyond immigration violations and remains held at a detention center approximately 200 miles from her family, including her 15-month-old daughter. Rafael Alambarrio, a Venezuelan asylum seeker and husband of a McKinney elementary school teacher, was detained by ICE on January 15, 2026 during a routine check-in appointment at the Dallas ICE office. He had a credible fear determination from 2023, was seeking asylum, and was waiting for his green card application to be processed as the spouse of a U.S. citizen. His detention occurred after the Trump administration paused processing of green card applications from 19 countries including Venezuela. He is now held at Prairieland Detention Facility awaiting a hearing scheduled for February 3, 2026.

Ramiro and his nephews Antonella and Andrés attended a scheduled immigration court hearing in Texas on February 12, 2026. After leaving the courtroom, they were detained by ICE and held at Karnes County Immigration Processing Center despite having no deportation order, no criminal record, and having entered the U.S. legally with a visa before applying for asylum. They were subsequently released but the family incurred approximately $17,500 in legal fees and bond payments.

Staff at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley raided dormitories in February to confiscate and destroy letters and drawings from detained children describing conditions inside the facility, after a ProPublica article detailed the children's accounts. A journalist's outlet, MSW Media, filed a Freedom of Information Act request for the seized materials and later sued ICE in federal court when the agency did not respond. In August, ICE released nine pages of the children's letters and drawings, citing privacy and law enforcement exemptions to withhold the remainder of the records it reviewed. At the time of the raids, many detained children had exceeded the 20-day maximum stay set by the Flores Settlement Agreement.

A Chinese citizen who entered the US without inspection in February 2024 was detained by ICE at a truck weight station in February 2026. He had established a life in the US with a wife and child and worked as a truck driver with no criminal history. The court ruled he was entitled to a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226 and ordered the government to provide one within seven days.

Children detained at the Dilley family detention center in South Texas have continued to face poor conditions, including inadequate medical care, contaminated food, overcrowded spaces, and limited legal access. The facility, reopened for family detentions under the Trump administration, has held more than 3,500 people, including over 1,700 children, with about 300 held beyond the legal 20-day limit; documented cases include 5-year-old twins held for eight months and a young girl who attempted suicide after a bond denial. In July 2026, pediatrician Dr. Anita Patel, visiting with a congressional delegation led by Rep. Joaquin Castro, said at least seven children have died in ICE custody or shortly after release and described conditions as child abuse and human rights violations, citing cases such as 5-year-old Alexander, found with a cord around his neck, and 9-year-old Kinec, whose autism worsened under confinement. As of the visit, 539 people were held at Dilley, including 84 families, 112 children and four pregnant women, up from 96 children in May.

Amalia, an 18-month-old girl, was detained with her parents, Kheilin Valero Marcano and Stiven Arrieta Prieto, Venezuelans who fled persecution for opposing President Nicolás Maduro, after being arrested in El Paso and transferred to the Dilley Immigration Processing Center. Her 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 respiratory failure, 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. Following a federal lawsuit and emergency habeas corpus petition, the family was released from detention on February 7, 2026, after roughly two months in custody.

Amalia Arrieta, an 18-month-old from Venezuela, was detained with her mother Kheilin Valero Marcano following an ICE appointment in El Paso on December 11, 2025, and transferred to Dilley Immigration Processing Center. Over weeks, Amalia developed severe respiratory symptoms including high fevers, persistent cough, and dangerously low blood-oxygen levels (dropping to the 50s). On January 18, 2026, she was hospitalized at Methodist Children's Hospital in San Antonio for 10 days, diagnosed with pneumonia, COVID-19, RSV, and respiratory distress. Upon discharge on January 28, doctors prescribed her a nebulizer, respiratory medications, and nutritional supplements. When ICE returned her to Dilley, detention staff allegedly confiscated her prescribed medications and breathing equipment. Her parents were forced to wait in daily outdoor lines to request treatment, often being denied. After lawyers filed an emergency habeas corpus petition in federal court, the family was released on either January 31 or February 7, 2026.