Human Impact Project

Jean Manuel Izquierdo, a 49-year-old Venezuelan father, was detained by ICE in Herriman, Utah, on May 5, 2026, as he was leaving his apartment complex to go to work. He is currently held in an immigration detention facility. According to his family, Izquierdo has no criminal record, holds valid work authorization, and is an active asylum applicant, but remains out of legal status. His family has launched a GoFundMe fundraising campaign to raise money for his bond and to support his case as it proceeds through immigration proceedings.

Lisandro Pantaleon Pacheco, a 22-year-old University of Utah student and Park City High School alumnus, was detained by ICE agents on April 28-29, 2026, while commuting to his first day of work at a bagel shop in Kimball Junction, Utah. Pacheco was pulled over on S.R. 224 around 5:30 a.m. Brought to the United States from Mexico by his mother at age one, Pacheco had no criminal record except one traffic citation and was scheduled to graduate on April 30 with a bachelor's degree in parks, recreation and tourism. He had previously applied for DACA protection before the program closed. Following his detention, he was held at a county jail in Evanston, Wyoming, while his attorney raised questions about whether profiling was involved in the traffic stop and subsequent detention.

Tony Arnold Bernstone, a New Zealand citizen, was convicted of second-degree felony child kidnapping in Utah and ordered to self-deport to New Zealand for four years. The conviction resulted from an assault on a 12-year-old child following a doorbell prank incident.

A Bosnian citizen and lawful permanent resident was detained by ICE on April 21, 2026, at Washington County Jail in Utah after completing a 120-day sentence for violating protective orders. ICE determined he was deportable under immigration law for domestic violence-related convictions including protective order violations, child abuse, and assault. The federal court denied his habeas corpus petition, finding his detention lawful under immigration law.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained at least four people in Heber City on Tuesday morning around 7:30 a.m. using undercover vehicles along Main Street near the Smith's Fuel Center and on U.S. 40. ICE pulled over vehicles and arrested individuals without notifying local police, though the agency later told the police chief it was targeting specific individuals with existing removal orders.

Utah Highway Patrol stopped a car speeding at 90 mph on I-15 near 5600 South in Weber County after occupants could not produce standard identification; a federal detainer was found for two of the three people inside. When ICE agents and a sheriff's deputy arrived, a passenger fled on foot and was pursued, while the driver refused to exit and barricaded himself inside, leading an ICE agent to break the car window to make the arrest. Both the driver and the man who fled had active ICE detainers, and the person filming the encounter was arrested for interfering. An 18-year-old passenger had called his mother during the incident, telling her an agent was pointing a gun at them.

On March 30, 2026, a Utah Highway Patrol trooper conducted a traffic stop on I-15 in Weber County for speeding. The driver refused to cooperate and could not provide valid identification despite claiming to be a U.S. citizen. With assistance from Weber County Sheriff's Office and ICE agents, the driver was forcibly removed from the vehicle due to noncompliance. Both the driver and a passenger were found to have active ICE detainers and were arrested and booked into Weber County Jail on charges including speeding, resisting arrest, and driving without a license.

A Venezuelan asylum-seeker who fled political persecution and entered the United States in September 2023. On January 30, 2024, she applied for admission at the Nogales, Arizona port of entry, was charged with inadmissibility, and was paroled for two years. During her parole, she was authorized to work, support her family living in the United States, and filed an asylum application. On March 26, 2026, she was arrested by Utah law enforcement based on an outstanding warrant for a domestic violence matter that was ultimately resolved without charges or conviction. She was then transferred to Department of Homeland Security custody and transported to California City Detention Center. On May 19, 2026, she filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus challenging her re-detention without a bond hearing. The court granted her petition, finding she has a protected liberty interest in her release and is entitled to a pre-deprivation bond hearing before re-detention can be justified.

Leandro Bermudez, a naturalized U.S. citizen from Venezuela, and his 7-year-old daughter Lucia traveled to Colombia on March 10, 2026, to complete her I-130 visa application at the U.S. Embassy in Bogota. On March 16, U.S. officials denied Lucia's visa request citing a June 2025 Trump proclamation targeting terrorists and security threats. Lucia has lived in Utah since age 2 and attends school there. Her attorney argues the denial misinterprets the order and that Lucia, as the daughter of a U.S. citizen, should be exempt. The family is working with lawyers and Utah's congressional delegation to secure a federal waiver to bring her home.

Approximately 400-500 people protested in Salt Lake City against a Department of Homeland Security warehouse purchase intended for conversion into an ICE detention facility. During the protest on March 19, 2026, a smaller group vandalized the building by spray-painting and throwing rocks at windows, causing approximately $3,000 in damage. Three people were arrested: Chase Taylor Fredrickson, age 18, and two minors. They faced charges including rioting, property damage, and unlawful assembly, with some charges at the third-degree felony level. The majority of protesters remained peaceful.

Lorenzo Chavez Rascon, a 22-year-old Utah man, was arrested on February 23, 2026, on suspicion of selling drugs, but the substances were determined to be dried pinto beans. He was released from initial criminal custody but subsequently detained by ICE based on a detainer, despite holding deferred action status from a pending U-visa petition. On March 11, 2026, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking his deportation and ordered the government to explain why he should not be released, ruling that his continued detention violated his constitutional due process rights. As of March 14, he remained in federal custody.

Two Afghan brothers with pending asylum claims were detained by ICE during a routine check-in with the Alternatives to Detention unit on Tuesday morning. Mohammad Emran Kohistani and Mohammad Sajad Kohistani, who presented themselves at the U.S. border in 2023 and were released on their own recognizance, were told they were not "appropriately vetted" at the border. Their attorney filed an emergency habeas petition and temporary restraining order, with a federal court hearing scheduled for Thursday.

Ismael Avalos, owner of Viper Auto Body in West Valley City, and his employee Wilmer Menjivar were detained by CBP agents during a forced entry on January 31, 2026. Menjivar, a Salvadoran national with no criminal record, believed he was being followed by unmarked vehicles as he arrived at work, ran into the shop, and locked the door behind him. Agents then broke through the locked glass door, entered the business, and detained both men. Menjivar's wife, Lilly, confronted agents and asked for a warrant; an agent responded that one was not needed. An immigration attorney stated the circumstances raise serious Fourth Amendment concerns, as agents lacked a judicial warrant and no legal exceptions for warrantless entry appeared to apply. Menjivar's family believes the men were profiled based on appearance and ethnicity. Community activists later protested the arrests.

Wilmer Menjivar, an employee at Viper Auto Body with no criminal record, was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in West Valley City, Utah. Menjivar believed he was being followed by unmarked vehicles as he arrived at work and ran into the locked auto body shop. CBP agents then broke through the glass door, entered the business, and detained him. His wife, Lilly, said Menjivar believes he may have been profiled based on his appearance, his low-rider truck, and skin color. Menjivar plans to return to El Salvador, and his wife and three U.S. citizen children plan to move with him to keep the family together.

ICE deported a man who was apprehended in Utah. A judge has since ruled that the Trump administration must bring him back, indicating potential legal issues with the deportation proceedings.

Jair Celis, a 29-year-old Utah father and soccer coach, was detained by ICE during his final green card interview despite being married to a U.S. citizen. The Department of Homeland Security posted on social media claiming Celis had a history of child sexual abuse, referencing sealed juvenile court records from when he was a minor. His attorneys plan to sue DHS for libel, arguing that juvenile cases are civil proceedings that cannot be used as convictions and should not be publicly disclosed.

A woman who entered the U.S. on December 10, 2021, on a B-2 visitor visa was detained by ICE on November 9, 2025, while in custody at Utah County Jail after her visa expired in June 2022. After six months in ICE detention without a bond hearing, the federal court found a due process violation and ordered her immediate release.

Marta Brizeyda Renderos Leiva, a 39-year-old from El Salvador, was arrested by ICE at Salt Lake City International Airport while arriving on a flight. She had a valid work permit approved in 2024 and was unaware of a 2020 deportation order, as the court notice had been sent to an address where she no longer lived. Her attorney states she was detained for months, transferred through multiple facilities, and deported despite having an active appeal pending, leaving behind her four U.S. citizen children.

Marta Brizeyda Renderos Leiva, a 39-year-old Salvadoran immigrant and mother of four U.S.-born children, was deported to El Salvador after spending nearly four months in custody following her October 2025 arrest at Salt Lake City International Airport. She was transferred through multiple facilities, including jails in Salt Lake and Tooele counties, a facility in Texas, two detention centers in Arizona, and finally a detention center in Louisiana, which she described as having the worst conditions, with overcrowding, wet bedding, and untreated illness among detainees. Renderos Leiva said she repeatedly told agents she had a valid work permit and lawful status, and that she was cuffed at the hands, waist, and feet during every transfer, including her deportation flight.

Henry Rincón, his wife Clara Avellaneda, and daughter Daniela Rincón, a Colombian family living in Herriman, Utah, were detained by immigration authorities on Aug. 26 after arriving at Phoenix's Sky Harbor International Airport on a flight from Salt Lake City. The three, who held work permits and were in the process of normalizing their immigration status, are being held at the Eloy Detention Center in Arizona; the Department of Homeland Security says they overstayed their visas. Their son, Julian Rincón, a naturalized U.S. citizen, has been publicly advocating for the family and raising funds through GoFundMe. An immigration judge has denied bond for Henry and Daniela Rincón but approved release for Clara Avellaneda.