Human Impact Project

Clayton Herman, a 54-year-old Canadian citizen who immigrated to the U.S. legally in 2002, was detained by ICE in October 2025 following a routine check-in at an ICE field office in Camarillo. During his initial eight-month detention at Adelanto ICE Processing Centre in California's Mojave Desert, Herman reported inhumane conditions including mold, inadequate medical care, poor food quality, and irregular schedules. Four detainees died at the facility during his detention. A federal magistrate judge ruled in June 2026 that his detention violated his rights and ordered his release. Herman was freed but re-arrested on July 21, 2026, after missing a July 10 deadline to file an appeal to his removal order; he stated his priority mail appeal was delayed in transit between Santa Barbara and Virginia. He was returned to Adelanto ICE Processing Centre and is now facing deportation to Canada, having refused to sign expedited deportation papers due to concerns about being separated from his cats and the life he built in the Ojai Valley.

Omer Sariboga, a Turkish national, is an immigration detainee held at Mesa Verde Detention Center. He was previously released from immigration detention pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) but was subsequently re-detained under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A). Sariboga filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus challenging his detention without a bond hearing. The court granted his petition, finding that the Due Process Clause requires a bond hearing where the government must prove by clear and convincing evidence that he is a flight risk or danger to the community. The court ordered respondents to provide Sariboga with a bond hearing before a neutral decisionmaker within ten days, with the government bearing the burden of proof. The court directed that Sariboga be given 72 hours' written notice in a language he can understand, may be represented by an attorney, and that the decisionmaker must consider his financial circumstances when setting bond or alternative release conditions. If respondents fail to provide the hearing within ten days, they must release him.

Vlad, a 23-year-old Russian asylum seeker, was deported to Moscow on July 20, 2026, after missing his May asylum hearing in Tucson. Vlad fled Russia in 2022 and presented himself at the San Ysidro port of entry in December 2022 requesting asylum protection. He had been living in Tucson with his partner Andrea Landavazo. Vlad expressed deep fear of being conscripted into the Russian military or imprisoned upon return due to his political beliefs and opposition to the Russia-Ukraine war. He was detained by ICE in June 2026 and held at ICE's Florence Service Processing Center during a measles lockdown. An order of deportation was issued in absentia, and Vlad did not receive the standard $2,600 in departure funds typically provided for voluntary departure, as ICE stated he did not leave voluntarily.

Three noncitizens were released from immigration detention by federal judges in Texas in February and March after being pulled over in traffic stops. According to their attorney, the men have no criminal records, have lived in the U.S. for more than 10 years, and have U.S. citizen children. While in detention, they experienced inadequate conditions including rotten food, inadequate medical care, and maggot- and fungus-ridden mattresses. The Trump administration is now asking an appeals court to return them to detention as part of a broader effort to overturn court rulings that have found the mandatory detention policy unconstitutional.

Elder Yuvini Aguilar Macario, a 19-year-old senior and soccer team captain at Trion High School in Georgia, was detained by ICE on May 1-2, 2026, following a traffic stop when officers discovered he lacked a valid driver's license. ICE discovered a prior deportation order dating back 13 years to his mother's denied asylum application when he was six years old, and placed a detainer on him through the 287(g) program. He was transferred to Irwin County Detention Center and later to Folkston ICE Processing Center, approximately 300 miles from his home in northwest Georgia, where he described being shackled during transport. Before his arrest, Aguilar Macario was a member of the soccer team and had begun taking welding classes at Georgia Northwestern Technical College. He missed his high school graduation ceremony, though his classmates gave him a standing ovation when his name was called and placed his cap, robe, and photo on an empty chair in his honor. His attorneys have filed to reopen his immigration case.

Luis Alberto Ramirez Zavala, a Chicago-area man who had spent most of his life working as a ranch hand in rural Illinois, was detained by ICE during a routine appointment with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in Missouri on July 18, 2026, regarding his pending application for legal status. He had no criminal record and had been following the immigration process for years to adjust his status. Ramirez Zavala was detained based on a removal order issued more than 30 years ago. He was transferred from a county jail in Missouri to an ICE detention facility in Texas and deported to Mexico approximately two weeks after his arrest. His daughter, Air Force Tech. Sgt. Wendy Gbeve, was present at his USCIS appointment and has been advocating for his release. Ramirez Zavala was married for 30 years to a legal permanent resident. His family expressed being heartbroken by the separation and sought funds for legal defense and support.

Shaoping Wu, a 48-year-old Chinese human rights lawyer, was detained by ICE in mid-July 2026 while working as an Amazon delivery driver in Pennsylvania. Wu fled China in 2019 after the government cracked down on lawyers challenging authorities in civil rights cases. He arrived in the U.S. on a tourist visa, filed for asylum in 2020, and received work authorization. He had been working full-time as a delivery driver since April 2025 while continuing his advocacy work criticizing the Chinese Communist Party. Wu was living in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania with his wife Li Caoliu and their 17-year-old daughter, a Hempfield High School student. During his arrest, he informed police about his pending asylum application, but they notified immigration officials who detained him at Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Clearfield County. His wife expressed concern about lost income and mounting bills while helping with his defense. Human rights organizations have warned that Wu could face serious retaliation if deported to China.

Celestin Dima, a gay asylum seeker from Burkina Faso, fled kidnapping, military persecution and police torture after being outed before crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in 2024. In August 2025, an Arizona immigration judge granted him withholding of removal, finding he would likely face persecution if deported home, but ICE continued holding him at the Eloy Detention Center for nearly two years while searching for a third country willing to accept him, considering Ghana, Cameroon and Uganda—all countries where homosexuality is criminalized. While detained, he stopped eating and was placed in solitary confinement for two weeks. A federal judge ordered his release in June 2025 after granting a joint habeas petition, but ICE redetained him on July 17 during a mandatory check-in at a field office in Lower Manhattan. He was then transferred through detention facilities in New Jersey and near Dallas, fitted with a GPS ankle monitor, and later scheduled for deportation to the Central African Republic without being told in advance where he would be sent.

Claudia Carolina Rodriguez, a 28-year-old Venezuelan who arrived in the U.S. on a tourist visa in 2017, was detained by ICE agents at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on July 17 after passing through TSA security while boarding a domestic flight to North Carolina to watch World Cup matches with friends. Rodriguez held Temporary Protected Status that had expired and had a pending asylum application at the time of her arrest. She was initially held at the Miramar processing facility for eight days, where she reported severe conditions including overcrowding (roughly 47 women in one room sleeping on bare floors), expired or moldy food, inadequate water access, lack of access to showers, and inability to change clothes or go outside. She lost approximately 15 pounds during detention. After transfer to the Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach, an immigration judge granted her bond on August 3, and she was released wearing an ankle monitor. Her family says she has no criminal record and intends to continue fighting her asylum case.

Giovanni Henriquez-Osorio, a native of El Salvador, was arrested in Provo, Utah and held at Nevada Southern Detention Center in Pahrump. Federal authorities asserted he was a member of MS-13 gang, but U.S. District Judge Richard Boulware found no evidence supporting the claim. Boulware noted Henriquez-Osorio feared torture and persecution if deported and that his detention caused financial harm to his family — a partner and infant son facing eviction. After initially denying him a bond hearing, the judge in March ordered he be released or receive a constitutionally adequate hearing. When an immigration judge again ruled him dangerous based on prior DUI and domestic violence convictions, Boulware found the decision misstated the record and misconstrued facts. The judge ordered his release on July 17, 2026, threatening contempt sanctions against ICE and DHS if they did not comply.

Maikel Guerra Morales, a Cuban national convicted of aircraft piracy in 2003 after hijacking a commuter plane, was released from ICE custody by Senior U.S. District Judge John E. Steele on July 8, 2026, after more than six months in detention. Judge Steele ruled that ICE lacked a concrete plan to deport Morales and was violating the 2001 Supreme Court decision in Zadvydas v. Davis against indefinite detention. Morales had been released under supervision in March 2023 but was re-arrested in December 2025 despite complying with all supervision terms. Judge Steele ordered ICE to release Morales within 24 hours under the same conditions that had previously applied. In an exclusive statement, Morales expressed gratitude for Judge Steele, saying he would "always remember Judge Steele as a man who honored the oath he took" and calling him someone who applied "the law with independence, integrity, and justice." Judge Steele died at age 77 days after issuing the ruling. U.S. Rep. Greg Steube subsequently filed articles of impeachment against the deceased judge, making Judge Steele the first federal judge to die during impeachment proceedings.

ICE agents detained Matar Ndiaye at an immigration court in Manhattan while he attended a mandatory asylum hearing, despite a May 2026 federal court order prohibiting such arrests. This marks at least the sixth arrest at Manhattan immigration courts since U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel's ruling. Ndiaye, a Bronx resident with no criminal convictions who had complied with all immigration directives, was transferred to Delaney Hall detention facility in New Jersey.

Victor Alfredo Perez Martin, a Guatemalan national, was arrested by ICE on July 6, 2026, outside Sentara BelleHarbour outpatient campus in Suffolk during a targeted enforcement operation. Bystander video documented ICE agents tackling him to the ground and repeatedly striking him with punches and knees to the stomach and back while attempting to handcuff him. ICE initially claimed Perez Martin had accepted voluntary departure, but his attorney James Reyes withdrew that acceptance and requested a notice to appear in immigration court. On July 16, U.S. District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles ruled that ICE had detained him under the wrong statute and ordered his release, finding he was entitled to a bond hearing. Perez Martin was released the same day and will proceed with immigration court proceedings where he will seek bond and face removal.

Martha Sias, a Mexican national and lawful permanent resident, was arrested by ICE agents on July 15, 2026, during a targeted enforcement operation outside an Allsup's convenience store in Chaparral. The arrest drew attention after a social media video circulated showing her detention. According to court records, Sias pleaded guilty in October 2025 to manufacturing and delivery of a controlled substance after CBP officers discovered approximately 20 pounds of methamphetamine hidden in the door panels of an SUV she was driving at the Paso del Norte border crossing on January 12, 2022. She was sentenced to 10 years of supervised probation and was on probation at the time of her ICE arrest. ICE said she is subject to removal proceedings and will have an opportunity to present her case before an immigration judge.

Maria Rosales, a 32-year-old DACA recipient who came to the U.S. from Colombia at age 4, was detained by ICE at Logan Airport on July 10, 2026, while trying to board a flight home to Orlando after attending a Noah Kahan concert at Fenway Park with friends from her color guard group. Rosales, who has lived in the U.S. for 28 years, works as a dermatologist's assistant treating skin cancer patients and founded and directs Vestige Winter Guard, an indoor color guard troupe in Florida. Friends and colleagues describe her as a hard worker and integral part of Florida's performing arts community. ICE cited a 2017 removal order from an immigration checkpoint encounter in New Mexico, though her attorney says she was unaware of it and never received proper hearing details. Her DACA renewal has been pending since 2023. She was held at a Burlington facility until a federal judge ordered her release on July 21, finding ICE failed to comply with statutory detention procedures.

Roberto Mosquera del Peral, a Cuban man who arrived in the U.S. as a child during the 1980 Mariel boatlift and built a life as a plumber, husband, and father of four daughters, was deported to Eswatini in mid-July as part of the Trump administration's third-country deportation program. He has been held at Matsapha Correctional Complex, a maximum-security prison, for more than three months without being charged with any offense or given access to legal counsel. His lawyer reports he is on a hunger strike with serious health concerns, and civic groups in Eswatini have filed court cases challenging the legality of holding him and other deportees in prison without charge.

Liam, 15, was arrested by local police in May 2025 following a fight; ICE agents separated him from his father who arrived to pick him up and took both into custody. Liam was held in an ICE office in Burlington, Massachusetts, then transferred to an ORR shelter in Texas for three months before being moved to Groton, Connecticut. Whether ICE ever properly contacted his mother to inform her she could pick him up remains disputed; she said ICE called her while he was in Burlington but did not tell her she could retrieve him, and she did not hear from him again until he was in Texas. The government made contradictory statements about the mother's availability, at one point claiming ICE couldn't locate her, then claiming ICE asked her to pick him up but she refused, while also stating she was at the police station during his arrest. Liam grew anxious and depressed in the shelters; a psychological evaluation recommended his release "as soon as possible" for his well-being. Federal Judge Vernon Oliver called the government's claims "disturbing" and "full of significant incongruities," and ordered Liam's release 27 days after the lawsuit was filed; his mother picked him up the following day after 255 days of detention.

Naseeb Naseeb, a native of India, entered the United States in June 2024 at the Mexican border and was released to live in Philadelphia while in removal proceedings. On July 15, 2026, DHS officials arrested him at a scheduled immigration check-in and detained him at the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia without a bond hearing. The government relied on a July 8, 2025 ICE policy interpreting the Immigration and Nationality Act to subject all noncitizens without admission status to mandatory detention without bond eligibility. Naseeb filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus arguing the detention violated the INA and the Fifth Amendment Due Process Clause. The federal court granted his petition, finding that Naseeb should be detained under the discretionary provisions of 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), not the mandatory detention statute, and that he is entitled to a bond hearing before an immigration judge.

Alvaro Anastacio Garcia Tevalan, a 20-year-old Guatemalan citizen, entered the United States without authorization in November 2016 at age 11 and was released to his mother's custody in Clarion, Iowa, where he has lived for nearly a decade. He has a U.S. citizen child and maintained compliance with the terms of his release during that period. On April 29, 2026, he was arrested on a domestic abuse assault charge, and ICE took custody of him on May 1, 2026. Federal Judge Stephanie Rose ruled that the government violated his due process rights by re-detaining him without a hearing after allowing him to live freely in the country for nearly 10 years, and ordered that either he be released or given a bond hearing to determine his eligibility for release.

Erick Lionel Cristal Cumes, a Guatemalan immigrant, was detained by ICE on May 28 at Don Patron Mexican Grill in Weston during a raid that also resulted in the detention of more than a dozen other employees. He has been held at Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Pennsylvania since his arrest. Cumes is married to Lauren, an American-born citizen whom he married in April; they have been together four years. His attorney argues ICE violated his constitutional rights by detaining him without individualized assessment of flight risk or danger to the community. A federal judge ruled Cumes is entitled to a bond hearing and that his continued detention would be unlawful if the government cannot prove he poses danger or flight risk, with a bond hearing ordered by July 14. Over 50 community members appeared in federal court on June 25 to support Cumes, testifying he is a member of the community in good standing. Lauren testified about poor detention conditions including spoiled food and lack of responsiveness to requests for help, stating she is allowed contact with her husband about once per day. His attorney also argued the case should remain in West Virginia court rather than be transferred to Pennsylvania, contending that transfer could delay resolution of his case.

U.S. District Judge Richard F. Boulware II ordered the release of immigrants detained in Nevada facilities, accusing Immigration and Customs Enforcement of defying his March 2026 ruling that the Trump administration's mandatory detention policy is unconstitutional. The detainees had been arrested without proper warrants and denied individualized determinations on whether they should be held or released on bond. Judge Boulware stated the individuals cannot be detained again until their removal proceedings are heard in immigration court, where the government must prove detention is justified by clear and convincing evidence. The judge described ICE's continued enforcement of the mandatory detention policy as "governmental lawlessness" and "rebelling" against his binding court order. Boulware warned he would consider sanctions against ICE officials who defied his orders and noted this was part of a broader pattern of ICE noncompliance with his directives in Nevada.

Mahmoud Khalil, a green card holder and Columbia University graduate student of Syrian-Palestinian descent, was arrested by ICE without a warrant at his apartment building on March 8, 2025, following his pro-Palestinian activism and organizing campus protests. The Trump administration pursued deportation based on allegations he concealed prior employment with the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees and the British Embassy on his visa application. Secretary of State Marco Rubio invoked a rarely used immigration provision claiming his activism threatens U.S. foreign policy. Khalil was held for 104 days at LaSalle Detention Center in Louisiana before a federal judge released him on bail in June 2025. In July 2026, he filed a lawsuit against Trump administration officials and pro-Israel groups, alleging they conspired to target him and others for supporting Palestinian rights, claiming the administration coordinated with surveillance groups Betar and Canary Mission using a document called "Project Esther" as a blueprint.

Balvant Singh, a noncitizen, was re-detained on June 26, 2026, after having been previously released on bond or conditional parole. The government failed to provide Singh with a pre-deprivation bond hearing before a neutral arbiter before re-detaining him, violating the Due Process Clause. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California granted Singh's petition for writ of habeas corpus and motion for temporary restraining order, ordering his immediate release with the same conditions he was subject to prior to detention, and requiring the government to provide at least seven days' notice and a pre-deprivation bond hearing before any future re-detention.

Supreet Singh Khanchi, a native and citizen of India, entered the United States without inspection in December 2022 and was released under an order of supervision while his pending asylum application was processed. On June 25, 2026, when he reported for a routine ICE check-in that he had consistently attended, he was re-detained without notice, explanation, or opportunity to be heard, despite having no criminal history and complying with all conditions of release. The court ordered his immediate release, finding that the revocation of his prior release violated his Fifth Amendment due process rights because he was deprived of liberty without an opportunity to be heard and there was no evidence of changed circumstances.

Inocencia Rodríguez, a 32-year-old Dominican mother of an eight-year-old daughter, was detained by ICE officers at a security checkpoint while driving to take a friend to work. She possessed a document proving an ongoing immigration process to regularize her status, including an I-130 petition filed by her permanent resident husband and an approved provisional I-601A waiver. ICE used information from her driver's license—shared by Puerto Rico's Department of Transportation with federal authorities in early 2025—to locate and arrest her. A federal judge found her detention "illegal" and ordered her immediate release, and she was released after posting a $5,000 bond. She now faces deportation proceedings despite her legal documentation and family ties to the U.S. territory.

Ghezae Fissiha Arone, an Eritrean national ordered removed in 2016, was released on an Order of Supervision in 2016 and lived in the community for approximately 10 years before being re-detained in 2026. The court found that ICE failed to establish a significant likelihood of removal to Eritrea, which does not cooperate with the United States for repatriation. The court granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release, also establishing procedural protections against removal to third countries.

Sergio Daniel Cerpas Garcia, 36, a Mexican citizen, was arrested by ICE agents at Stanislaus County Superior Court on July 9, 2026, before he could appear for his scheduled arraignment in a pending state criminal case. Cerpas Garcia had voluntarily appeared at court after posting $150,000 bail in May and was detained by federal immigration agents before the courthouse doors opened, according to his attorney Hector Alvarez. ICE stated Cerpas Garcia was deported from the United States in 2017 and later reentered without authorization. His sister Cecilia recounted watching three men handcuff her brother, place him in a black van, and provide no identification initially. The detention has disrupted his state criminal proceedings, in which he has not yet entered a plea to charges of committing a lewd or lascivious act on a child under 14. His defense is preparing a motion under California's Racial Justice Act challenging the circumstances of his detention.

Karina Alvarez San Juan, a Mexican national who has lived in the U.S. since age 12, was arrested during a traffic stop in Florida on May 6, 2026, for an allegedly broken taillight. She is the mother of four U.S. citizen children and was nursing her youngest child, born on January 7, 2026, at the time of her arrest. ICE transferred her to South Louisiana Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana, where she remained detained for over three months. Her attorney Michelle Borton reported that conditions at the facility were inadequate, with detainees lacking sufficient clean water for basic hygiene including bathing and flushing toilets. San Juan alleged due process violations, including a cancelled bond hearing and a denied emergency motion without explanation. On July 8-9, 2026, U.S. District Judge David C. Joseph, a Trump appointee, ordered ICE to release her within five business days after finding that the agency violated its own Directive 11032.4, which prohibits detention of postpartum and nursing mothers unless release is prohibited by law or exceptional circumstances exist. ICE officials stated they had no additional evidence to justify her continued detention.

Owen Ramsingh, a Netherlands native who arrived in the United States at age 5 in 1986 and held a green card for over 40 years, was detained by ICE at Chicago's O'Hare Airport in November 2025 based on decades-old drug convictions from 1997 and 2011. He was deported to the Netherlands in February 2026 after months in detention, receiving a lifetime ban from the United States. Ramsingh had been living in Columbia, Missouri with his wife Diana and daughter, working in property management and security at local venues. After finding conditions in the Netherlands difficult, Ramsingh and his family relocated to Mexico to be closer to U.S.-based friends and relatives while his wife pursues remote work opportunities, unable to visit his daughter's gravesite in the United States. Owen Ramsingh, a long-term green card holder who immigrated to the U.S. at age 5 in 1986, was detained by ICE at Chicago airport on September 30 while returning from a family visit to the Netherlands. DHS cited prior drug-related convictions from 1997 and 2011 as justification for his detention. Ramsingh, who had worked in property management and security at music venues in Columbia, Missouri, was held in ICE custody in Texas and New Mexico. In December, a New Mexico judge issued him a lifetime ban from the U.S., and he was deported to the Netherlands in February. Unable to secure housing or viable visa options in the Netherlands, Ramsingh and his family have since relocated to Mexico, where they are working on obtaining residency and rebuilding their lives closer to family and friends.

Maisa Lopes Eliaser, a 32-year-old Brazilian national with no criminal record, was detained by ICE on July 8, 2026, during a scheduled green card adjustment-of-status interview in Montgomery, Alabama. She is married to Staff Sergeant Alexis Jaramillo, an active-duty Army soldier of 11 years. Lopes Eliaser legally entered the U.S. on June 18, 2019, with authorization to remain until December 2019, but overstayed her visa. She had previously applied for asylum and later sought permanent residency through marriage; her green card petition had been approved before her detention. Immigration officials indicated she missed a biometrics appointment related to her asylum case, resulting in a removal order from an immigration judge on April 15, 2026. She is currently held at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana. Jaramillo stated he feels "betrayed" by the detention, believing the family was completing the legal process for her permanent residency. The detention has caused panic attacks for Jaramillo and emotional distress for their young stepson. Her case is now before the Board of Immigration Appeals.

Carlos Hugo Betancur, a 52-year-old Colombian national, was detained by ICE on July 8, 2026, while pumping gas at a Marathon station in Doral on his way to work. An immigration officer approached him from behind, asked for identification, and detained him after he provided his Florida driver's license. Betancur had filed a political asylum application in January 2023 and possessed both an employment authorization card and a Florida driver's license. He spent 8 days at the Miramar Processing Center and 8 days at Krome Detention Center before being released on electronic monitoring. At Miramar, he described severe overcrowding, with 93 to 104 detainees held in a single room with insufficient space for everyone to sit or sleep simultaneously. His daughter, Maria Alejandra Betancur, disputed the detention, noting he had valid asylum and work authorization documents. He is now required to wear an ankle monitor while his immigration case proceeds before an immigration judge.

Ulises Peña López, a 30-year-old Mexican carpenter living in Sunnyvale, California, with severe pre-existing medical conditions including a mini-stroke, blood clot in his neck, heart condition, spinal disorder, and knee injuries, was arrested by ICE agents on February 21, 2025. According to a federal lawsuit filed by Disability Law United and Pangea Legal Services, ICE agents smashed his car window and physically assaulted him during the arrest, beating him in an alleyway until he lost consciousness and requiring CPR, with his wife Aby and young daughter witnessing the assault. He was hospitalized and allegedly shackled to his bed. His wife told Telemundo: "He can't feel half of his face, it's numb, as well as his right hand and arm, and right now he feels tingling in his right leg and foot." During eight months in ICE detention at facilities operated by GeoGroup and CoreCivic, he allegedly received inadequate medical care, was denied disability accommodations and necessary medication, and was mocked by staff. He was deported to Mexico in October 2025. His wife Aby and daughter, both U.S. citizens, have joined him in filing the lawsuit against DHS, ICE, GEO Group, and CoreCivic, raising claims of civil rights violations, Fifth Amendment due process violations, disability rights violations, and state law accountability claims under California's Accountability in Detention Act. His wife Aby was subsequently diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Three coworkers and the brother of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, who witnessed the fatal shooting, were detained by ICE and are being pressured to sign paperwork for self-deportation, according to Juan Proaño, CEO of the League of United Latin American Citizens. Proaño stated that the men "hold the key to what actually happened" and that ICE is "trying to get rid of them as witnesses." The tactic of removing potential crime witnesses from the country has disrupted criminal prosecutions across the country, according to a House Judiciary Committee report, and LULAC has called for the release of body-worn camera footage, surveillance, radio communications, and witness statements to independently verify ICE's account of the incident.

ICE arrested at least five immigrants at 26 Federal Plaza immigration courthouse in New York after a federal judge ordered a halt to the practice in May. The Justice Department is fighting to conceal details about the arrests, while an ICE supervisor defended the courthouse arrests as safer than street arrests due to community intervention efforts. Of the five arrested in late June, three were immediately released without explanation, while two remain detained awaiting habeas corpus petitions. One arrestee was from the Dominican Republic and another from Ecuador.

Erianny Rodriguez Balza, a Venezuelan woman with active Temporary Protected Status (TPS), was detained by ICE at Eloy Detention Center in Arizona for approximately 9 months. Court filings show that a federal government attorney acknowledged her legal status, yet she remained in detention despite this acknowledgment. She was eventually released after the wrongful detention.

Resham Singh, an Indian citizen who entered the U.S. on July 15, 2023, was detained on July 3, 2026, when he appeared at a local ICE office for a routine check-in appointment. Singh had been released on his own recognizance in an Alternatives to Detention program and had a pending asylum application with valid employment authorization. The court found his detention violated due process and ordered his immediate release, prohibiting future detention without seven days' notice and a bond hearing before a neutral arbiter.

Yeni Mota Aparicio is an immigration detainee held at California City Detention Center who filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus challenging her detention. Respondents argued she was subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(A) due to a 2014 petty theft conviction under California Penal Code § 484(a), claiming this made her inadmissible as having committed a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). However, the court found that Aparicio qualifies for the petty offense exception because she has only one CIMT conviction, the petty theft offense carries a maximum penalty of less than one year (6 months), and she was sentenced to 180 days or less. The court rejected respondents' argument that a separate simple battery conviction disqualified her from the exception, noting that simple battery is not categorically a CIMT. The court granted the petition for writ of habeas corpus and ordered respondents to provide Aparicio with a bond hearing before a neutral arbiter pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) within seven days, or release her if they fail to do so.

Seyo Cecunjanin, a West Hartford restaurant and laundry business owner from Montenegro, was arrested by ICE on June 20, 2026, in a Dunkin' Donuts parking lot surrounded by five unmarked vehicles while with two of his sons. He was detained at Wyatt Detention Center in Central Falls, Rhode Island for approximately 12 days. Cecunjanin entered the U.S. in 1997 using a fraudulent passport and had an outstanding removal order, but had been permitted to reenter in 2024 and maintained valid work authorization at the time of his arrest. He owns two restaurants and a laundry business employing 15 people and has a pending permanent resident application filed in September 2023. U.S. Rep. John Larson and U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, along with other members of Connecticut's congressional delegation, held a press conference and sent letters to ICE demanding his release, citing his valid work authorization and pending immigration case. Cecunjanin was released on June 26, 2026 (or July 2, 2026 according to another account).

During a surge in ICE enforcement in late June 2026, three men were arrested at federal courthouses in Lower Manhattan in apparent violation of a federal judge's order issued the previous week restricting courthouse arrests. An Ecuadorian man was arrested at an immigration court inside 26 Federal Plaza, a Guatemalan man at 290 Broadway, and a man from the Dominican Republic was also arrested at 290 Broadway. The arrests occurred during a broader ICE enforcement operation in which the agency detained over 10,000 people in five days after being instructed to make 2,000 arrests per day. Legal advocates with Make the Road New York filed challenges claiming the arrests violated due process rights and court orders prohibiting immigration enforcement in courthouses.

Two federal judges in Iowa held ICE Supervisory Detention and Deportation Officer Quintin Erdman in civil contempt for knowingly and willfully transferring detainee Pardeep Saini from Iowa to Nebraska in direct violation of a court order blocking such transfers. In a separate case, detainee Osmar Jose Arraiz Montilla was transferred between federal judicial districts while his case was pending. The judges sharply criticized ICE officials for a pattern of repeatedly violating court orders in immigration cases, with one judge warning that noncitizens are not 'bargaining chips' to be moved based on litigation strategy.

S, a Nigerian Christian, came to the United States in 2001 and applied for asylum based on her fear of religious persecution. A U.S. immigration judge found she would be persecuted if returned to Nigeria and granted her withholding of removal. She is the primary breadwinner for her four U.S. citizen children and her husband, who is disabled. At a routine ICE check-in in Los Angeles in July 2026, she was arrested, detained, and summarily deported to Ghana, separating her from her family and the country she called home for 25 years. Within 24 hours of her arrival, Ghanaian authorities refouled her to Nigeria, where she fears the persecution she fled.

Joel Anderson Sandoval Espinoza, a citizen of Peru, entered the United States on June 9, 2023, and has lived and worked in the country since then, employed in the A/C mechanics and warehouse industry while paying taxes and contributing to his community. He has two toddlers who are United States citizens. After presenting himself at a port of entry and expressing fear of returning to Peru, he passed a credible fear interview and was paroled into the country to pursue asylum, with his asylum application still pending in ongoing removal proceedings. On July 1, 2026, DHS detained him after he left his local DMV office, and he argued his parole and liberty had been unlawfully revoked without notice or justification. He was held at the Denver Contract Detention Facility and filed a habeas petition seeking immediate release or, alternatively, a bond hearing under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). The court found he was improperly subject to mandatory detention under § 1225(b)(2), citing prior rulings and a Tenth Circuit decision limiting that provision's application to noncitizens detained at the border. The court granted the habeas petition, ordered his immediate release without conditions such as GPS monitoring, enjoined his re-arrest absent a clear-and-convincing-evidence bond hearing, and denied his TRO/preliminary injunction motion as moot.

Juana Antonia Guzman-Gomez, a Honduran citizen, entered the United States without inspection near Presidio, Texas on May 6, 2019, and was encountered by U.S. Border Patrol. She was released from custody at that time with no Notice to Appear. She was subsequently placed in removal proceedings and issued an Order of Release on Recognizance in 2019. As of July 2026, she is detained at Richwood Correctional Center in Louisiana. The court denied her motion for a temporary restraining order to prevent her transfer or deportation, finding that such relief would circumvent the habeas corpus process and that she failed to meet the legal requirements for emergency injunctive relief.

Martha Alicia Hernandez Arroyo, a 52-year-old asylum seeker from Mexico, was detained on July 1, 2026, at an ICE check-in in San Francisco after ICE revoked her Order of Supervision without a hearing. She had been released under supervision after her 1999 removal order was reinstated on March 23, 2026, following a USCIS adjustment of status interview. The court granted her preliminary injunction, prohibiting re-detention without notice and a pre-deprivation hearing before a neutral decisionmaker, finding she had a constitutionally protected liberty interest based on the government's affirmative decision to release her.

Rigoberto Santillan-Quiroz, a long-term U.S. resident married to a legal permanent resident and stepfather to a U.S. citizen, was detained by ICE following a traffic stop in late 2025. He was held for eight months without a bond hearing under a Trump administration policy that categorically denied bond hearings to noncitizens who entered without authorization. The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals unanimously ruled the detention policy unlawful, finding it violated due process rights by denying individualized review. The court ordered Santillan-Quiroz's release and reinstatement of bond hearing eligibility, reversing a district court decision and reaffirming that noncitizens have had bond hearing rights for nearly 30 years.

A man from the Dominican Republic was arrested by ICE agents at an immigration court at 290 Broadway in Lower Manhattan on Thursday, June 26, 2026. The man had fled persecution in his home country, entered the U.S., and was released from detention while his immigration case proceeded. He appeared at court as legally required for his scheduled hearing. ICE cited a conviction for trespassing as justification, but advocates with Make the Road New York argue the arrest violates a federal court order issued May 18, 2026, that barred ICE from making arrests at Manhattan immigration courts except in narrow circumstances. The man has since been transferred to ICE's Delaney Hall detention facility in Newark, New Jersey.

Pedro Antonio Ardila Cortes filed a second habeas corpus petition after being re-arrested by ICE on June 30, 2026, during a scheduled supervision check-in at the ICE ISAP office. He states he was not arrested on any criminal charge and did not violate any condition of his supervision. This follows an earlier habeas petition in which the same court ordered his release on May 21, 2026, and enjoined the government from detaining him under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A). Despite that injunction, he was taken back into custody about six weeks later and is now held at the West Tennessee Detention Facility. He is challenging his renewed detention without a bond hearing. The court ordered Respondent to either immediately release him or explain within three business days how his circumstances have changed since the prior order, and barred his transfer out of the facility while the case is pending.

Bernard Kabore, a Burkina Faso citizen who fled violence and religious persecution and was lawfully admitted on a B-2 visa in November 2021, filed an asylum application within one year of arrival and maintained compliance with all USCIS requirements. ICE arrested him at his Portland home on June 30, 2026, and transported him to the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island. The court issued a temporary restraining order enjoining ICE from removing Kabore from the District of Rhode Island pending resolution of his habeas corpus petition, with exceptions only for medical emergencies or bond hearings before an Immigration Judge.

Alberto Jose Mendoza, 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.

Luis Angel Velasquez-Montes, 27, was identified during a traffic stop in Chatham County between January and April 2026 and placed in ICE custody. He pleaded guilty to illegal re-entry after previous deportation and was sentenced to time served followed by immediate deportation. Miguel Aparicio-Ortiz, 40, was identified during a traffic stop in Chatham County between January and April 2026 and placed in ICE custody. He pleaded guilty to illegal re-entry after previous deportation and was sentenced to time served followed by immediate deportation.