Human Impact Project

Rodrigo Almendarez, a U.S. citizen born in Canoga Park, was detained by ICE agents outside his workplace in Simi Valley without being identified or told why. He was released after showing his ID and a coworker's intervention. He plans to file a lawsuit over the incident.

An ICE officer fired at a U.S. citizen during an enforcement incident. Video footage shows the officer firing while the citizen stated he had children in his car.

Muhammad Zahid Chaudhry, a disabled U.S. Army veteran from Pakistan who has lived in the United States since 2000, was detained by ICE on August 21, 2025, when he arrived for a citizenship interview in Tukwila, Washington. Chaudhry served in the Washington Army National Guard from 2001 to 2005 and was honorably discharged due to a back injury sustained during training; the injury left him using a wheelchair and experiencing severe pain. He has been living in Lacey with his wife Melissa and their two children, and has dedicated his post-military life to activism, serving on former Governor Jay Inslee's Committee on Disability Issues and Employment and as president of Veterans for Peace Olympia. Federal officials say Chaudhry failed to initially disclose fraud convictions from Australia in 1996 related to using documents that were not his to open a bank account and obtain benefits; Chaudhry's wife states he was coerced into pleading guilty and was told there would be no criminal record, and that the convictions carried a lenient sentence. An immigration judge denied his bond on August 29, 2025, and his family and advocates have alleged he experienced serious medical issues due to lack of treatment while detained at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma. On December 22, 2025, U.S. District Chief Judge David G. Estudillo ruled Chaudhry's detention unlawful and ordered his immediate release, finding that immigration officials failed to follow required procedures by not notifying him prior to his arrest; the judge ruled he may not be re-detained without written notice and an opportunity to respond, while his removal case continues in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Charlotte, a U.S. citizen from California, says her husband, who is from Afghanistan and arrived in the U.S. in 2016 on a valid student visa, has been detained at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Pennsylvania for over a year and a half. In early 2025, while visiting family in Maryland, he was pulled over by a sheriff in West Virginia and arrested without a stated reason, then transferred to ICE detention. He had a REAL ID driver's license and a work permit valid until 2029, and he and Charlotte have a young son, JJ, who was diagnosed with ADHD and autism and was very close to his father. Charlotte sold her belongings and moved to Maryland to be closer to him, and says ICE has not allowed him to sign voluntary departure paperwork to self-deport.

A U.S. citizen born in Yakima, Washington, was pulled over and temporarily detained by ICE agents on the morning of August 17 while driving to work near the Sundome area. Agents surrounded his vehicle, asked for identification without explaining the stop, and told him there was a warrant for his arrest for "being here illegally." He was handcuffed and placed in a squad car until agents verified his citizenship, after which he was released. He said agents refused to provide their badge numbers or names before leaving, and he photographed their vehicles and license plates.

Antonia Aguilar Maldonado, a mother of two U.S. citizen children, was released from ICE custody on August 13 following a federal judge's order. She had been detained on July 17 while on her way to work despite having no criminal record and an active asylum application. Aguilar Maldonado came to the U.S. in 2016 as a 17-year-old unaccompanied minor without legal status.

Armelle Bondonga Bradshaw, who came to the United States from the Democratic Republic of Congo at age 9, was detained by ICE during her final green card interview on Aug. 12. She had married U.S. citizen Terrance Bradshaw, whom she met online in 2022, after her family's asylum case was denied, and her marriage-based petition had been approved by USCIS. The couple had held a traditional Congolese engagement ceremony blessed by both families in May 2025 and attended premarital counseling through their church. Officers separated her from her husband and 19-month-old son in the interview lobby, placed her in handcuffs, and she has no criminal history, leaving Terrance to care for their child while Armelle remains detained in an Indiana jail.

A 15-year-old disabled U.S. citizen was detained by ICE and Border Patrol agents outside Arleta High School on August 11, 2025, and his family formally filed a $1 million claim against the Trump administration this week, alleging unconstitutional racial profiling and a Fourth Amendment violation. At a press conference outside LAUSD headquarters, the boy's mother, Andreina Mejia, described masked agents drawing guns and handcuffing her son without questioning him, despite being told he was a citizen with developmental disabilities. The Trump administration maintains it was a case of mistaken identity, saying agents were seeking someone who resembled the boy. Mejia, a San Fernando Valley resident for more than 20 years, said she intervened to protect her son during the encounter.

Geovani Maradiaga Ochoa, a Honduran immigrant who lived in the Bronx for 20 years with a U.S. citizen wife and daughter, was arrested at an ICE check-in and detained at 26 Federal Plaza for six days without access to shower or toothbrush. He stated he felt mistreated during detention. His sworn affidavit is part of a lawsuit by Make the Road New York, the NYCLU, and ACLU seeking to improve conditions at the facility.

Sabrina Medina, a 28-year-old pregnant U.S. citizen and mother of four, has been detained and arrested multiple times by ICE agents searching for her undocumented husband Jorge. On June 12, 2025, ICE agents conducted a heavily armed raid on her Huntington Park home in the presence of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, arriving in about a half-dozen tactical vehicles. The agents showed Medina a warrant naming her husband but with an incorrect first name; her husband was not at home. On August 7, 2025, Medina was arrested by ICE agents while leaving a pregnancy clinic. She claims agents have tracked her down four times since the June raid and that she was arrested based on an outstanding warrant from 12 years ago for shoplifting. During the August arrest, Medina experienced abdominal pain. She expressed fear about her family's financial future and stated she and her children would likely follow her husband to Mexico if he is deported.

George and Esmeralda Doilez, U.S. citizens from Brawley, were stopped by Border Patrol agents in an unmarked vehicle while exploring the Jacumba area on their way to a dental appointment. The stop was conducted based on U-turns and a reported smuggling event. Agents found legally purchased cannabis. After approximately 30 minutes, they were released with a warning.

Orlais Lores Mayeta, a Cuban national, was detained by federal officers near his home in Stockbridge, Georgia on August 2, and is being held at the Irwin County Detention Center in Ocilla, Georgia. His wife, Kayla Lores Mayeta, a U.S. citizen who is five months pregnant, says the detention stems from a paperwork error in which their attorney submitted his Cuban Adjustment Act application to USCIS instead of the immigration court, despite his open immigration case. An immigration judge denied him bail, and his final hearing is set for September 30. Kayla says the detention has left her covering household, pregnancy, and legal expenses alone, and the family has launched a fundraising campaign for support.

A federal judge dismissed charges against Jonathon Redondo-Rosales, a 36-year-old TikTok creator and U.S. citizen arrested at an August 2 protest against immigration enforcement, after finding the government acted in bad faith. Redondo-Rosales had spent six months in jail awaiting trial for allegedly assaulting a Federal Protective Service officer with a cloth hat. The judge noted discrepancies in the officer's statements, that video evidence contradicted the assault claim, and that prosecutors sought dismissal to avoid disclosing problematic officer records rather than address legitimate legal issues.

A visibly pregnant U.S. citizen and her undocumented mother were arrested by federal agents outside a health clinic in Los Angeles.

A man in his mid-30s who came to Huron as a teenager without legal status was detained by ICE outside his home in August 2025 and subsequently deported to Guatemala. His wife, a U.S. citizen, and their two children (ages 2 and 9) were left behind. The family had consulted multiple lawyers about obtaining legal status for him but found no feasible options under current law. The man now lives with his parents in Guatemala while his family struggles financially and emotionally in South Dakota.

Sharareh Moghadam, a legal green card holder from Iran working toward U.S. citizenship, was detained by ICE on August 1, 2025, after reporting to immigration offices as instructed. She had traveled to Iran to visit family members with serious health issues and was detained upon her return to California. She is currently held in a facility in Phoenix, Arizona, with a court date scheduled for September 12.

Daysi Munoz and her husband were arrested by Burleson, Texas police on suspicion of shoplifting while back-to-school shopping at a Walmart in August 2025, leading to their transfer into ICE custody and deportation to Honduras about 40 days later. Their two U.S. citizen daughters, 19-year-old Dulce Zepeda and 13-year-old Maria, were left on their own in Fort Worth, with Dulce cooking, driving her sister to school, working at McDonald's, and selling her mother's jewelry to cover bills. After nearly a year living alone, the emotional and financial strain became overwhelming, and Dulce sold their parents' truck to help Maria return to Honduras to reunite with their parents, while Dulce has remained in Texas.

Juan José Estrada Lopez, a 42-year-old Nicaraguan national working on a Kona coffee farm, was detained by ICE agents in August 2025 during a green card interview and held at the Federal Detention Center in Honolulu for over five months without charges or bond. He had entered the U.S. in 2022 and was married to a U.S. citizen, Emily Estrada, who sought assistance from the ACLU of Hawaii after private attorneys quoted expensive fees. Lopez was released on January 27, 2026, after an immigration court granted him a green card and lawful permanent resident status, with the government waiving its right to appeal.

Alma Bella Bowman, a Georgia resident and immigrants' rights activist, was released from Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia, after ICE agreed to her release following eight months in custody. Bowman was detained on March 26, 2025, during a routine check-in at the ICE Atlanta Field Office and continues to press the U.S. government to recognize her as a citizen based on her father's Navy service. She previously exposed non-consensual gynecological procedures at Irwin County Detention Center from 2017 to 2020.

Pierre Reginald Boulos, a Haitian businessman and former presidential aspirant, was arrested by ICE on July 17 on immigration violation charges and remains detained at Krome North Service Processing Center. An immigration judge ruled he must remain in mandatory detention after determining he is subject to a detention regulation. Boulos, a lawful permanent resident born in New York who renounced his U.S. citizenship, is accused of failing to disclose involvement in a Haitian political party during his permanent residency application and collaborating with armed gangs.