Human Impact Project

Ribvar Karimi, an Iranian national, has been in ICE custody for over 50 days in Alabama. He missed the birth of his child while detained.

Mamadou Mouctar Diallo, a 20-year-old asylum seeker from Guinea and student at Brooklyn Frontiers High School, was detained by ICE following a routine court appearance. Elected officials, immigrant advocates, and teachers gathered outside the Tweed Courthouse in Lower Manhattan. Diallo is currently being held in a detention facility in Pennsylvania.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detained Juan Jose Martinez Cortes, a Mexican national, outside Linda Vista Elementary School in San Diego on Thursday while he was waiting to pick up his child, minutes before school dismissal. School district officials expressed frustration over the arrest occurring near school grounds. This was the second ICE arrest outside an elementary school in the San Diego area within two weeks.

Igor Babkin, a Russian asylum seeker and artist, was arrested by ICE during a routine check-in appointment on February 3rd in San Antonio despite having entered the U.S. legally through a parole program for asylum purposes. Babkin had fled Russia due to political persecution and had previously passed his initial asylum screening. He remains detained at a privately operated ICE facility in Pearsall.

Michel Tshimankinda, a local pastor and asylum seeker who arrived in the U.S. around 2016, was detained by ICE agents on August 14 while leaving his wife's workplace in Westbrook. ICE stated he had overstayed a temporary visa in 2016, though his family claims they applied for asylum before the visa expired and obtained legal identification and work permits. Tshimankinda, who founded a multicultural church in South Portland and works in health care, is being held in New Hampshire pending an immigration court bond hearing.

Mamadou Mouctar Diallo, a 20-year-old asylum-seeker from Guinea and Brooklyn Frontiers High School student, was detained by ICE on August 4, 2025, following a routine immigration court hearing at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan. Diallo arrived in the United States in January 2024 seeking asylum after crossing the southern border and was pursuing Special Immigrant Juvenile status through proper legal channels. He was transferred to Pike County Correctional Facility in Pennsylvania and held pending removal proceedings. On August 14, elected officials and advocates gathered at Tweed Courthouse demanding his release from custody.

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.

Daryn Herzberg was tackled by a federal agent while protesting outside an ICE facility in South Portland on August 13, 2025. Video shows the agent slamming into Herzberg from behind without apparent provocation, resulting in injuries including a concussion. Herzberg filed a tort claim against DHS seeking $150,000 in damages, alleging violations of his First and Fourth Amendment rights.

ICE agents detained six people at a home on Hillside Street near 79th Avenue in East Oakland on Wednesday morning, including a minor. An immigration attorney stated that no warrants were issued for anyone's arrests and that the minor was detained unlawfully. The minor was initially kept in a hotel but was later brought back to an ICE processing center.

Federal Protective Service officers arrested more than a dozen protesters outside the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles during Occupy ICE demonstrations that began in early July. The protesters maintained an encampment and stated they were being targeted for exercising First Amendment rights, while federal officials cited charges including assaulting officers and vandalism. The ACLU filed a lawsuit alleging excessive force and violations of protesters' constitutional rights during the demonstrations. The arrests occurred during the ongoing demonstrations.

A U.S. Marine Corps veteran named Daryn Herzberg alleges he was battered and assaulted by Department of Homeland Security personnel outside an ICE facility in South Portland on two separate occasions in August 2025. According to video evidence and his attorney's account, federal employees tackled him to the ground, with one incident involving an officer grabbing him by the hair and slamming his face into the ground multiple times. Herzberg's legal team plans to sue the federal government, citing injuries including a concussion, abrasions, and bruising.

A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking ICE from holding immigrants at a Manhattan facility (26 Federal Plaza) unless conditions are improved, including providing sleeping mats, hygiene products, and legal access. The facility had been holding detainees on floors without beds, limiting meals to two per day, and denying access to basic necessities and legal representation.

A 21-year-old man with physical and developmental disabilities, who is nearly deaf and has limited English proficiency, was arrested by ICE on August 12 during a raid in Oakland and is now detained at the Northwest ICE Detention Center in Tacoma. Advocates and attorneys report he cannot understand his legal proceedings and is isolated from those who can communicate with him. ICE is detaining an individual with disabilities at a detention center.

Antonia Aguilar Maldonado, a 25-year-old asylum seeker from El Salvador, has been detained by ICE since July 17 while nursing her 22-month-old child. An immigration judge set a $10,000 bond, but the Department of Homeland Security appealed the decision, maintaining her detention. Her attorney filed a request for federal court intervention to release her on bond, noting that the Department of Homeland Security has maintained detention of nursing mothers.

A 15-year-old disabled U.S. citizen was detained by ICE and Border Patrol agents outside Arleta High School on August 11, 2025, in what federal authorities claim was a case of mistaken identity. The family alleges the detention amounted to unconstitutional racial profiling and has filed a $1 million damage claim against the Trump administration. Federal agents drew weapons on the boy and handcuffed him before his mother convinced them they had the wrong person.

Federal immigration enforcement officers arrested two men inside the Stamford courthouse on Monday, August 11, 2025, at approximately 11:15 a.m. Officers wearing military-style vests forcibly entered a bathroom where the men were located, breaking a door panel in the process. Witnesses reported the possible use of pepper spray during the encounter. The men were taken into custody and removed from the building within five to seven minutes. The arrest followed the Trump administration's reversal of a federal policy that had previously prohibited immigration enforcement actions inside courthouses.

A federal judge is considering stepping in to address conditions at ICE's detention facility on the 10th floor of 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan. Detainees have filed sworn affidavits describing overcrowding, unsanitary conditions, limited food and water access, and lack of hygiene products. Immigration rights groups and the ACLU are seeking a temporary restraining order to force ICE to meet its own detention standards.

Florida officials are refusing to confirm whether COVID-19 or other infectious diseases are spreading at Alligator Alcatraz, a new immigration detention center. A Venezuelan detainee recently collapsed with respiratory symptoms and was hospitalized, while relatives of other detainees report widespread illness at the facility. A former corrections officer also reported contracting COVID-19 shortly after starting work at the center.

A man named Orlin was taken into ICE custody for the second time after his family's dog discovered human remains at a home in Center Point, Alabama. His wife, Paulina Mejia, is now caring for their young daughter alone while managing their remodeling business. The couple had been cooperating with law enforcement in the investigation when ICE detained Orlin and transferred him to a detention facility in Louisiana.

Laura, a 32-year-old undocumented immigrant from Colombia, was diagnosed with terminal gastric cancer after her husband Luis was detained by ICE in June 2025. Fearing separation from her 13-year-old son and facing a final deportation order after her asylum appeal was denied, Laura decided to return to Colombia with her son rather than risk detention while seeking medical treatment.

Sarah Shaw, a New Zealand national working for Washington State Department of Children, Youth, and Families, and her 6-year-old son Isaac were detained by ICE at the U.S.-Canada border after attempting to re-enter the United States. Shaw had crossed into Canada to drop off her two older children but lacked proper advance parole documentation for re-entry, though her son had valid travel documents. Both are being held at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas.

A 15-year-old Manhattan high school student, Roger Iza, was arrested by ICE at a check-in appointment on August 9, 2025, along with his father. The pair were transported to private hotels in Louisiana and Texas where they were held incommunicado without access to phones or the internet, prevented from contacting lawyers or the outside world. They were deported to Ecuador on August 14, 2025, after just five days of detention in hotels rather than standard ICE detention facilities.

Immigration agents arrested Kyungjin Yu, a South Korean immigrant, outside Camarena Elementary School in Chula Vista on Wednesday morning for overstaying her visa, which expired in 2017. Yu's children were in the car at the time of the arrest, though her ex-husband was called to take custody of them. She is being held at Otay Mesa Detention Center.

ICE officers tackled and detained two protesters outside San Francisco's ICE field office on August 8, 2025. After a standoff lasting nearly a day, ICE agents allegedly fired pepperballs under a garage door and then emerged to forcibly detain the two protesters, bringing them into federal custody. Both protesters were released by 7 p.m. that evening.

Monsy Hernández, a DACA recipient who arrived in South Carolina as a child, self-deported at age 19 in 2017 after her mother was detained by ICE. Now living in Germany, she founded Onward, an organization supporting undocumented immigrants considering voluntary departure. The organization's membership increased during Trump administration deportation efforts.

Sabrina Medina, a 28-year-old pregnant U.S. citizen, was arrested by ICE agents on August 7, 2025, while leaving a pregnancy clinic. Medina claims agents are using her as bait to locate her undocumented husband and that she was arrested for an outstanding warrant from 12 years ago for shoplifting. She says agents have tracked her down four times since a June 12 raid on her home and that she experienced abdominal pain during the arrest.

ICE detained 8 Chinese individuals in an early morning raid in Monterey Park, California. The raid occurred near a high school and was recorded. The recording included a small child speaking to law enforcement.

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.

Jaime Alanís Garcia, a 56-year-old farmworker at Glass House Farms, died from blunt-force head and neck injuries sustained during a July 10 ICE immigration raid. His wife and daughter filed wrongful death claims against ICE alleging agents used excessive force including rubber bullets, tear gas, and stun guns, causing Alanís to fall 30 feet from a cannabis greenhouse roof. The family is seeking $47 million in damages per claim and answers about what transpired during the operation that resulted in 361 arrests.

US Border Patrol agents conducted a raid outside a Home Depot in Los Angeles's Westlake neighborhood using an unmarked Penske rental truck, with masked officers jumping out and arresting 16 people. The operation, called 'Operation Trojan Horse,' occurred despite a federal court order prohibiting indiscriminate raids in the region due to evidence of racial profiling and targeting based on appearance, language, and location.

A former corrections officer at a detention facility in Florida described conditions including hundreds of detainees held in cages with no sunlight, backed-up toilets, and minimal shower access. The officer, who worked at the facility for about a week in July 2025, stated that detainees had no clocks, limited access to showers, and endured water leaks and mosquito infestations. She was subsequently fired after catching COVID and claims she was never paid for her work.

A Trump-appointed federal judge ordered Florida officials to produce legal agreements justifying their authority to detain approximately 1,000 migrants at the detention camp in the Everglades by Thursday. Civil rights groups allege detainees are being held without formal charges, denied access to legal counsel, and stripped of bond hearings, with some held beyond the legal 14-day limit. The state and federal governments lack clarity on jurisdiction and legal custody over the facility.

Luis Manuel Rivas Velásquez collapsed at Florida's "Alligator Alcatraz" detention center and was hospitalized. Detainees reported inadequate medical response and chaos at the facility. He is now being held in El Paso Enhanced Hardened Facility with reportedly deteriorating health conditions.

Sheikh Fouad Saeed Abdulkadir, a 46-year-old green card holder and Imam from Eritrea, died at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center on December 14, 2025, after spending 215 days in ICE custody. The Council on American Islamic Relations stated his death was related to detention system issues regarding medical care, transparency, and conditions.

Two individuals were detained by ICE officers in front of Southwest Elementary School in the Roosevelt School District on August 5, 2025, the second day of the school year. One agent was observed escorting a student to the school's entry gate. Some parents subsequently kept children home or considered doing so.

Paola Clouatre, a Mexican-born woman and wife of a Marine Corps veteran, was detained by ICE on May 27, 2025, while breastfeeding her three-month-old baby during an adjustment of status interview. She spent two months in ICE's detention center in Monroe, Louisiana before being released after her husband and Senator John Kennedy's office advocated for her case. An immigration judge granted her motion to reopen her case and she was released while her legal process continues.

Recently obtained 911 calls from Alligator Alcatraz, an undocumented migrant detention facility in the Florida Everglades, include approximately 70 calls. These calls included requests for emergency medical services for medical incidents with injuries and health concerns, with approximately 30 being accidental calls from staff. The facility has faced lawsuits over conditions. Reports indicate detainees staged a hunger strike to protest conditions, which DHS denied.

Federal immigration authorities attempted to quickly deport Mirta Amarilis Co Tupul, a 38-year-old Guatemalan woman who has lived in the U.S. for nearly 30 years, through expedited removal proceedings that bypass immigration court hearings. A federal court granted an emergency request to temporarily pause her deportation while the case proceeds. Her lawyers argue the Trump administration is stretching immigration law to fast-track deportations.

Catalina "Xochitl" Santiago, a 28-year-old DACA recipient and immigrant rights activist, was detained by ICE on August 3 at El Paso airport before boarding a domestic flight. Despite having valid DACA status that should protect her from deportation, Santiago was subjected to deportation proceedings. The Trump administration has stated DACA recipients may be subject to arrest and deportation, though Santiago's attorneys argue her detention is wrongful and have filed a motion to terminate proceedings.

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.

Pablo Sequen filed a habeas corpus petition challenging unlawful detention by immigration authorities. The case involves a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction proceedings. A judge granted a preliminary injunction on September 16, 2025, halting the petitioner's deportation.

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.

Detainees at a South Florida immigration detention center nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz" have been on a hunger strike for ten days, protesting living conditions. One detainee, Pedro Hernández, was hospitalized during the strike but continues to refuse food, citing conditions and treatment. Civil rights groups have filed lawsuits stating detainees lack access to legal counsel, food, hygiene, and medical care.

Yury Saaryan, a Russian national who overstayed his tourist visa, went to an ICE office in August 2025 seeking help returning to Russia but was detained instead. An immigration judge granted him voluntary departure in November 2025, but ICE has not arranged his removal despite his repeated requests and three hunger strikes. ICE cites delays in obtaining travel documents from the Russian government, while Saaryan and his attorney say the Russian Embassy could issue documents within two days if he were permitted to visit in person.

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 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, filed a habeas corpus petition seeking immediate release from ICE detention where she has been held since March 26, 2025. Bowman, who claims to be a U.S. citizen based on her father's citizenship and Navy service at the time of her birth in the Philippines, was detained during a routine check-in at the ICE Atlanta Field Office. This is her second detention by ICE; she was previously detained from 2017 to 2020 at Irwin County Detention Center, where she whistleblew about non-consensual gynecological procedures performed by a doctor on immigrant women.

The NYCLU, ACLU, and other legal organizations filed a federal lawsuit challenging ICE's policy of arresting immigrants who attend mandatory immigration court hearings. The lawsuit claims the Trump administration's practice violates the Administrative Procedure Act and due process rights, as people are being arrested when complying with legal obligations to appear in court and then fast-tracked for deportation.

Zhiyu Yang, a Chinese national, was scheduled for detention at an ICE appointment on July 31, 2025 in San Francisco. The federal court granted a temporary restraining order to prevent his arrest and detention, then converted it to a preliminary injunction. The court ruled that Yang cannot be detained without a pre-detention hearing before a neutral decisionmaker, citing Fifth Amendment due process protections.

ICE agents arrested Carmen Aracely Pablo Sequen as she was leaving the San Francisco immigration court on July 31, 2025 and detained her at ICE's San Francisco field office. The arrest was pursuant to ICE and EOIR policies permitting the arrest of non-citizens at immigration courthouses. The court granted preliminary injunctive relief ordering her release and prohibiting re-detention without due process protections.

The Washington Post interviewed 16 former detainees of El Salvador's Terrorism Confinement Center (CECOT) to document conditions inside the megaprison where the U.S. has deported migrants. Detainees reported beatings, isolation, sexual assault, and other forms of mistreatment within the facility.