Human Impact Project

Willian Giménez González, who is suing a group of off-duty police officers for harassment and abuse of day laborers at a Home Depot in Chicago, was detained and taken into ICE custody. His lawyer states the timing suggests the detention may be related to his lawsuit.

On October 3, 2025, 26th Ward Alderperson Jessie Fuentes was shoved and handcuffed by masked ICE agents at Humboldt Park Health Hospital while advocating for a detained constituent during Operation Midway Blitz. Fuentes filed a federal tort claims lawsuit in October 2025, and formally sued the federal government in May 2026 after the Department of Homeland Security failed to respond within the required timeframe. The lawsuit alleges battery, assault, false arrest, false imprisonment, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, claiming Fuentes suffered shoulder pain, anxiety, nightmares, and emotional distress from the encounter.

Leilani Payne was pepper-sprayed at point-blank range by a Federal Protection Service officer on October 2, 2025, while protesting outside the Portland ICE facility. She was 19 at the time of the incident. Video footage captured the officer spraying her in the face, and witnesses reported her screaming in agony and struggling to breathe. A nearby Portland Police officer was so concerned for her well-being that he called for an ambulance. Payne, now 20, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Federal Protection Service seeking at least $350,000 in damages. The DHS stated that protesters had been given lawful verbal commands to back away and refused to comply.

Hilda Ramirez Sanan, 50, a legal permanent resident, was violently arrested by ICE on September 26 while accompanying a family member to a court hearing in Chelsea with her 13-year-old son in the car. According to a federal complaint filed by Lawyers for Civil Rights, eight armed and masked officers surrounded her vehicle, smashed the car glass, and forcibly restrained her, kicking her and slamming her face on the ground while twisting her arms to handcuff her. Her son, who has autism, was also removed from the car and questioned by agents about his legal status while being held against a fence. When local police arrived and verified her valid green card, ICE released her. Ramirez Sanan and her children were taken to a hospital emergency room for medical evaluation. The complaint alleges violations of Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights and ICE protocol violations.

Cary López Alvarado, a U.S. citizen, was arrested by ICE while nine months pregnant after exiting immigration court in New York City alongside her husband, a Guatemalan immigrant. ICE detained her overnight but released her after discovering her citizenship status. She experienced sharp stomach pains immediately after release and gave birth days later. She has filed a claim against the federal government seeking $1 million, citing unlawful arrest and unconstitutional conduct. Her husband has since been deported, leaving her without income and uncertain about childcare arrangements.

Daryn Herzberg, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, alleges he was assaulted by Department of Homeland Security personnel outside an ICE facility in South Portland on August 13, 2025. According to video evidence and his attorney's account, federal agents tackled him to the ground, with one officer grabbing him by the hair and slamming his face into the ground multiple times. Herzberg sustained injuries including a concussion, abrasions, bruising, chest contusions, and breathing issues. On August 27, Herzberg filed a federal lawsuit against DHS alleging battery and unconstitutional use of force. Federal authorities also charged Herzberg with obstructing the facility and throwing objects; his attorney characterizes these charges as bogus and retaliatory.

ICE agents confronted Francisco Longoria and passengers in San Bernardino on August 16, 2025. Masked agents in an unmarked vehicle surrounded the car and fired at least three shots. According to the family, the agents did not identify themselves before smashing the driver's window and opening fire, with bullets striking near where Longoria's teenage son was seated. ICE claimed Longoria drove toward officers. The family and their attorneys dispute this account and are requesting a criminal investigation. Francisco Longoria was stopped by ICE and CBP agents without a warrant on August 16, 2026. When agents smashed his truck window and drew guns, Longoria drove away and agents fired three shots, hitting the vehicle. He was subsequently charged with weaponizing his vehicle against officers and detained for months before charges were dropped. Longoria's family has filed a lawsuit alleging the shooting violated use of force policy and a court order against racial profiling.

K.N., a minor U.S. citizen, was arrested along with his sisters while approaching a construction site raid. Federal agents drove K.N. to his mother's home and held him outside the fence while asking him if his mother was "illegal," then threatened to take him into federal custody while demanding his mother produce identification. According to MALDEF's Federal Tort Claims Act claim, agents used K.N. as "bait" in an attempt to lure his mother, a lawful permanent resident, into the street to investigate her immigration status. MALDEF seeks $2.5 million in damages for personal injury and emotional distress.

More than 230 Venezuelan men held in U.S. immigration custody were expelled to El Salvador in March 2024 by the Trump administration and detained for four months in a maximum security terrorism prison where they alleged torture. A lawsuit filed in federal court accuses aviation companies CSI Aviation and GlobalX of violating civil rights and deliberately transporting the men despite a federal judge's order to return the flights and knowledge they would likely be tortured. The suit claims the private contractors worked in concert with the U.S. government in flagrant violation of U.S. and international law.

Vanessa Valdez, a Ventura-based attorney and legal observer, was shot six times with rubber bullets and exposed to tear gas during a raid at Glass House Farms in July 2025, despite identifying herself as a legal observer. The raid, conducted by ICE and Border Patrol agents, resulted in more than 360 arrests at farm sites in Carpinteria and Camarillo, northwest of Los Angeles. Valdez reported severe pain, sleep disruption for three weeks, inability to see, and crawled on all fours to escape. She has filed a tort claim against the federal government seeking compensation for hospital visits, lost wages during recovery, anxiety medication, and mental health treatment.

Nancy Martinez, a 37-year-old factory worker and 15-year resident of New Haven, was arrested by ICE agents on June 9, 2025, while driving her two U.S. citizen children—13-year-old Monse and 8-year-old son—to school. Masked and armed agents in three unmarked vehicles boxed in her car, handcuffed her in front of her children, and did not present a judicial warrant or identify themselves as ICE. Martinez's grandmother came outside to help the children after her arrest. She was detained in multiple facilities across Rhode Island, Maine, New Hampshire, and Texas before being deported to Mexico approximately one month later. Martinez subsequently filed a federal civil lawsuit against ICE and the federal government alleging violations of her constitutional rights, including assault, recklessness, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and unlawful detention.

Johnny Noviello, a 49-year-old Canadian lawful permanent resident who had lived in Florida for nearly four decades, died on June 23, 2025, while in ICE custody at the Federal Detention Center Miami. Noviello was arrested by ICE on May 15, 2025, following drug trafficking and related criminal convictions, and was awaiting removal proceedings. During his approximately five-week detention, Noviello—who had epilepsy, hypertension, and mental health concerns—reported health issues and symptoms of illness but did not receive adequate medical monitoring or treatment. He was found unresponsive in the afternoon and pronounced dead after CPR and emergency response efforts failed. An autopsy determined the cause of death was acute kidney failure caused by calcium oxalate crystal deposits, which experts concluded was preventable with appropriate medical care. A complaint alleges that Bureau of Prisons health staff failed to properly evaluate, document, or create a treatment plan for Noviello despite observable symptoms. The FBI is investigating his death.

ICE agents surrounded a family's vehicle on Mother's Day, smashed the passenger window, and detained Daniel Flores-Martinez in front of his wife and three children as they drove to church. The agents used unmarked vehicles, some wore vests labeled "police" while others were unmarked, and did not provide a warrant or explain why Flores-Martinez was being arrested. The family filed a complaint seeking $1 million in damages, alleging violations of Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights and that the agents deliberately chose to arrest Flores-Martinez while he was with his family. ICE agents conducted a vehicle stop in Chelsea on Friday morning to detain Jose Ramírez-Perez, who was in the country illegally and facing felony charges. During the stop, agents forcefully detained multiple family members including Hilda Ramírez, a legal permanent resident and mother of a 13-year-old U.S. citizen with autism. Video footage shows agents pressing and dragging Ramírez to the ground, breaking car windows, and temporarily detaining her son, resulting in hospitalization for both mother and child.

Sen Miao Lin, a 67-year-old Chinese man, was detained at Delaney Hall ICE detention center where he repeatedly asked for but never received medication for his Type 2 diabetes and hypertension for nearly a month. At one point during his detention, he collapsed, lost consciousness, and was rushed to the emergency room. His attorney filed a federal lawsuit alleging this medical neglect in May 2025. His case is one of over 70 lawsuits filed by detainees at Delaney Hall alleging medical neglect and deficiencies at the facility.