Human Impact Project

Carlitos Ricardo Parias, a 44-year-old Mexican immigrant from Puebla living in South Los Angeles with two U.S.-citizen children, built a TikTok following of over 340,000 documenting ICE enforcement activity, earning a Los Angeles City Council certificate of recognition for his community reporting. On October 21, 2025, federal agents attempting to execute an immigration arrest warrant boxed in his car near Santee High School; agents say he rammed their vehicles, and video showed 11 shots fired before he was struck in the elbow, along with a deputy U.S. marshal hit by a ricochet bullet. Councilmember Curren Price called Parias 'a pillar of our community, a fearless citizen journalist,' and his attorney described him as a hardworking, pacifist father with no criminal record who was denied access to counsel while hospitalized. Parias was charged with assault on a federal officer and property damage, then detained at the Adelanto ICE facility on a detainer after release on bail; a federal judge later dismissed the indictment with prejudice, citing denial of counsel and prosecutors' failure to meet evidence deadlines, though the U.S. attorney's office said it disagreed and was reviewing an appeal. Months later, his attorney said Parias remained in pain from his injuries.

ICE conducted operations in Bluffton, South Carolina that resulted in the detention of over a dozen individuals. Witness footage showed nearly 20 men being escorted into a detention van. According to immigration attorney Amy Deverard, those arrested were not criminals but were detained on administrative warrants, with many caught as collateral while authorities pursued others. Families report uncertainty about their detained relatives' locations and immigration proceedings.

Federal immigration officials conducted Operation Smoky Mountains from May 24-30, 2026, in Sevier County and surrounding East Tennessee areas, resulting in 117 arrests. The operation was carried out by ICE in partnership with local law enforcement agencies, including the Sevierville Police Department and Sevier County Sheriff's Office, through the federal 287(g) program that authorizes local law enforcement to assist with immigration enforcement. Officials stated that some of those arrested had prior criminal charges including theft, domestic assault, DUI, and other offenses, with some facing potential federal charges including illegal reentry.

ICE officers conducted raids at Don Patron Mexican Grill locations across West Virginia on May 30, 2026, detaining multiple workers. The enforcement action affected at least three locations in Elkins, Weston, and Bridgeport, with a fourth location in Buckhannon also closing as a result. The Elkins location closed the day after the raid.

Authorities raided a seafood restaurant on Northwest 23rd Street in Oklahoma City, seizing methamphetamine, ketamine, ecstasy, and a firearm. Sixteen individuals were taken into ICE custody during the operation, which is part of a larger investigation into organized crime involving drug trafficking, money laundering, and potential human trafficking related to black market marijuana farms.

On May 29, 2026, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted a coordinated operation at Myrtle Park Government Center in Bluffton, South Carolina, detaining over 15 people who had failed to comply with deportation orders. The operation involved ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations division, the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office, and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, which participated under a 287(g) task force agreement. Detainees were loaded onto a bus for transport to facilities in Charleston or Georgia.

Florida Highway Patrol, in coordination with ICE, U.S. Border Patrol, and multiple state and local agencies, conducted a three-day enforcement operation called Operation 9 along South Florida highways. More than 100 officers from the participating agencies conducted traffic stops, with officers flagging individuals during routine stops for traffic violations and immigration violations, particularly when drivers lacked valid licenses. The operation resulted in 249 detentions, with those arrested processed at an FHP station and transferred to ICE custody, where they were offered voluntary return flights or the option to remain in custody pending immigration hearings.

On January 14, 2026, ICE agent Christian Castro shot Venezuelan immigrant Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in the leg through a duplex door during an enforcement operation in north Minneapolis. Castro claimed Sosa-Celis and others attacked him with a shovel and broom, but video evidence showed only a brief 12-second struggle and contradicted his account. Sosa-Celis and his roommate Alfredo Alejandro Aljorna were both lawfully present, and federal charges against them were dismissed in February after the Justice Department acknowledged ICE agents made false statements under oath. On May 18, Hennepin County prosecutors charged Castro with four counts of second-degree assault with a deadly weapon and one count of falsely reporting a crime. Castro was arrested on May 29 by Department of Homeland Security agents and Texas Rangers.

A Venezuelan maintenance worker at Grandview Resort in Lake Placid was arrested by ICE agents on May 28 when he arrived for work. He has lived in Lake Placid for over two years, holds valid work authorization through a five-year work permit tied to temporary protected status, has never missed an immigration check-in, and has no criminal history. He was one of 14 workers detained during the operation at the resort and was transported 12 hours to Batania Detention Center near Buffalo, where agents restrained detainees and he was held with only water for the journey. Unable to contact his family for three days, he was released on bail after approximately two weeks in detention and now wears an ankle monitor. His wife collapsed upon learning of his arrest. He is pursuing a pending political asylum case and reported experiencing daily fear and trauma, avoiding locations where he was detained.

On May 28, 2026, ICE agents from the Champlain sub-office detained 14 people in a raid at a parking lot on Mirror Lake Drive in Lake Placid. The detainees included approximately a dozen roofers working on a short-term roofing project for a local business and staying in employer-provided workforce housing, as well as a local man with several years of community ties, valid work authorization, and a pending asylum case. According to advocacy groups including North Country Immigrant Allies, all detainees possessed work authorization and were legally permitted to reside and work in the United States. All detainees were transported to a detention facility in Batavia, approximately 300 miles away. Local law enforcement was not aware of the operation.

ICE agents in unmarked gray and blue SUVs conducted a roundup operation in McMinnville, Tennessee on May 27, 2026, detaining multiple people. Initial reports indicated at least 6 people were taken into custody, with subsequent reports showing 11 people detained and one released. Video footage showed agents exiting unmarked vehicles, handcuffing individuals, and approaching workers outside a Lowe's store. Those taken into custody were transported to Putnam County Jail and held overnight before potential transfer to other facilities.

Leonardo Garcia Venegas, a U.S. citizen born in Florida, was detained by ICE agents three separate times within 12 months despite carrying valid identification. In May 2025, he was tackled and handcuffed during a construction site raid in Foley while filming his brother's arrest. In June 2025, he was detained at a home in Fairhope after agents rejected his REAL ID. On May 2, 2026, ICE agents followed him home, pulled him from his vehicle, and placed him in leg shackles despite his presentation of citizenship documentation. Venegas filed a federal lawsuit against the federal government alleging Fourth Amendment violations, assault, battery, false arrest, and warrantless, suspicionless detentions.

Idaho State Police transferred 30 immigrants from state prisons and county jails to ICE custody for deportation following completion of their criminal sentences as part of Operation No Return, a state program utilizing the 287(g) partnership between Idaho law enforcement and federal immigration authorities. Officials stated the individuals had been convicted of crimes including child sexual abuse, drug trafficking, assault, and DUI. The transfer brings the cumulative total of people moved through the operation to 130.

Diego Hernandez Garcia, a 24-year-old construction worker who had lived in the U.S. since age 13, was detained by ICE on December 11, 2025, during a raid at a Hardin Valley construction site in Knoxville. Hernandez Garcia had been granted protective status in 2022 and had an approved I-360 petition for lawful permanent status. His attorney claimed he had valid work authorization at the time of detention and that ICE revoked his deferred status only after taking him into custody. A federal judge denied his habeas corpus petition and lifted a stay on a 2016 removal order, ruling the government was not constitutionally obligated to provide due process before terminating his deferred action status. Hernandez Garcia was subsequently deported to El Salvador.

ICE conducted a workplace raid at a mushroom farm in Chester County, Pennsylvania, resulting in the arrest of approximately a dozen workers. The incident appeared to be the first major workplace raid in the region's mushroom industry since the 1990s and signaled an intensified enforcement effort targeting undocumented immigrants. The raid prompted heightened anxiety among immigrant workers in the area.

ICE conducted a targeted enforcement operation in the Green Drive area of Cleveland, Tennessee that resulted in the arrest of eight undocumented immigrants at a gas station on May 22, 2026. The operation targeted a specific individual with a history of DUI convictions and prior deportations; several people attempted to flee as agents approached. On May 26, ICE released the identities and backgrounds of those arrested, noting that some were apprehended as collateral arrests during the operation. Three of those arrested accepted Incentivized Voluntary Departure, while the remaining five remained in ICE custody pending removal proceedings.

On October 1, 2025, federal agents from Border Patrol, FBI, and ATF conducted a predawn military-style raid on a five-story apartment building at 7500 S. South Shore Drive in Chicago's South Shore neighborhood around 1 a.m. as part of "Operation Midway Blitz." Agents rappelled from helicopters, kicked down doors, and threw flash bang grenades, resulting in 37 arrests and the detention of dozens of people, including children placed in zip-ties and without clothing. Four of the detained children are U.S. citizens with undocumented parents, and U.S. citizens were also detained for hours during the operation. Residents reported missing belongings and property damage throughout the building. By May 2026, seventeen of those detained filed tort claims collectively seeking approximately $85 million in damages for their treatment during the raid.

Renee Nicole Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, mother of three, poet, and legal observer, was shot and killed by ICE agent Jonathan Ross on January 7, 2026, during an immigration enforcement operation on Portland Avenue near 34th Street in south Minneapolis. Good was monitoring the enforcement action and blocking the street with her car to alert neighbors of ICE's presence when unmarked vehicles arrived. As Good began to drive away from the officers, Ross fired three shots at eye level through the windshield and driver's side window. Federal officials claimed the agent fired in self-defense when Good's vehicle attempted to run over agents, but a New York Times analysis and Human Rights Watch found Good posed no imminent threat to life and the officer was not in the direct path of her car when he fired. An independent autopsy confirmed she was shot at least three times, with gunshot wounds to her head, arm, and breast. Her wife Becca said they were alerting neighbors of ICE's presence. The shooting sparked dozens of protests across the country, and her family filed a tort claim against the federal government seeking damages. The border czar announced that hundreds of federal agents would be pulled from Minnesota amid public outcry.

An ICE enforcement operation targeting the Dover family occurred in a New Jersey residential neighborhood. The Wind of the Spirit Immigrant Resource Center documented the incident and issued a statement condemning what they characterize as a violent enforcement action that separated families and created fear in immigrant communities.

ICE New Orleans conducted a week-long enforcement operation in Sevier County and surrounding areas in East Tennessee from May 24-31, 2026, resulting in 117 arrests. The operation targeted noncitizens, some of whom had prior criminal convictions. According to ICE, those arrested included individuals with convictions for assault, driving under the influence, and other offenses, though some may have faced immigration charges rather than criminal prosecution.

Rafie Ollah Shouhed, a 79-year-old U.S. citizen and owner of Valley Car Wash in Van Nuys, California, was physically assaulted by immigration agents during a September 9, 2025 raid on his business. When Shouhed questioned the operation and attempted to vouch for employees being arrested, masked agents forced him to the ground. Surveillance footage shows an agent striking him while three agents tackled him as he pleaded for an ambulance, stating he had recently undergone heart surgery and couldn't breathe. One agent pressed a knee on his neck while applying additional physical force. The incident resulted in broken ribs, an injured elbow, and post-concussive symptoms of a traumatic brain injury. Shouhed was taken to the Metropolitan Detention Center and held for 12 hours without medical attention before being released without charges. He filed a $50 million civil rights lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection, Border Patrol, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

A 14-year-old minor was handcuffed and detained during an ICE raid in Manassas despite not being targeted by the operation. Virginia State Delegate Michelle Maldonado criticized the detention, stating that the minor was not charged with a crime and calling the incident a reckless disregard for human decency and constitutional protections.

Marvin Len Morales was arrested by ICE during a raid in Manassas on Friday. According to reports, Morales has a criminal record and has been deported twice before. The raid was attended by Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

New Orleans is seeing a growing population of stray animals linked to immigration enforcement. A dog named Chia was left behind after ICE detained her owner and gave birth to 9 puppies at an auto shop in New Orleans East. The Louisiana SPCA reports that previously owned animals surrendered in 2025 were nearly double prior years. Residents are driving nightly to feed growing numbers of stray cats in affected neighborhoods.

On May 14, 2026, ICE allegedly arrested at least five people in Geneva, New York, including a U.S. citizen at a Byrne Dairy gas station and four men stopped while driving to work. One person was later released after providing proof of citizenship. Community protests and rallies organized by local advocacy groups, including the Finger Lakes Rapid Response Network and Geneva Women's Assembly, continued into late May with marches to the arrest locations.

Federal agents from Homeland Security Investigations executed coordinated search warrants on May 13-14, 2026, targeting VC Defensa, an immigrant rights organization in Ventura County, California. Over 100 agents raided the homes of multiple volunteers and the organization's Oxnard office, seizing electronic devices including phones, computers, and USB drives. During the operations, agents pointed guns at residents, handcuffed activist Leonardo Martinez and the 16-year-old son of volunteer Alexandria Quintanar, and broke down doors. No arrests were made and authorities did not publicly disclose the basis for the searches or specific criminal allegations. All detainees were released from federal custody, and VC Defensa and allied organizations stated they would contest the raids in court.

Maria Betania Uzcategui Castillo, a Venezuelan asylum-seeker with valid work authorization through 2030, and her two elementary school-aged children—Victor Uzcategui-Labrador Jr. (age 11) and Monserrat Uzcategui-Labrador (age 8)—were detained by ICE agents on April 27, 2026, at a school bus stop in Alamo Heights, Texas. The family, who had arrived at the U.S. border in 2021 seeking asylum and had complied with prior immigration requirements with a court date scheduled for 2027, were transported to the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas. The children, both students at Cambridge Elementary in Alamo Heights Independent School District, were reported as deeply traumatized by the detention. Community organizing efforts, including a rally and fundraising campaign that raised over $28,000 for legal fees, followed the arrest. U.S. District Judge Orlando Garcia ordered their release on May 13, 2026, and the family was released on May 14, pending immigration hearings.

Federal DHS agents conducted at least three immigration-related arrests in Waukegan on Wednesday morning. The first arrest occurred around 9:30 a.m. near Belvidere Road and Powell Avenue; the second around 11:15 a.m. at a Uline warehouse on Lakeside Drive where a man was detained and transported in an unmarked black SUV; and the third around 10:30 a.m. near Catrachos Restaurant on Green Bay Road. At least one detainee was transported to the ICE processing facility in Broadview.

U.S. Border Patrol agents arrested 52 people under Operation Checkmate in Arizona's Yuma Sector between May 11-15 for residing illegally in the United States. Thirty of those arrested were Indian nationals, with 36 total detainees driving commercial semi-trucks. Three of the Indian nationals lacked valid driver's licenses. All individuals arrested during the operation face deportation proceedings.

Three fruit vendors from Puebla, Mexico were detained by federal immigration agents on Monday morning, May 10, 2026, near Verde and Tremont streets in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles. The detention occurred around 8:35 a.m. as the men were preparing to load their produce carts, in close proximity to Santa Teresita School, a Catholic elementary school. Video footage from a home surveillance camera captured the operation involving agents in unmarked vehicles. The three men were taken into custody and are being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center. Three people working on a truck in Boyle Heights were detained by apparent federal ICE agents Monday morning near Verde and Tremont streets, steps away from Santa Teresita School, a Catholic elementary school. Video from home surveillance showed agents rushing out of vehicles to detain the men around 8:35 a.m.

The ACLU of Puerto Rico denounced ongoing ICE interventions in communities and streets, stating that masked agents are targeting immigrants and violating their rights while endangering public safety. The organization documented cases involving physical assaults, arbitrary interventions near minors, and due process violations. Of nine represented cases, eight resulted in stopping expedited transfers or obtaining court orders, though immigration judges denied bond in two cases despite no danger or flight risk.

Federal authorities dismantled a human smuggling ring on May 8, 2026, arresting five individuals: Mexican nationals Rigoberto Rangel-Mora, Jesus Marin-Esquivel, Alejandro Ambrocio-Espinosa, and Enrique Cervantes-Barrera, along with Guatemalan national Ingrid Bolanos-Gomez. The operation involved confining undocumented immigrants at a Phoenix-area stash house and transporting them across state lines. Federal agents had discovered 17 people confined to bedrooms at the residence on April 30, 2026, subjected to filthy living conditions, food deprivation, and restricted movement.

Cleon 'Uncle Lou' Williams, 62, a Jamaican-born owner of Uncle Lou's Entertainment Hall in Orlando's Mills 50 district, was detained by ICE on May 9-10, 2026, following his arrest during a raid by the Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco investigating alcohol licensing violations at his venue. ICE placed an immigration detainer on Williams due to an expired visa, and he was booked into Orange County Corrections Facility with no criminal charges filed. Williams has operated the prominent music venue since 2005 and is widely recognized in Orlando's music community for supporting emerging artists, offering free performance opportunities to hundreds of local indie bands over two decades. Community members including U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost and State Rep. Anna Eskamani expressed concern about his detention, with Frost visiting him in jail. Friends described Williams as 'a pure light and joy' and a pillar of the community, and fundraisers raised over $28,000 for his legal representation.

ICE agents conducted a 9-hour standoff at a residential property in Antioch, California, and arrested Miguel Antonio Blanco, who lived at one address. The agents were targeting Gerson Manuel Portillo-Escobar, wanted for human trafficking, who lived a few houses away at a different address. According to the family, agents were told multiple times they had the wrong person but proceeded with the arrest anyway.

Masked federal agents detained at least six workers outside the Hilltop Community Children's Center in Pittsburgh's Knoxville neighborhood on the morning of May 6, 2026. The operation occurred in a parking lot across the street from the daycare while parents were dropping off children at a nearby elementary school. Daycare staff used whistles and a toy drum to alert neighbors. Three of the detained workers, employed by a local roofing company, were subsequently released; several others remained in custody.

ICE agents raided OK Service, a gutter company in Mount Oliver, Pennsylvania, on the morning of May 6, 2026, detaining six workers at a job site. Surveillance video captured employees running as agents chased them near the work location. The business owner stated that the workers had documentation showing they were in the immigration process, with at least one holding a valid green card. At least three of the detained workers were released within hours of the detention. Immigration agents detained at least six or seven employees at OK Service LLC, a roofing and construction company in Pittsburgh's Knoxville neighborhood, in an apparent ICE raid on Tuesday. Video showed masked agents detaining workers in the parking lot across from Hilltop Community Children's Center, causing a chaotic scene. Three of the detained workers were subsequently released. ICE officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Federal Border Patrol and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents, assisted by Texas Department of Public Safety, conducted an operation at a residence on Smith Avenue in a central Laredo neighborhood. Over 20 undocumented people were removed from the home. The condition of those found inside remained unknown.

ICE Seattle took six people into custody who have serious criminal histories and are in the country without authorization, pending their removal. Those arrested include Miguel Salamanca-Alverez from Mexico with a felony conviction for five counts of assault; Angel Negrete-Villalobos with a felony conviction for first-degree assault and protective order violations; Alfredo Gallegos-Guillen with a history of assault arrests; Karla Daniela Gallegos-Holguin with a 2025 felony conviction for bringing methamphetamine into the country; and Bounlay Siackasorn from Laos with felony convictions for dealing meth, burglary, and theft.

Leonardo Garcia Venegas, a 26-year-old Florida-born U.S. citizen whose parents are from Mexico, was detained by ICE and local police three separate times between May 2025 and May 2026. In his first detention in May 2025, officers raided a coastal Alabama construction site where Garcia Venegas was working, forced him to the ground, and held him for over an hour despite him repeatedly stating he was a citizen and showing his ID. Weeks later, he was detained again at a home he was building when an officer refused to accept his Alabama REAL ID as proof of citizenship. On May 2, 2026, officers approached him while he was parking at home in Silverhill, Alabama, pulled him from his truck, shackled him, and held him for several minutes despite his attempts to show his Alabama STAR ID and offer to retrieve his American passport; officers stated he was stopped because his truck was registered to his undocumented brother. Videos of the first two incidents went viral, and Garcia Venegas appeared before Congress. In each instance, he was eventually released after proving his citizenship. Garcia Venegas filed a federal lawsuit challenging ICE's authority to raid private construction sites without warrants and detain workers without reasonable suspicion, claiming violations of Fourth Amendment rights. He told media outlets the repeated detentions have caused him stress and depression, and he now lives in constant fear, unable to go about his daily life freely.

ICE agents conducted an operation on Brevard Street in Asheville targeting a specific individual, but detained three men total. According to a witness, agents arrested two additional men solely for being present with the targeted individual at the time. The organization CIMA activated an alert regarding the incident.

Ingrid Bolanos-Gomez, 41, of Guatemala, and four co-conspirators were arrested and indicted for conspiracy to transport and harbor undocumented immigrants in a Phoenix-based smuggling operation. Federal agents discovered approximately 22 migrants held in cramped, unsanitary conditions at three stash houses and another 11 in a minivan near Cordes Lakes on April 28. The five defendants face federal conspiracy charges carrying a maximum sentence of up to 10 years in prison.

Jesus Marin-Esquivel, 52, of Mexico, was arrested and indicted for conspiracy to transport and harbor undocumented immigrants as part of a smuggling organization operating in Phoenix. He was identified as one of the drivers conducting cross-country trips with smuggled migrants.

Catalina Santiago-Santiago, a 28-year-old DACA recipient and immigrant rights activist, was detained by ICE in early August 2025 at El Paso International Airport despite holding valid DACA status. Her attorneys filed a motion to terminate her deportation proceedings based on her DACA protections. On April 24, 2026, the Board of Immigration Appeals ruled that immigration judges cannot terminate deportation proceedings based solely on DACA status without considering the government's reasons for opposing termination. The ruling requires judges to comply with a Biden-era rule and sends Santiago's case back for further review, potentially affecting other DACA recipients in similar proceedings. The Trump administration has stated that DACA recipients are not automatically protected from deportation, contradicting the program's original protections.

The Laramie County Sheriff's Office arrested 46 people for immigration violations during a three-day commercial vehicle enforcement operation called "Truck Around And Find Out: Operation Spring Break" conducted in partnership with federal authorities on April 25, 2026. The operation resulted in 85 total criminal arrests, with one undocumented truck driver found operating without a commercial driver's license and parked illegally. The sheriff's office, whose deputies were sworn in by ICE under 287(g) authority, stated the enforcement actions aim to improve road safety.

Ten crew members from Disney Cruise Line were arrested by ICE agents on April 23, 2026, as the Disney Magic ship was being unloaded at the B Street Cruise Terminal in San Diego. The arrests occurred in full view of disembarking passengers, including children. Two days later on April 25, ICE returned to the same terminal and arrested four additional crew members from Holland America's MV Zandaam.

An Instagram post shows a group of people being transported by ICE in buses at what appears to be a detention facility in El Reno, Oklahoma. According to the caption, multiple women were hospitalized due to heat strokes and poor conditions during transport, and the post characterizes them as mothers forcefully separated from their families.

ICE arrested eight people on April 22 at two Davenport restaurants—Izumi and Jiang's Hot Pot & BBQ—as part of an ongoing investigation into immigration violations. Local law enforcement was not contacted in advance of the operations.

Hector V. was detained during an ICE raid at the Allston Car Wash in November 2025 alongside eight coworkers. Though he had legal work authorization, he remained in custody due to an outstanding removal order from a 2007 hearing he missed because he is illiterate and was given incorrect information. After spending five months in the overcrowded South Texas ICE Processing Center under harsh conditions, he elected to self-deport at the end of January and was deported to El Salvador in mid-April, 11 weeks after making that choice. His attorney filed a motion to hold the government in contempt for failing to schedule a required bond hearing and a motion to reopen his case, both of which were denied.

Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics agents seized approximately 8,897 marijuana plants during a raid at a marijuana grow operation in Wynnewood. Three people were detained, with one taken into ICE custody.

On April 4, 2026, ICE agents arrested 13 undocumented individuals from Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan at a PennDOT driver's license center in Kittanning, Armstrong County, Pennsylvania. A website error had directed individuals seeking commercial driver's license renewals to the facility, resulting in an unusually large crowd of over 100 people. East Franklin Police received reports of the gathering and contacted ICE. During the operation, multiple people fled the scene, some abandoning vehicles and running through residential yards to evade agents. One person resisted arrest and allegedly assaulted a law enforcement officer. PennDOT stated it follows federal law and uses the SAVE database to verify legal presence for license applicants.