Human Impact Project

Carrera Macias, a Venezuelan national who entered the United States at age 17 and applied for asylum, was arrested by police in Salt Lake City, Utah in July 2026 and subsequently transferred to the ICE Processing Center in Adelanto, California. Macias filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his detention as unlawful under the Fifth Amendment Due Process Clause and immigration statutes, and sought a temporary restraining order for immediate release. The court denied the temporary restraining order application, finding that the alleged harms could be addressed through the court's expedited habeas corpus process.

A man who was legally in the United States and in the asylum process was detained by ICE at Chicago airport, according to his immigration attorney Joe Moravec. He is currently being held by ICE.

An unnamed woman who entered the United States legally and is in the asylum process was detained by ICE at a Washington, DC-area airport this month while traveling home to Texas to attend her father's funeral, according to her immigration attorney Joe Moravec. She is currently being held in Virginia.

Mitchell Arleth Soza-Lopez, a Nicaraguan citizen paroled into the United States in October 2022, was detained on July 1, 2026, when she appeared for a routine check-in appointment at the ICE Office in Los Angeles. She had complied with all release conditions, maintained employment, paid taxes, and had no criminal record for nearly four years. The court granted her petition for habeas corpus, finding that her re-detention without a pre-deprivation hearing violated procedural due process, and ordered her release on her prior conditions within 24 hours.

Said Tawadros Wahba Tawadros, an Egyptian citizen and practicing Coptic Orthodox Christian who has resided in the United States since August 2023, was taken into ICE custody on July 1, 2026, during a routine ICE check-in. He was detained at the West Tennessee Detention Facility without an individualized determination regarding the necessity of continued confinement. The court stayed his transfer and required ICE to respond to his habeas petition, noting that under Lopez-Campos v. Raycraft, noncitizens who have spent significant time in the United States interior and have not committed disqualifying offenses may not be detained without an individualized bond hearing. Eshak Mamdouh Taki Ghaly, an Egyptian citizen and Coptic Orthodox Christian who fled religious persecution, was detained by ICE on July 1, 2026, at the West Tennessee Detention Facility. Ghaly had resided in the United States continuously since July 2023, maintained steady employment in Nashville, attended all required ICE check-ins, and had no criminal history. He filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his detention without an individualized bond hearing. The court issued an order staying his transfer and requiring the government to respond within two business days, with instructions to either distinguish the case from Lopez-Campos v. Raycraft or consent to release.

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.

John Jairo Suarez Rueda, a Colombian national who entered the U.S. without inspection in 2023 and was paroled after indicating credible fear of persecution, was detained by ICE on July 1, 2026, while delivering packages for Amazon with a valid work permit. DHS and EOIR ordered his mandatory detention without bond eligibility under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b)(2)(A). On July 10, 2026, the U.S. District Court for Idaho granted his habeas corpus petition and ordered his immediate release, finding that § 1226(a) applies because he was already present in the country and was not subject to the cited detention statutes.

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.

Galo Suárez, a Nicaraguan asylum seeker, was arrested on S. 13th Street on Milwaukee's South Side when unmarked ICE vehicles boxed in his car. An agent broke his car window with gun drawn. Suárez, his fiancee Reyna Elizabeth Garcia (25), and her brother Teodoro Rafael Garcia (37) were all detained. All three are eligible for work permits as asylum applicants. Suárez alleged that an agent claimed his work permit was forged and that officers used excessive force, pushing his fiancee against the car and verbally abusing her. Suárez was released later that day but his fiancee remains in custody in Kenosha County and the whereabouts of her brother are unknown.

Alice Guillen Acosta, a Venezuelan national who presented at the El Paso port of entry on March 19, 2024, was released on her own recognizance and enrolled in an Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP). She complied fully with all terms including GPS monitoring and court appearances. On June 29, 2026, she was arrested without warning during a routine ICE check-in appointment and remained detained. The court granted her habeas corpus petition and ordered ICE to provide a bond hearing by July 31, 2026, requiring the government to prove by clear and convincing evidence that detention was justified.

Diana Socha Torres and her 8-year-old son were taken from their home in Wisconsin Dells in late June during the ICE surge. Socha Torres had an active asylum case, was wearing an ICE-issued ankle monitor, and had no criminal charges or convictions in Wisconsin. She and her son were transported to an ICE office in downtown Milwaukee and then transferred to the South Texas Residential Detention Center in Dilley, Texas. The arrest separated the child from their home and disrupted an active legal case.

Alexsandr Zateev, a Russian national, entered the United States and was released on his own recognizance in July 2022. On June 27, 2026, ICE re-detained him after a routine check-in with immigration authorities. Zateev is seeking asylum in the United States. He filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus and motion for temporary restraining order challenging his detention. The court found that Zateev's prior release by immigration authorities created a liberty interest in his continued release and that his re-detention without a pre-deprivation hearing violated due process. On July 8, 2026, the federal court granted his habeas petition and ordered his immediate release on the same terms and conditions he was subject to prior to his re-detention.

Ilia Bakumets, a 19-year-old Russian asylum seeker who had been paroled and living lawfully in California since April 2023, was arrested by ICE on June 27, 2026, at a worksite without notice or pre-deprivation hearing. He was transported to Adelanto ICE Processing Center. A federal judge granted his habeas corpus petition, finding that ICE violated his Fifth Amendment due process rights by detaining him without a pre-deprivation hearing, and ordered his immediate release.

Artyom Vovchenko, a 27-year-old Russian who deserted the military in 2022 in opposition to the war in Ukraine, was deported back to Russia by the Trump administration last summer after spending 13 months in three U.S. detention centers and being denied asylum. After his return to Russia, where he faced potential imprisonment or forced deployment to Ukraine, Vovchenko escaped again and crossed into Belarus earlier this year. He is now in an undisclosed country attempting to start a new life.

Wilbur Garcia, an 18-year-old honors high school graduate from South Los Angeles, was detained by ICE during an asylum appointment scheduled one day after his graduation. Garcia, whose family fled political persecution in Nicaragua and has been in the asylum process for years, was held at the Adelanto ICE detention center for over two weeks in poor conditions including sewage overflow in cells and showers, and insufficient food provisions. After public defenders challenged ICE's justification for detaining him—that he was no longer covered under his mother's asylum application upon turning 18—a judge ordered his release on June 26. Garcia said he was helped by older detainees who treated him like family. He plans to pursue pre-med classes in college.

Brady Tillett, an asylum seeker from Belize, has been detained by ICE at the California City Detention Facility in Kern County for nearly two years. In a Los Angeles Times op-ed, he describes inhumane conditions including forced labor, medical neglect, and retaliation for advocating for others' medical care. Tillett has filed habeas petitions resulting in the release of several other detainees and is participating in broader detention resistance efforts including hunger strikes and labor strikes to challenge U.S. immigration detention practices and demand closure of the facility.

Eduardo José Osal Mujica, 32, crossed the Darién Gap into the U.S., turned himself in to immigration authorities, and applied for asylum while working installing roofs and driving for Uber, settling first in Denver and later Wyoming. Local police detained him during a traffic stop in Wyoming, after which he was transferred through detention facilities in Colorado, Arizona and Texas before signing a deportation order. He was among 146 Venezuelans deported on Flight 164, which landed in Maiquetía, Venezuela on June 24, after which he and other deportees were taken to the Negra Hipólita Health Hotel for medical checkups before planned release to their home cities. The hotel collapsed in an earthquake that day, killing an unknown number of deportees while in Venezuelan custody. His wife, Danielys Hurtado, spent five days searching for his body among bags of corpses at an improvised morgue in a converted grain-storage facility. Nearly two months later, the Venezuelan government has released no official information on those who died, with survivor estimates ranging between 12 and 32.

Angely and Alexka Jerez Medina, 18-year-old twins and Venezuelan asylum seekers, were detained by ICE on June 24 in Buffalo, New York, while working with other Detroit students at an Amazon subcontractor warehouse. The twins are now held in separate detention facilities in Texas and New Mexico. Their teacher at Western International High School, Kristen Schoettle, described them as "great students" who are "very active in their church" and noted that "their family wants to be here, they love this country." Elected officials including U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib and Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield have called for their release. Four other Detroit students arrested with them were released; a fifth remains in federal custody.

Juan Domingo-Aguilar, a Guatemalan citizen who entered the U.S. in 2014 to request asylum, was detained by ICE on June 24, 2026, while on his way to work. He had been residing in the United States for 12 years with a valid work permit and pending asylum claims. The court ordered his immediate release, finding that his mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b) without a bond hearing violated immigration law, as that provision applies only to those affirmatively seeking admission, not long-term residents.

A 43-year-old woman from China who came to the U.S. seeking refuge wrote in a court declaration that she was suffering inside Otay Mesa Detention Center and pleaded with a judge for help, stating she never expected to experience inhumane treatment in the country where she sought protection. Her case was documented in habeas corpus petitions filed to challenge detention and detention conditions.

Eduardo Jose Alves, an asylum seeker living in Lewiston, Maine, who entered on a valid tourist visa and filed an affirmative asylum application, was detained by ICE agents at his home on June 20, 2026. The same day, a court issued an emergency order staying his transfer from Maine for 72 hours, but ICE transferred him to Plymouth County Correctional Center in Massachusetts within two hours of the order. Questions arose about whether ICE agents had a valid warrant for the arrest and search, and whether they improperly pressured his 15-year-old daughter to allow entry. U.S. District Judge Stacey Neumann granted his habeas petition on June 24, finding the detention violated the existing court order, that adequate detention facilities were unavailable in Maine, and that his out-of-state detention substantially impaired his right to counsel before an imminent bond hearing, and ordered his immediate release from ICE custody.

A Haitian asylum seeker in her 40s was detained for over six months at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility after ICE arrested her following a domestic disturbance arrest in Massachusetts. She had been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder and severe anxiety in a prior psychiatric hospitalization but was not provided psychiatric medication during her Vermont detention. A federal judge ordered her released, finding her prolonged detention without an individualized hearing violated her Fifth Amendment due process rights, though the judge did not rule on claims of deliberate indifference to her mental health needs.

ICE agents detained 42-year-old Diana Socha Torres and her 8-year-old son at their home in Wisconsin Dells on June 23, 2026. Socha Torres was wearing an ankle monitor as part of her ongoing asylum case when agents arrived, claiming to conduct a monitoring system change but instead taking both into custody. A deportation order had been entered in April 2026 after Socha Torres missed an asylum hearing; she stated she never received notice of the hearing. An attorney had filed an appeal, but ICE reported having no record of it. Mother and son were taken to ICE offices in Milwaukee and subsequently transferred to Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas.

Aliaksei Shcharbachenia, a 35-year-old asylum-seeker from Belarus, has spent nearly a year at Farmville Detention Center in Virginia, where he says he is experiencing medical neglect as a tumor grows on his arm. He claims the U.S. government attempted to illegally deport him back to Belarus in a botched operation, and that despite requesting specialist care in December, he has not received a diagnosis or seen a specialist for the growth.

Pavel Snegir, a Russian asylum seeker, was detained at Otay Mesa ICE facility after refusing to self-deport at San Diego airport in May 2025. ICE separated him from his 11-year-old son Aleksandr during the incident, threatening deportation and stating he may never see his son again if he did not comply. Both Pavel and Aleksandr passed initial asylum screening. After 11 months in ICE custody, Pavel was released following asylum approval. However, Aleksandr remained in Office of Refugee Resettlement custody at a youth shelter over one year after separation. Pavel's sponsorship request to reunify with his son was denied due to lack of stable housing and employment documentation, citing Trump administration policies that create barriers to family reunification.

Approximately a dozen asylum seekers were deported by the U.S. to Sierra Leone in June 2026, marking the second deportation flight to the country. Despite prior U.S. court orders protecting them from deportation to their home countries due to credible fears of persecution, the deportees now face being returned to those countries where they risk harm. According to attorney Erica Reilly, who represents one of the migrants, this follows nine West African migrants who arrived in Sierra Leone the previous month. The Trump administration has struck third-country deportation deals with at least nine African nations as well as multiple Latin American and Caribbean countries. Legal advocates argue the policy creates a loophole that indirectly forces asylum seekers back to dangerous conditions with limited U.S. oversight or legal recourse.

A Venezuelan woman with active Temporary Protected Status was arrested and has remained detained at Eloy Detention Center for nearly nine months. Court filings show a federal government attorney acknowledged her legal status, yet she continues to be held in custody.

Katsiaryna Bartko, a 33-year-old Belarusian cancer survivor, has been in ICE custody since June 4, 2026, and held at the Midwest Regional Reception Center in Leavenworth, Kansas since June 19. After thyroid cancer surgery, Bartko requires daily hormone medication and calcium supplements to manage permanent hypoparathyroidism and chronic hypocalcemia. Medical records show she was hospitalized three times in four days in early June with dangerously low calcium levels, including an emergency visit on June 6 where she appeared "in acute distress" and required intravenous calcium treatment. Her partner alleges she was initially denied prescribed medications despite facility intake records documenting her medical needs, though she has since received some medications after media contact. Bartko, who entered the U.S. legally on an F-1 student visa in March 2022, filed for asylum in February 2023 based on her political activism in Belarus's pro-democracy movement and opposition to Belarus's support for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. A support letter from a Belarusian democratic organization states she could face arrest and persecution if returned.

Rafael Andres Rubio Bohorquez, a data analyst employed by the New York City Council, was detained by ICE on January 12, 2026, when he appeared for a routine asylum appointment at the Bethpage Asylum Office on Long Island. Bohorquez, a Venezuelan national with Temporary Protected Status and no criminal record, was held at multiple detention facilities including Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, Orange County, and Delaney Hall in Newark, New Jersey. An immigration judge initially denied him bond on February 2, but he was granted asylum in immigration court on May 2, 2026. He was released on a $5,000 bond on June 19 after 158 days in detention. City Council Speaker Julie Menin stated that Rubio "had done nothing wrong" and was "wrongfully in ICE detention for months on end." The Department of Homeland Security appealed the asylum ruling.

Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian-born legal permanent resident and president of Wisconsin's largest mosque, was detained by ICE on March 30, 2026, after being pulled over by armed plainclothes agents in unmarked vehicles. He was held for 80 days in Clay County Jail in Indiana on an administrative warrant. During detention, his unmonitored diabetes caused significant health deterioration, he faced religious liberty restrictions and inadequate medical treatment, and he lost over 30 pounds, describing the experience as dehumanizing. On June 18, 2026, U.S. District Judge James Patrick Hanlon ordered Sarsour's immediate release, finding he had raised a substantial First Amendment claim and that ICE detained him in retaliation for his public advocacy for Palestinian rights. The judge rejected government arguments about foreign policy and national security threats, noting that immigration officials had been aware of his prior convictions from the 1990s for 25 years and had previously approved his legal permanent residency application. The Trump administration continues to seek his deportation, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio citing his activism as grounds for removal.

Olga Perez, a 47-year-old indigenous Mam language interpreter and community leader in Palm Beach County, Florida, was arrested during a traffic stop on I-95 in November 2025 and placed in ICE custody in Arizona. After seven months in detention and nine delayed immigration hearings, an immigration judge ordered her deported to Guatemala by July 6, 2026. She was released on her own recognizance pending voluntary deportation and made a surprise visit to her family and the Guatemalan-Maya Center in Lake Worth Beach before being deported. Perez had spent 30 years in the U.S. as an undocumented immigrant, volunteering as an interpreter and translator for indigenous communities in the region. Her deportation leaves behind four U.S. citizen children, ages 13 to 21.

Polina (born 2002) and Alexandra (born 2005), sisters from Belarus, have been detained at the California border for over 9 months. Their initial lawyer failed to properly defend them in court and stopped cooperating with the family. The sisters were denied habeas corpus twice due to legal errors and now face deportation to Belarus while awaiting a new asylum application. They have documented health issues and are seeking legal and financial support to continue their case.

An older Russian man who crossed at a port of entry and requested asylum in August 2024 was hospitalized days later for stroke-like symptoms while detained at Otay Mesa. He was cuffed to his hospital bed despite half his body being paralyzed, and upon return to detention received no mobility support until other detainees filed grievance reports on his behalf. He continued to lose consciousness regularly and was eventually released on parole in February 2025 after six months in detention.

Wilber Urbina Garcia, an 18-year-old honors graduate from Jordan High School in South Los Angeles, was detained by ICE on June 10, 2026, during a routine check-in appointment at a federal courthouse the morning after his graduation ceremony. Garcia's family fled Nicaragua in late 2022 seeking asylum due to political persecution and were in asylum proceedings with valid work permits at the time of his detention. Teachers described Wilber as shy but disciplined, with leadership roles by senior year, and he had dreamed of becoming a doctor and registered for fall classes at El Camino College. During the check-in, ICE agents separated Wilber from his mother in an interview room and took him into custody. His attorney stated that ICE agents told the family Wilber was no longer covered under his mother's asylum case because he had turned 18, though as a derivative applicant filed before age 21, he should remain tied to the case. Wilber was detained at Adelanto ICE Processing Center. His mother and eldest brother subsequently entered removal proceedings and were fitted with ankle monitors. An ICE agent told the family that Wilber's 17-year-old sister would face detention when she turns 18.

Iaroslav Medvezhov, a 19-year-old Russian citizen, lawfully entered the United States on a visa in 2022 at age 16 with his parents and younger sister. His father filed an asylum application listing Medvezhov as a derivative beneficiary before his visa expired in September 2022. USCIS granted Medvezhov work authorization in July 2024 while his asylum application remained pending. Medvezhov graduated from high school, worked lawfully at two jobs, obtained a Florida driver's license, and has no criminal history. On June 16, 2026, Border Patrol agents stopped Medvezhov while he was driving to work without a traffic violation, arrested him for visa overstay despite his pending asylum application, and transported him to Golden State Annex Detention Facility in McFarland, California. After being detained for over 40 days with his bond hearing postponed to August 5, 2026, Medvezhov filed a habeas corpus petition. The federal court granted the petition and ordered his immediate release, ruling that due process required a pre-deprivation bond hearing before detention given his four years of government-sanctioned liberty while his asylum case proceeded.

Juan Bonilla Lagos, a 32-year-old Colombian national, was arrested by ICE agents in Plainview in October 2024 while sitting in his car with his wife and 5-year-old son during what his family says was a trip to a doctor's appointment. During the arrest, agents threatened to break the car window as his child clung to him and pleaded with agents not to take him away. Bonilla Lagos, who entered the U.S. in 2022 fleeing gang violence in Colombia, was detained at an ICE facility in Batavia, New York, where he attempted suicide three times during his nine-month custody. He has no criminal record and has filed an asylum petition. On July 7, 2026, he was released and reunited with his wife and two children at Port Authority Bus Terminal in Manhattan. The prolonged separation caused severe mental health trauma to his family, including depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress.

A flight carrying at least two dozen migrants deported from the United States, including an Iranian woman who fears persecution in her home country, landed in the Central African Republic. The country is one of at least nine African nations that have entered agreements with the Trump administration to accept third-country deportees. The arrangements are part of a broader U.S. crackdown under which the administration has deported thousands of people to countries other than their own.

Dency Javier Ayala-Barrios, a Colombian national fleeing persecution by the Clan del Golfo, entered the United States without inspection in May 2023 and was released on parole. He obtained employment authorization, maintained steady work, filed taxes, and complied with parole conditions for three years while his asylum application was pending. On June 12, 2026, ICE arrested him in Rialto, California without providing notice or basis for arrest. The court ordered his immediate release, finding his re-detention violated due process rights and that no legitimate government interest supported his detention given his established ties and compliance history.

Alsu and Azat, a Russian couple who fled fearing imprisonment for opposing the war in Ukraine, were detained with their 1-year-old son Amir after crossing the southern border and presenting themselves at a legal port of entry. During four months of detention at Dilley in 2025, Amir withdrew and began hitting himself in the face, with his speech development slowing until he stopped saying anything other than 'mom' and 'dad.' The facility lacked toys for toddlers and books in Russian. Staff forced Alsu to wean Amir off formula, claiming he was too old, and Amir suffered fevers and stomach problems while detained. Alsu resorted to sucking spicy sauce off noodles to feed him and hiding cereal in socks and hoods. Azat alleges CoreCivic employees threatened to separate the parents and send Amir to foster care if they stopped complaining. The family was released in January under supervision. ICE has detained more than 500 infants and toddlers under age three since January 2025.

Mohsen Mahdawi, a lawful permanent resident and Columbia University graduate student living in the U.S. since 2014, was arrested by federal agents on April 14, 2025, when he arrived at a Vermont immigration office for a routine citizenship interview. Federal authorities initiated removal proceedings, alleging his pro-Palestinian activism threatened U.S. foreign policy. Immigration Judge Nina Froes terminated the deportation case on February 17, 2026, after the government failed to authenticate supporting documentation. The Trump administration revived deportation efforts, and Immigration Judge Angela Munson ordered him deported on June 3, 2026, based on the foreign policy bar and his pro-Palestinian speech. The ACLU is representing Mahdawi and filed a federal appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on June 10, 2026, challenging the use of the foreign policy bar to target his speech.

Billy Bassikissa Bounguiena, a corrections officer at Cumberland County Sheriff's Office, was detained by ICE on Tuesday at his home in South Portland. He held a valid work permit and had no criminal history, according to county officials. ICE alleged he had a criminal record based on a 2019 domestic violence arrest in which no charges were filed; county officials dispute this characterization as false. He is being held at Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island.

A Guatemalan man was arrested in a Bonita Springs park after a Florida Fish and Wildlife officer falsely claimed the man's dog had bitten him, though the officer never exited his vehicle. The man was held for approximately 40 minutes before ICE officers arrived and took him into custody. His wife, who witnessed the incident, said both are pending asylum cases and spoke anonymously to avoid jeopardizing their immigration status.

Yeimy Alexandra Amador Molina, a 22-year-old Colombian national, was detained at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana after entering the United States on November 16, 2022. She received deferred action status approved by USCIS on February 3, 2025, valid until February 3, 2029. On June 9, 2026, following a credible fear interview with USCIS, she was taken into custody after the asylum officer determined there was no credible fear of persecution or torture. An Immigration Judge affirmed this negative credible fear determination on June 30, 2026. The district court denied her emergency motion for temporary restraining order and stay of removal on July 9, 2026, citing lack of jurisdiction and finding the motion attempted to improperly shortcut the habeas corpus process.

Jenny Fabiola Barbecho Morocho, an asylum applicant who had been granted humanitarian parole in 2015, was arrested by ICE near her home on June 9, 2026, and detained at California City Detention Center. The court found that respondents failed to provide constitutionally required notice and opportunity to be heard before revoking her parole. The court granted her habeas corpus petition and ordered her immediate release, permanently enjoining respondents from re-detaining her without pre-deprivation constitutional protections including notice, a timely hearing, and legal representation.

Abdullahi Mohamed, a Somali refugee who had lived in the U.S. for decades with his family, was detained and then rapidly transferred within five days across Massachusetts, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas before being deported to Somalia. He reported being beaten and shackled during transfers and enduring long periods without food or water. ICE did not respond to his lawyer's requests for release and ignored habeas petition efforts. Mohamed has no family or means of support in Somalia and his wife remains in hiding due to her immigration status.

Ernesto Puac Son, a 33-year-old roofer and legal resident of Stuart, Florida, with a valid work permit and pending asylum case, has lived in the United States for 18 years. On October 1, 2025, FDLE agents conducted a traffic stop near his house after he made a rolling stop. Puac refused to exit his van because he had just witnessed agents arresting his brother Felipe, who had a deportation order but no criminal history. FDLE agent John Soltys smashed Puac's van window and dragged him through the broken glass, pinning him face-down on the ground and leaving him with gashes on his face, back, and arms. Despite showing a valid Florida driver's license, Puac was charged with resisting arrest with violence. He was convicted on January 7, 2026, and sentenced to one year in Martin County Jail. FDLE was operating under the 287(g) program, which authorizes state and local law enforcement to enforce immigration law.

Mohamed Fofana, a 22-year-old asylum seeker from Guinea employed at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, was detained by ICE on November 11, 2025, near his home. He was held for seven months in detention facilities in Batavia and La Salle County, Texas. In February 2026, his attorney reported losing contact with him for a month due to facility transfer confusion, and an immigration judge granted a 45-day continuance. An immigration judge ordered his deportation in May 2026, but a federal judge vacated that order and approved his habeas corpus petition in June 2026. Fofana was released and returned to Syracuse on June 7-9, 2026, to reunite with his family.

Thien, who arrived in the U.S. as a refugee in 1984 at age 3 and became a permanent resident, lost his green card status at 16 due to a mistake. After serving his sentence, he was placed on an order of supervision rather than deported because Vietnam was not accepting deportees. For 24 years, he complied with every condition of the order, maintained work authorization, built a business, and raised a family. When he attended a scheduled immigration appointment, he was detained within 10 minutes without an interview and is now facing deportation.

Dy Nguyen, a Vietnamese refugee who lived in the United States for 27 years, was detained by ICE for almost 8 months beginning in October 2025 before being deported to Vietnam. During his detention at Stewart Detention Center in Atlanta, his newborn son was born, whom he never physically held. His attorney at the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund pursued legal action for his release, but the case was delayed for over six months. Nguyen was shackled for 35 hours during flights and spent an additional 30 hours on buses traveling through Vietnam after deportation, separated from his family of five and his church community.