Human Impact Project

A 15-year-old was detained during an ICE raid at a clandestine club off San Pedro Avenue in San Antonio in November 2025, along with approximately 140 other people. Four months later, the teen remained in federal custody at a migrant children's shelter on San Antonio's South Side despite paperwork for his release being completed. The release process stalled after his father, who was handling the case, was detained while driving back from a job in Corpus Christi, creating additional complications as the family feared further detention if a parent came forward to secure his release.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security and other law enforcement agencies executed search warrants at multiple locations in Jasper County, South Carolina over the weekend, resulting in at least five people being taken into custody by federal immigration officials at one location. Specific details about the total number arrested, reasons for the arrests, and where detainees were transported have not been released. The operation caused concern in the local community.

On March 31, 2026, a traffic stop on Interstate 20 near Leeds, Alabama resulted in the arrest of four individuals. The driver presented a Mexican identification card instead of an Alabama driver license, prompting an Alabama State Police trooper to contact U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. When the driver and two passengers fled on foot into nearby woods, law enforcement apprehended all three without incident. All four individuals were arrested by the Leeds Police Department. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency and ICE are investigating the incident.

Isaias, an asylee, was detained by ICE during a routine immigration check-in meeting earlier this year. He was the primary source of financial support for his elderly mother Rosa, who is now unable to work and needs assistance with rent and phone bills.

A Venezuelan pediatrician working as a medical assistant in the Raleigh neighborhood is currently in ICE custody.

Salah Salem Sarsour, a 53-year-old Jordanian national and lawful permanent resident who has lived in the U.S. for over 32 years, was detained by ICE on March 30 while driving in Milwaukee. DHS cited his prior conviction for throwing a Molotov cocktail at Israeli military targets as a teenager in the West Bank. Sarsour, president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee and father of six U.S. citizen children, remains in custody at an ICE detention facility in Indiana pending removal proceedings, with advocates and his attorney challenging the legality of his detention.

Genaro Gonzalez-Uribe, a 72-year-old undocumented man, was detained by ICE on March 30, 2026, while driving to work in Lodi, California. He was pulled over by unmarked vehicles and subsequently transferred to a detention facility in California City. His family reports concerns about his health and lack of access to medication while in custody, and they are seeking legal assistance as he faces removal proceedings.

On March 30, 2026, a Utah Highway Patrol trooper conducted a traffic stop on I-15 in Weber County for speeding. The driver refused to cooperate and could not provide valid identification despite claiming to be a U.S. citizen. With assistance from Weber County Sheriff's Office and ICE agents, the driver was forcibly removed from the vehicle due to noncompliance. Both the driver and a passenger were found to have active ICE detainers and were arrested and booked into Weber County Jail on charges including speeding, resisting arrest, and driving without a license.

Juan Carlos Quevedo Ferrer, 46, was arrested by Wildwood police for allegedly conducting 10 self-checkout fraud incidents at Target between November and March, in which he scanned lower-priced items like taco seasoning instead of the actual merchandise he purchased, totaling $181 in losses. Following his arrest, he is to be turned over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

ICE lodged a detainer requesting that Charlotte authorities not release Angelvis Jesus Quintero Fernandez, a 22-year-old from Venezuela, who was arrested and faces felony charges including first-degree murder in two fatal shootings in Charlotte on January 24 and March 22, 2026. Quintero Fernandez allegedly entered the U.S. in July 2023 via the CBP One app.

Anton Smovzh was deported from the United States by ICE. Upon crossing the border into Ukraine following his deportation, he was immediately picked up by Ukrainian military draft officers and sent to a training center.

Fernando Costilla Espinoza, 38, was found asleep behind the wheel of a locked pickup truck at a Pensacola intersection early Sunday morning. After authorities woke him, he showed signs of alcohol impairment and was taken to a hospital for evaluation. He was arrested on DUI and related charges, and ICE placed a detainer after determining he was not in the United States legally.

Nearly a dozen clergy members and immigration activists were arrested on Monday morning while attempting to block vehicles from leaving the ICE headquarters garage in Center City Philadelphia. The protesters, organized by No ICE Philly, were part of a "Week of Action Against ICE and Collaborators" and were charged with obstructing access to the garage, facing $530 in penalties or court appearance.

A Toledo resident is among several lead plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit accusing federal immigration authorities of making warrantless arrests. The lawsuit challenges unlawful detention practices as ICE enforcement activities increase throughout Ohio.

ICE agents detained Edgar Gomez in Bridgeton, New Jersey, after he left a court appearance where all charges against him had been dropped. Agents smashed the window of an immigration lawyer's vehicle and removed Gomez without producing a warrant despite requests from his attorney. Gomez was one step away from obtaining lawful permanent residency. The detention occurred one day after New Jersey passed a law requiring ICE agents to produce warrants.

A 17-year-old attending a protest against ICE was detained and beaten repeatedly with a baton by officers, resulting in a broken femur that required emergency surgery. According to witnesses, the beating occurred while the minor was already surrounded by officers and detained. He is reportedly being denied visitors while hospitalized.

A two-year-old has been held at the Dilley family detention center in Texas since March 19, 2026, and is refusing to eat while experiencing illness. Reports describe poor detention conditions including contaminated water, worms in meals, and inadequate medical care. Staff reportedly dismissed the child's mother's requests for medical assistance. Congressman Joaquin Castro called for the child's release and adequate medical care, and renewed calls to close the facility, which has faced ongoing criticism for water shortages and insufficient medical attention.

Federal immigration authorities in Chattanooga filed a criminal complaint against Hector Antonio Amaya Flores, a Salvadoran national, for unlawfully reentering the United States after multiple prior deportations. According to court documents, Flores was encountered by ICE agents on March 29, 2026, and fingerprint analysis confirmed his identity. Immigration records show Flores had been deported in 1996, 1997, 2003, and 2018, and did not have permission from the Department of Homeland Security to return to the U.S.

ICE Boston arrested Bolivar Rivera-Perez, a Mexican national with two prior deportations and a criminal history including firearms offenses and DUI convictions in Massachusetts and Pennsylvania. ICE lodged a detainer against Rivera-Perez with the Franklin County House of Corrections on March 24, 2025, but the facility released him into the community on March 31, 2025, without honoring the detainer.

Carlos Corte-Corte from Ecuador was arrested on local charges for kidnapping a four-year-old child from a laundromat in Patchogue, New York on March 28, 2026. After local authorities arrested him, he was released from jail. ICE arrested him on March 31 and placed him in removal proceedings. According to ICE, Corte-Corte had been previously removed from the U.S. three times and illegally re-entered.

On March 28, 2026, a charter deportation flight carrying several dozen Russian citizens departed from Alexandria, Louisiana, and was routed through Newark, New Jersey, and Cairo, Egypt before arriving in Moscow. The deportees were gathered from five or six immigration detention centers across the United States. Human rights advocates reported harsh transfer conditions including shackles and extended periods without seating, and noted that some deportees faced FSB questioning and military draft notices upon arrival in Moscow.

A Trump-appointed federal judge issued a preliminary injunction against ICE for grave violations of detainees' Fifth Amendment rights during Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota. The court found that ICE isolated thousands of people at the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building without access to attorneys and ordered the agency to provide legal aid contacts, interpreters, and free phone access within one hour of detention, as well as ban rapid out-of-state transfers within 72 hours.

A video recorded by a man's wife documented an ICE arrest in Bridgeton. The video shows officers smashing a car window during the arrest and taking the man away.

Yaima de las Mercedes Suárez, a Cuban mother of five and permanent resident of the United States, was arrested by ICE at Miami International Airport upon returning from a trip to Cuba. She faces possible deportation due to a criminal conviction from July 2013 for theft and conspiracy when she was 21 years old and pregnant. Her lawyer is pursuing bail and habeas corpus options to challenge the detention.

Two people were arrested during a "No Kings" protest at Riverfront Park near an ICE facility in downtown Spokane. An 18-year-old woman was arrested for allegedly taking a Trump flag from a counterprotester, and a 32-year-old man was arrested for assaulting an officer who was attempting to detain the woman. The incident lasted approximately five minutes and involved a brief physical altercation between police and protesters.

An Iranian national was released after being detained by ICE for nine months in what was determined to be unlawful detention. The case involved challenges to the legality of the detention and protection from removal proceedings.

An Iranian gay couple, Ali and Adel, who fled Iran after being arrested by morality police, arrived at the U.S. border in 2025 seeking asylum. Their claims were denied, and they were placed in separate ICE detention facilities facing deportation to Iran despite the risk of persecution. At least 175 Iranians have been deported on flights to Iran since September 2025 following a Trump administration deportation agreement, with some deported individuals separated from their families and handed over to Iranian authorities upon arrival.

A federal court issued a preliminary injunction requiring ICE and the Florida Department of Emergency Management to provide detained people at the Everglades Detention Facility (also called "Alligator Alcatraz") with access to legal counsel. The ruling was based on testimony from formerly detained people who described being denied access to attorneys, papers, and pencils. The court certified the case as a class action, protecting all current and future detainees at the facility.

Four migrants represented by the ACLU of Nebraska were released from ICE custody in recent weeks after federal judges ordered their release on bond or outright release. However, a new 8th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling decided that federal law does not require bond hearings for undocumented immigrants, even those with years of U.S. residence and no criminal records, aligning with the Trump administration's mandatory detention policy.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested Suraj Vasal, an Indian national seeking asylum, at an Interstate 80 weigh station in Iowa on February 11, 2026. The arrest occurred during a traffic stop in which the Iowa State Patrol requested an immigration inquiry. Federal court records indicate ICE and the Iowa State Patrol were collaborating to check drivers' legal status at weigh stations. A federal judge ruled that the government violated Vasal's due process rights by conducting his bond hearing with only 30 minutes' notice and denying him adequate time to obtain legal representation, finding the agencies acted in bad faith.

On October 23, 2025, Arnulfo Bazan was pulled over by unmarked law enforcement in Houston while driving his 16-year-old U.S. citizen son Arnoldo to school. According to Arnoldo, officers without visible badges surrounded their car, leading Arnulfo to drive to a Restaurant Depot parking lot where he was tackled and restrained. Arnoldo reported being assaulted during the encounter but was released after identifying as a minor and U.S. citizen. Arnulfo was taken to the Montgomery County Processing Center and deported to Mexico on October 28, 2025. Months later, Arnoldo testified before Congress about ICE agents choking him and using derogatory slurs during the arrest, stating uncertainty about when he would see his father again. ICE disputed the assault allegations, claiming Arnulfo rammed a federal vehicle and fled.

Sandra De Leon Perez, a Guatemala native residing in the U.S. since 2019, was detained by ICE during a scheduled check-in on March 26, 2026. She was transferred to the Adelanto Detention Facility and held without bond based on a BIA decision requiring mandatory detention for those who entered without inspection. The court granted a TRO ordering her release or bond hearing within seven days.

Julio Elias Ivan Perez Rojas, a 22-year-old Peruvian national with Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, was arrested by Burbank Police on March 26, 2026, but never charged with any crime. The next day, ICE took him into custody from the police department and detained him at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. The federal court ordered his immediate release, finding that ICE violated his due process rights by re-detaining him without proper notice or a bond hearing.

J.W.B.S., a noncitizen who had been previously released on bond or conditional parole, was re-detained by immigration authorities on March 26, 2026. The court found that the government violated due process by failing to provide a pre-deprivation bond hearing before re-detaining him. The court ordered his immediate release with the same conditions he had prior to detention and required the government to provide seven days' notice and a pre-deprivation hearing before any future re-detention.

When Oudone Lothirath was in immigration detention in January, he missed four out of five chemotherapy sessions he had scheduled in his fight against aggressive lymphoma.

The Brevard County Sheriff's Office executed a search warrant at Scrappys Auto Salvage in Rockledge on March 26, 2026, investigating alleged violations of state law regarding vehicle documentation. The operation resulted in the arrest of Theodore Gross on over 5,000 charges including fraud, racketeering, and operating a chop shop, as well as the detention of 13 undocumented immigrants from Afghanistan, Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala. Immigration rights activists arrived to monitor the operation and raised concerns about collaboration between local law enforcement and federal immigration agencies.

On March 25-26, 2026, ICE agents detained six Guatemalan workers aged 18-40 at a residential construction site in Cambridge, Maryland. The homeowner, who had hired the workers for remodeling work nearing completion, contacted ICE and assisted agents in accessing the work area. The workers were owed approximately $10,000 in unpaid wages. A coworker with permanent residency status, Bryan Polanco, documented the detention on video and livestreamed it online without being detained himself. Family members reported emotional hardship from the detentions.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested a State College area man on March 26, 2026, while he was being driven by his attorney to a court appearance. The man, who had lived in the community for nearly two decades, was pulled over on East College Avenue and taken into custody by five ICE agents. Local advocates expressed concern about the arrest's impact on community trust and its chilling effect on residents seeking help.

Martha Ruíz, a Salvadoran woman detained by ICE, suffered a stroke while in custody. She requested medical assistance for weeks but was not helped until she collapsed and required hospitalization. After six months of separation, she was reunited with her family. Her daughters allege ICE failed to provide adequate medical care.

Deiver Henao Jimenez, a 9-year-old asylum-seeker from Colombia, was detained at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in South Texas with his parents starting in early March after a routine immigration check-in. After pleading during a video call with children's entertainer Ms. Rachel to be released so he could attend his state spelling bee, ICE freed the family on humanitarian parole in late March.

Pheap Rom, a Cambodian national, was deported by the United States to Eswatini in October 2025 under the Trump administration's third-country deportation program and held at a maximum-security prison. He was released in March 2026 to be repatriated to Cambodia after spending five months detained without facing criminal charges in Eswatini. Rom is the second deportee from this program to be repatriated, with the U.S. having sent 19 migrants to Eswatini since July 2025.

A Colombian woman working as an Uber driver was detained by ICE in Florida despite having a pending asylum case, a valid driver's license, and work authorization. Her family reports constant transfers, lack of information about her whereabouts, poor detention conditions, and concerns about potential deportation while the family remains separated.

Ciocolata Munteanu was deported from the United States to Cork after living in Los Angeles for five years. ICE seized her car and $20,000 in savings before deporting her. She was arrested upon arrival in Ireland and pleaded guilty to stealing two hams and cosmetics from Cork stores in 2018-2019. Her sentencing was adjourned after she was found chewing gum in court.

Minnesota officials sued the Trump administration's Departments of Homeland Security and Justice after ICE agents shot and killed U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti, and wounded Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis during an immigration enforcement operation in Minneapolis. The administration refused to cooperate with state-level investigations, declined to release the names of agents involved, and refused to share evidence despite formal requests. Charges against Sosa-Celis were dropped and a criminal investigation was opened into whether federal officials lied under oath. State prosecutors characterized the federal government's refusal to cooperate as unprecedented.

Jose Guadalupe Ramos-Solano, a 52-year-old Mexican national, died on March 25, 2026, at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. He was found unconscious in his bunk and staff initiated life-saving procedures before he was transported to a hospital where he was pronounced deceased. Ramos had been arrested by ICE on February 23, 2026, in Torrance, California. Detainees who witnessed the incident reported that Ramos-Solano was experiencing symptoms of overheating and difficulty breathing prior to being found unconscious. The Mexican Consulate in Los Angeles documented this as the 14th death of a Mexican national in ICE custody since January 2025.

Jose Guadalupe Ramos-Solano, a Mexican national in his early 50s, died on March 25, 2026, at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in California. He was found unconscious in his bunk; staff initiated CPR and called emergency services, and he was transported to Victor Valley Global Medical Center where he was pronounced deceased. Ramos had been arrested by ICE on February 23, 2026, following a previous local conviction. His death was the fourth at the facility in 2026 and the 14th migrant death in ICE custody nationally that year. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced her government would file a legal brief in a class-action lawsuit alleging unconstitutional conditions at the detention center.

On March 25, 2026, ICE agents conducted a targeted vehicle stop to arrest Xa Lee, an undocumented individual from Laos with prior criminal convictions. During the stop, Lee attempted to flee and struck an ICE officer with his vehicle. The officer was not injured. Lee fled the scene and remained at large at the time of the announcement.

An ICE enforcement operation in San Juan, Texas resulted in a male driver being taken into custody by ICE agents. A young girl present at the scene was observed in clear distress and having a panic attack as the agent reached through the car window during the escalating encounter. Neighbors witnessed the incident and the impact on the family.

Bertha Olga Gómez Fong, wife of former Chihuahua Governor César Duarte, was arrested by ICE officials in El Paso and is being held at the El Paso Service Processing Center. Duarte, who governed Chihuahua from 2010 to 2016, was previously arrested in Miami in 2020 for embezzlement and extradited to Mexico, where he was later re-arrested on federal money laundering charges and remains incarcerated in Mexico City.

Anabel Romero, a U.S. citizen from Idaho, was detained at gunpoint during a federal raid while her young children watched. She and her 14-year-old daughter were assaulted and zip-tied during the incident. Romero is now speaking out about her experience.