Human Impact Project

Viktoriia Bulavina, a Ukrainian immigrant married to a U.S. citizen and applying for permanent residency, was arrested by ICE immediately after a green card interview in downtown San Diego. She was detained for three days in poor conditions, including an open toilet in view of guards, expired food, and denial of medication. Federal immigration officials released her after media coverage and attorney intervention.

Mohsen Mahdawi, a lawful permanent resident and Columbia University student, was detained by ICE on April 14, 2025, immediately after his naturalization interview at a USCIS field office in Vermont. Federal Judge Crawford ordered his release on April 30, 2025, after finding that the government arrested him in retaliation for his pro-Palestinian speech and activism, violating his First Amendment and due process rights. The Trump administration had targeted him for lawful political speech deemed contrary to U.S. foreign policy. Mahdawi was released on bail pending resolution of his habeas petition, though he may still face deportation proceedings.

Sergio Cerdio Gomez, a 42-year-old Pasco food truck owner and father of three, was detained by ICE agents on April 24, 2025, during a scheduled immigration interview in Yakima. Gomez was attending the interview with his U.S. citizen wife, Gabrielle Cerdio, regarding his pending green card and citizenship application, which they had filed in 2022. He was taken into custody on an outstanding warrant. Gomez co-owns the Kennewick food truck Hibachi Explosion with his wife. He was subsequently deported to Chiapas, Mexico in June 2025.

Terez Metry was detained by immigration agents during a routine meeting at the Department of Homeland Security office on Brick Church Pike in Nashville. She had submitted Form I-130 as the first step toward obtaining a Green Card to become a U.S. citizen like her husband of three years. Her husband believes she is being taken to Louisiana for removal proceedings despite following immigration procedures carefully.

Rosmery Alvarado, 42, a Kansas resident born in Guatemala, was arrested by ICE agents immediately after completing a spousal green card interview at the USCIS office in Kansas City on April 23, 2025. She is now facing deportation to Guatemala and is being held in detention, despite her family believing her petition had been approved. The arrest occurred after ICE agents waited for her husband to step out of the interview room before detaining and handcuffing her.

Cliona Ward, a 54-year-old Irish national who has legally resided in the United States for approximately 40 years, was detained by ICE after returning from a trip to Ireland where she visited her ill father. Ward, a green card holder, was questioned about criminal convictions from 2003-2008 related to drug possession charges. She claims these convictions were expunged. Ward is being held in an ICE facility in Tacoma, Washington, and is scheduled to appear before an immigration judge in Seattle to argue her case.

ICE conducted a raid on a paint business in El Cajon on March 27, 2025, arresting Jorge Lopez Leon and approximately 14 other workers. Lopez Leon, a father of four whose wife is a U.S. citizen and who was in the process of obtaining a green card, was detained at Otay Mesa Detention Center. The operation involved dozens of agents with weapons and resulted in the deportation of at least three workers who chose not to contest their cases in immigration court.

ICE transferred 20-year-old Cristofer Ortega from New Jersey to a detention center in Louisiana despite having an approved legal pathway to citizenship through Special Immigrant Juvenile Status. Ortega, who arrived in the U.S. at age 9 and has no criminal record, was detained after an encounter while completing his HVAC certification. ICE is planning to deport him to Honduras before he can apply for his green card.

Fabian Schmidt, a 34-year-old German-born electrical engineer and green card holder living in New Hampshire with his U.S. citizen partner Bhavani Hodgkins and their 8-year-old daughter, was detained by CBP officers at Boston Logan Airport on March 7, 2025, upon returning from a trip to Germany and Luxembourg. According to his family, Schmidt was interrogated for hours and subjected to mistreatment including being stripped naked, placed in a cold shower, denied food and water, denied access to anxiety and depression medication, and deprived of sleep. He collapsed during the interrogation and was transported by ambulance to Massachusetts General Hospital, where he was diagnosed with influenza. Schmidt was subsequently transferred to ICE custody at the Donald W. Wyatt detention facility in Rhode Island, where he remained in custody. His mother, Astrid Senior, stated she has no idea why he is being held and noted his green card was recently renewed with no active legal issues, though he faced misdemeanor marijuana-related charges approximately a decade ago and may have missed a hearing in 2022. CBP denied allegations of mistreatment, stating officers took "proper action" due to drug-related charges. The German embassy confirmed awareness of the case and stated it has been in close contact with relevant U.S. authorities and the family.

Boun Morisath, a Bremerton father and longtime lawful permanent resident, was detained on March 11, 2025, during a routine check-in at the Department of Homeland Security office in Tukwila after 30 years of regular compliance with immigration officials. He remains in custody at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma. His family says he poses no flight risk or danger to society and questions why ICE has suddenly detained him during a visit he had completed without issue for three decades.

M.K., a lawful permanent resident and student at Columbia University, was arrested by ICE on March 8, 2025, at his student housing with no prior notice. According to his habeas corpus petition, DHS agents initially claimed his student visa had been revoked, but M.K. presented documents proving he is a green card holder. The agents arrested him anyway, claiming his green card had been revoked without providing any basis for the revocation. M.K. is married to a U.S. citizen who is 8 months pregnant. His petition alleges the arrest and detention violate his First Amendment and Due Process rights and claims the government is using immigration enforcement to suppress student activism and political speech.

Issa Salma Baouna, a 49-year-old green-card holder from Niger, was denied reentry to the United States at John F. Kennedy International Airport on March 6 after CBP determined he was inadmissible due to a prior removal order from 2022. Baouna had been ordered removed following an arrest for assault and visa overstay, and was paroled back into the country multiple times in 2023. After voluntarily returning to Niger, he contracted malaria that led to kidney failure. His wife left the U.S. with their two children to reunite with him.

Yunseo Chung, a 21-year-old permanent resident and Columbia University undergraduate, was pursued by ICE in March 2025 following her arrest for trespassing at a pro-Palestine demonstration on Barnard College campus in early 2025, for which she paid a fine. ICE searched her dorm room and her parents' home but did not locate her. She filed suit against the Trump Administration alleging violation of her First Amendment rights. On June 5, 2025, U.S. District Judge Naomi Buchwald issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting ICE from arresting or detaining Chung and rejected the government's motion to dismiss, noting that ICE failed to issue her a notice to appear in immigration court. Chung subsequently returned to court on May 29, 2025, seeking to consolidate the protective order while her constitutional case proceeds.

Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate and Palestine student leader who is a lawful permanent resident, was detained by immigration agents at his campus residence in March 2025. A federal appellate court reversed a lower court's decision releasing him in January 2026, and he remains in ICE detention as of the article date.

Lewelyn Dixon, a 64-year-old green card holder and University of Washington lab technician, was detained by ICE on February 28, 2025, after returning from the Philippines, following discovery of a 2000 embezzlement conviction by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Dixon had lived legally in the United States for over 50 years and completed restitution on her conviction in 2019. She is currently held at the Northwest ICE Detention Facility and is not bond eligible, with her first hearing scheduled for July 17. Her family and supporters have called for her release.

Sergey Kostenyuk, a Ukrainian refugee who came to the U.S. as a child and is a legal permanent resident with a green card, was arrested by ICE agents posing as customers interested in buying a chicken coop. He was detained for over two months based on two 2018 felony convictions for theft, but was eventually released when a judge ruled he did not meet the federal criteria for deportation.

Arbella Rodríguez Márquez, a woman with chronic lymphocytic leukemia who held a valid green card for two years, was detained by ICE in February 2025 after returning to Arizona from Mexico. Her green card status was revoked by a federal immigration judge following her detention. She is being held at Eloy Detention Center where advocates say she is receiving inadequate medical care, having lost 55 pounds and coughing up blood while only receiving Tylenol and stomach ulcer medicine.

Arbella "Yari" Rodríguez Márquez, a 47-year-old lawful permanent resident with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, was detained by ICE on February 10, 2025, after crossing back into Arizona through Nogales. She has been held at Eloy Detention Center for six months without access to cancer treatment, losing 55 pounds and receiving only Tylenol and ulcer medication. An immigration judge revoked her green card after her detention, and Arizona Representative Yassamin Ansari has intervened, demanding immediate medical care and her release.

Arbella "Yari" Rodríguez Márquez, a 39-year-old former legal permanent resident with chronic lymphocytic leukemia, has been detained by ICE at the Eloy Detention Center since February 10, 2025. She has not received proper medical care for her cancer. Her health has deteriorated, including coughing up blood and losing 70 pounds. Detention center staff have denied her requests to see an oncologist and specialist. U.S. Rep. Yassamin Ansari visited the facility and documented conditions. The representative has called for immediate medical intervention and her release.

Andrea, a 31-year-old woman from Argentina with a Green Card who has lived in the United States since age three, was arrested in February 2025 after calling police during a domestic dispute with her partner. A judge approved her release on $1,000 signature bond, which her family paid, but ICE issued a detainer and transferred her to Krome North. She was shackled on a multi-stop bus journey and spent a night on the bus in shackles when Krome was closed. At Krome, a male-only facility, she was confined in a small visitation room with up to 30 women with no beds, showers, or privacy for the toilet. She was denied medical care and later transferred across the country to Houston Processing Center for two months, where officers repeatedly failed to inform her of court dates and cut off contact with lawyers and family for 48 hours. Andrea was postpartum, having given birth three months before detention and breastfeeding until arrest; her mother relocated to Florida to care for her children. She was released in late April after authorities retrieved documentation of an expunged cannabis conviction.

Gehovani Alvirde Ruiz, a lawful permanent resident, was detained by federal agents in his front yard on February 1, 2025. Agents claimed both his Social Security card and permanent residency card were fake and transported him to an immigration detention center where he was placed in a cell. After approximately two hours, agents released him, stating there had been an error in their system. Ruiz testified in the Venegas lawsuit regarding his experience.

Ashley's husband was detained during a Green Card interview in February 2025 at a USCIS office in Broward County, despite legal assurances he would not be. He was taken to Krome in Miami and subsequently deported to Honduras. Ashley, a mother of four daughters, initially remained in the U.S. but traveled to Honduras in March 2025 to reunite with him. The family now navigates separation with Ashley working multiple jobs while managing the instability caused by his deportation.

Jose Alvaro, an undocumented immigrant from Central America applying for a green card, was detained by ICE after a Lubbock police officer pulled him over for a license plate issue and called federal immigration authorities. The traffic stop has left his U.S. citizen wife Ashley and their three U.S.-born children facing deportation proceedings. Advocates have noted that routine police interactions can lead to deportations.

Marlon Parris, 45, a two-tour U.S. Army veteran from Trinidad and Tobago, has been detained by ICE since January 22 and is facing deportation proceedings despite holding a green card for nearly 30 years. Parris served his country on two deployments and has had no arrests since his release from a nonviolent drug offense conviction in 2016, when ICE issued him a no-interest letter stating he would not be deported. In 2023, a customs agent questioned the letter and revoked his green card when he returned from vacation abroad; he was subsequently classified as an arriving noncitizen and denied bond eligibility. His wife, Tanisha Hartwell-Parris, and his attorney, Douglas Kouffie, say the family was in active communication with the government and had already attended ICE and court hearings before his sudden January detention.

Jose Barco, 39, is a decorated U.S. Army veteran who deployed twice to Iraq, received a Purple Heart after a 2004 explosion caused traumatic brain injury, and was honorably discharged in 2008. In April 2008, while struggling with untreated TBI symptoms and PTSD, Barco shot into a crowd of teenagers in Colorado Springs, injuring a pregnant 19-year-old; he was sentenced to 52 years and spent 15 years in prison as a model inmate. Released on parole on January 21, 2025, he was immediately detained by ICE. His commanding officer confirmed Barco's 2006 citizenship application was completed and eligible but was lost in processing. On his release from prison, Barco was transferred to immigration detention and ordered deported to Venezuela in February 2025. When deported, Venezuelan authorities refused to accept him, citing doubts about his birth certificate and lack of family ties, and he was returned to U.S. detention. His wife Tia, supporters including his former Army medic, and veteran advocacy organizations are seeking intervention.