Human Impact Project

Yoiker Sequera, a 25-year-old Venezuelan barber, was transferred to Guantanamo Bay after being held in detention in El Paso for five months. He turned himself in to Border Patrol in Presidio in September 2024 and was detained awaiting asylum processing. His mother Angela Sequera said he wanted to join family in California and had worked as a barber in Venezuela, Ecuador, Colombia, and inside the detention center. She last spoke with him on a day before his transfer and said he told her he was exhausted and that his continued detention was unfair. He is among the three Venezuelans named in the ACLU lawsuit challenging the Guantanamo detentions.

Twenty-one Haitian immigrants, including 12 with criminal records, were deported from the United States on February 4, 2025. The deportees, who had been detained during the Biden administration, were received at Cap-Haïtien International Airport. They reported confiscated belongings and minimal reintegration support. Haiti's government provided minimal assistance.

The Trump administration has flown approximately 100 immigrant detainees to Guantanamo Bay Naval Base since February 4, 2025, claiming they are dangerous criminals including gang members. ProPublica and The Texas Tribune identified nearly a dozen Venezuelan immigrants transferred there, and records show at least three had no criminal history except unauthorized entry, or minor charges incurred while detained. The government has refused to release detainees' names or crime details and denied families and attorneys access to the detainees. The ACLU filed a lawsuit arguing the detainees are being denied constitutional rights to legal representation.

A South Carolina man was arrested after a video showed him impersonating an ICE officer and confronting a Latino man in a pickup truck, telling him he would be sent back to Mexico. The arrest was followed by a similar incident at Temple University in Pennsylvania, where three men falsely identified themselves as ICE officers at a residence hall and cookie shop.

Franco Jose Caraballo Tiapa, a 26-year-old barber from Venezuela, migrated to the United States in 2023 with his wife seeking asylum due to political persecution and had no criminal history. He presented himself to ICE for a routine check-in in early February 2025 and was detained without being informed of the reason, though he reported being questioned about his tattoos. Without notifying his attorneys or family, he was deported to El Salvador's CECOT mega-prison under a Trump executive order allowing ICE to send noncitizens to third countries willing to accept them. His family learned of his deportation only after seeing videos of his arrival on social media, having expected him to be sent to Venezuela instead. His attorneys provided documentation proving his clean background and pending asylum claim.

Sean Michael-Emmrich Johnson was arrested after turning himself in to Sullivan's Island Police Department for allegedly impersonating an ICE officer in a viral video where he harassed Hispanic men. He faces charges including felony kidnapping, impersonating a law enforcement officer, larceny, and assault and battery. Johnson bonded out of jail after a court appearance where his family cited his mental health challenges and request for treatment.

Thousands of demonstrators gathered in downtown Los Angeles on February 2, 2025, to protest Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids and the Trump administration's deportation plans. The protest began on Olvera Street and grew to include marches to City Hall before crowds moved onto the 101 freeway, blocking traffic for hours. Similar protests occurred in Riverside and Garden Grove, California. Police declared the gathering an unlawful assembly by 8 p.m. and cleared remaining protesters, with minimal arrests reported and no injuries.

In New Orleans, ICE called Arely Westley, a trans-Latina immigrant advocate, into the field office after telling her they wanted to offer her less restrictive monitoring in recognition of her community leadership. She was detained when she arrived at her check-in. She had received the Robert & Ethel Kennedy Human Rights Center annual human rights award in 2024 and was in the process of obtaining a visa for trafficking survivors.

In Maryland, ICE agents arrested Apr. Amaya-Luis, a transgender woman married to a U.S. citizen, after she appeared for a routine probation check-in. She was then transferred to an all-male detention facility in Miami even though her lawyers said they had provided a passport listing her name as Apr. Amaya-Luis and her gender as female.

A Venezuelan asylum seeker in Arizona, who had arrived through CBP One and held humanitarian parole, was detained while waiting in a Walmart parking lot for a delivery order after federal agents knocked on his car window. He showed agents a valid work permit and driver's license, but they detained him anyway.

In Coral Springs, Florida, an armed federal agent was recorded at a neighborhood playground while heavily armed agents, some carrying shields, raided a home down the street.

In New Mexico, 10 Las Cruces high school students on their way to a swim meet were confronted by a Border Patrol agent at a permanent interior Border Patrol checkpoint. After the Spanish-speaking driver could not answer the agent's questions in English, the agent boarded the bus and demanded students' papers in Spanish over their coaches' objections. 'Without hesitation he jumped on the bus and didn't ask the adults any more questions. He just started walking in the bus and started yelling in Spanish, demanding documentation from all the passengers,' said Las Cruces High Swim coach Pamela Quiñones. Students were visibly shaken.

A woman from Honduras was detained at Krome's processing room where she reported the one toilet in her cell was covered in feces. Despite repeated requests for cleaning supplies, officers told her sarcastically, 'Housekeeping will come soon.' No one ever came. She was denied pain relief for menstrual cramps and provided only a menstrual pad. After transfer to the Broward Transitional Center, she fell from her bunk in March. Although an X-ray showed no fracture, her ankle became swollen and bruised. She walked in pain for a week before receiving crutches, after repeated requests for some form of relief.

In late February 2025, ICE transported several women to Krome North Service Processing Center, a male-only facility, and confined them for days in a tiny cell that grew from 25 to 31 women with a single exposed toilet. The toilet was visible through windows to adjacent rooms housing men. Officers denied the women showers, saying clearing a section was 'not feasible.' Officers refused to provide medications the women had brought, claiming they were not authorized to treat women. A woman with diabetes was hospitalized after being denied insulin. Another with gallstones was denied medication for days until she began vomiting green bile and lost consciousness, requiring emergency gallbladder removal. She was returned to the cell without prescribed medication. A third woman also had to be hospitalized. When all three returned, officers again refused their medications. Only after women posted signs saying they were being treated inhumanely were they taken — shackled — to shower after four days.

A 56-year-old British man with diabetes, pancreatitis, and heart disease was detained at a routine annual ICE appointment in early February 2025 and shackled on a bus outside Krome for up to three hours. His family delivered a three-month supply of medications including insulin he needs four times daily, but staff failed to administer them consistently. When transferred to FDC, he received some heart medication and minimal insulin but nothing for pancreatitis. During his April 15 transfer to BTC, guards sent his medications to Krome instead. At BTC, a doctor dismissed his asthma diagnosis, saying 'No one has asthma over 18,' and refused to hear his medical history. Five days later, he collapsed in the dinner line. His family discovered he had been registered at the hospital under a false name. ICE refused to share any information about his condition. He was returned to BTC in shackles after three days.

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.

Four undocumented immigrants were taken into custody by Burleigh County Sheriff's deputies during a traffic stop and transferred to U.S. Border Patrol. One individual is reported to be an active associate with the Tren de Aragua gang from Venezuela. According to Burleigh County Sheriff Kelly Leben, arrests involving gang affiliations were rare in the county. All four individuals were scheduled for removal from the country.

Bayartulga Avirmed, a deaf Mongolian who fled persecution and entered the U.S. in February, was detained by ICE and subjected to deportation proceedings, mental health evaluations, and expedited removal without access to a Mongolian Sign Language interpreter despite communicating only in MSL. The government initially provided only an American Sign Language interpreter who could not understand him. U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw ruled that the government must provide an MSL interpreter, redo Avirmed's hearings and evaluations, and allow three hours of video communication with his attorney instead of CoreCivic's one-hour policy to accommodate interpretation time. Avirmed claims he faced beatings and discrimination in Mongolia due to his deafness, suffering a traumatic brain injury in 2020.

A 2-month-old infant was hospitalized with bronchitis while in ICE custody and was later deported to Mexico in February 2025. The case is documented in a June 9 analysis by MS NOW and The Marshall Project examining detention conditions for infants and toddlers, which found that ICE has detained more than 500 children under age three since January 2025, with inadequate medical care cited as a recurring problem.

Rafael Flores Martinez, a father and husband, was detained by ICE in February 2025 while working at his family's pupusa stand in Pacoima, California. He was held at Adelanto ICE Processing Center for over a year before being transferred to El Paso, Texas in June 2026, then to Central Louisiana ICE Processing Center. As of June 25, 2026, he was suspected to be at Alexandria International Airport awaiting deportation to El Salvador despite having legal grounds to file additional appeals.

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.

F.A. and her two minor children fled Turkey after her husband was targeted for membership in the Gülen movement. After entering the U.S. in early February 2025 and repeatedly telling officials they came to seek asylum, they were expelled after nine days in detention on a military plane to Panama. Panamanian officials told them they could go to a detention camp in the jungle or return to Turkey. Fearing they would not survive, F.A. accepted return to Turkey, where the family now lives in hiding.

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.

A 36-year-old asylum seeker identified as J.S.T. was arrested during a February 2025 raid at an Aurora apartment complex while leaving to head to work. He was detained for four weeks. The ACLU filed a lawsuit on his behalf alleging the arrest lacked proper probable cause determination and was part of a pattern of indiscriminate arrests.

Ashley's husband was detained during a Green Card interview in February 2025 despite having no criminal record and his lawyer's assurance that detention was unlikely. He was taken to Krome in Miami and eventually deported to Honduras. The family remains separated, though Ashley visited Honduras with their four daughters in March 2025.

Lázaro Romero León, a 59-year-old Cuban who lived in the United States for over 30 years, was deported to Mexico by ICE in February 2025 despite a federal judge's order prohibiting his removal. As of May 2026, he remains stranded in Tapachula, Chiapas, homeless and without resources after multiple failed attempts to return him. A federal judge has threatened sanctions against the government, while a diplomatic gap between the U.S. and Mexico regarding wrongful deportations continues to complicate his case.

Juan Carlos Barreto, a Venezuelan college professor, was arrested by ICE at his Shakopee apartment in January while claiming to have followed all legal asylum procedures. He has been released but is monitored with an ankle monitor.

Flora, a Venezuelan trafficking survivor with an active asylum claim and pending T visa application, was detained by ICE on January 30, 2025, at a routine check-in appointment after reporting her alleged trafficker to federal authorities. She was transported 1,200 miles to a detention center in Louisiana and separated from her 4-year-old son and 18-month-old daughter for two months. Flora had fled her alleged abuser in early 2025 with help from a local nonprofit and was in the process of obtaining a T visa for trafficking survivors when ICE detained her. She was released on April 2, 2025, hours before a court hearing on her habeas corpus petition, but the detention caused significant retraumatization to her and her children.

A Venezuelan mother of two arrested during an ICE check-in in January 2025 remains detained and faces deportation despite pending asylum and trafficking visa applications. She was allegedly trafficked to the US in 2023 and subjected to sexual abuse, forced labor, and physical violence. Her lawyers filed a habeas corpus petition in February 2025, alleging unlawful detention and violations of due process rights. Her alleged trafficker, a foreign national, remains free and has reportedly tracked her down at a Maryland church where she sought refuge.

A Puerto Rican family of U.S. citizens, including a toddler, was wrongfully detained by ICE in Milwaukee after being overheard speaking Spanish while shopping. The family was transported to a detention center before officials acknowledged the error and apologized. After presenting official documents proving their citizenship, they were released but left to arrange their own transportation home.

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.

An Ethiopian national died in ICE custody at a Phoenix-area hospital on February 7, 2025. The death occurred during the first 100 days of the Trump administration, one of seven migrant deaths in ICE custody reported during that period. An ACLU investigation found that most ICE custody deaths in recent years could have been prevented with proper treatment.

Jesus Romero-Hernandez, 27, a Mexican citizen, pleaded guilty in federal court to illegally entering the United States after a previous removal. He faces a maximum two-year prison sentence, a $250,000 fine, and potential deportation. Romero-Hernandez is scheduled to be sentenced on July 17, 2025 in Utica, New York. He was arrested by federal agents on January 30 after being released from Tompkins County Sheriff's custody the previous day.

A 45-year-old Ethiopian man died on January 29, 2025, from complications of untreated HIV while in ICE custody at Eloy Detention Center in Arizona. He had been detained for nearly four months after entering the country illegally and was not screened for HIV despite developing severe symptoms. Medical experts stated routine blood tests at initial intake or upon symptom development could have identified HIV through early diagnosis and antiretroviral treatment.

Andrei Barrientos, 36, was deported from El Paso to Bogota on January 28, 2025, as part of the group of approximately 200 Colombian migrants whose deportation sparked a diplomatic dispute between Presidents Trump and Petro. This was Barrientos's second deportation from the United States. He was initially placed on a military flight on Sunday that was turned around when Colombian authorities blocked its landing, then spent a night in El Paso before being repatriated on a civilian aircraft organized by the Colombian government.

ICE agents arrested Wilson Rogelio Velasquez Cruz outside Iglesia Fuente de Vida church in Tucker on Sunday while he was attending service with his family. Velasquez Cruz, who had a valid five-year work permit and was employed at a tire shop, had been wearing an immigration GPS ankle monitor since seeking asylum from Honduras two years ago. His wife expressed concern about the family's future and reported that her husband will be transferred to Stewart Detention Center and deported without the ability to appeal to a judge.

U.S. citizens, including Native Americans and a military veteran, have been detained and questioned during Trump administration immigration raids. Witnesses report that those caught in ICE operations are being targeted based on race or skin color, with Navajo Nation citizens experiencing particularly problematic encounters. The seafood wholesaler owner in Newark reported that ICE targeted certain types of people while ignoring white and Portuguese workers.

The Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network received a stop-work order from the Trump administration after its federal funding was paused, affecting programs that provide legal orientation and rights information to migrants in immigration proceedings. The Colorado-based nonprofit, which receives approximately 25% of its funding from the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security, argues the federally-funded programs benefit taxpayers by helping people navigate the immigration court system more efficiently. RMIAN has received federal support for about 20 years under multiple administrations and contends that investment in legal orientation reduces costs associated with detention and prolonged court proceedings.

Bryan José Rojas Galofre, a Venezuelan immigrant married to a U.S. citizen, was detained by ICE on January 27, 2025, following a security checkpoint stop at Trump National Doral hotel during a honeymoon trip. Agents discovered an airsoft gun and marijuana grinder in his vehicle, leading to local drug paraphernalia charges and questioning about gang ties based on his tattoos. Despite an immigration judge granting him bond in April 2025, Rojas remained in federal detention until his release on May 6, 2025. His nearly three-month detention resulted in job loss, expiration of his work permit, loss of his home and vehicle, depletion of retirement savings, over $80,000 in debt, and significant family financial hardship. His immigration case remains pending with a hearing scheduled for 2028.

Angela Mata Mendoza, a 10-year employee at an Escondido supermarket married to a U.S. citizen with four U.S. citizen children, was arrested by ICE on January 27, 2025, during her early morning shift and detained at Otay Mesa Detention Center. She was under a court order of supervision (similar to bond) and had never missed a mandatory ICE check-in. Her lawyer, Kerry Yianilos, used habeas corpus protections to challenge her unlawful detention and secure her release, highlighting the importance of these constitutional protections amid the Trump administration's consideration of eliminating them for undocumented immigrants.

ICE detained two parents, Reinaldo Chirino from Venezuela and Kris Estefany Pineda-Torregrosa from Colombia, after school drop-off on January 27, leaving their two young children (ages 12 and 4) in the care of a family friend. The couple had entered the country legally in 2022 under Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Venezuelans but lost their legal status when the Trump administration revoked TPS protections. They are being held at Otay Mesa Detention Center pending removal proceedings.

Abel Orozco, a 47-year-old who has lived in suburban Chicago for 30 years and owns a tree-cutting business, was arrested by ICE on January 26 while driving home from picking up tamales for his family. According to his attorney, Orozco has no criminal record and arrived in the U.S. in the late 1990s under a legal work petition, though he was given a removal order in 2004 after visiting his father in Mexico. ICE officers apprehended him without a warrant, searching for his oldest son who shares the same name. Orozco has been detained in Kentucky for nearly six months facing expedited deportation. His family has missed mortgage payments and his younger son struggles to maintain his father's business while his wife fights breast cancer. Orozco is among 22 detainees alleging that immigration agents violated federal law and a 2022 settlement by arresting them without proper warrants or proof of flight risk, with a motion filed challenging the legality of the arrests.

Pavlo Mykolayovych Zinkevych, a 37-year-old Ukrainian man with lawful status under the Uniting for Ukraine program, was arrested by Frisco Police on January 26, 2025, for a minor traffic violation and suspected DWI. Despite holding valid legal status, a valid I-94, and a pending Temporary Protected Status application, ICE detained him for over three months and threatened deportation to war-torn Ukraine. An immigration judge stated she believed Zinkevych should not be detained, but lacks jurisdiction to order his release, while DHS maintains authority over his case and has remained unresponsive to legal requests.

A 37-year-old Raleigh man was arrested after allegedly kidnapping and raping a woman at a Motel 6 while impersonating an ICE agent and threatening to deport her if she did not have sex with him. The suspect, Carl Thomas Bennett, showed a fake business card with a badge and is facing charges including kidnapping, second-degree rape, and impersonating a law enforcement officer.

Brazil's government responded after 88 of its nationals arrived in the country handcuffed following their deportation from the United States. The Brazilian government called the treatment degrading and a flagrant disregard for fundamental rights and demanded an explanation from Washington. Colombia announced it would not allow US deportation flights to land in the country, turning away military aircraft carrying deported migrants.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers pulled over a father traveling with his children in Douglasville, Georgia. Officers instructed the father to contact his wife, and the family initially believed he was the target of enforcement action. However, when the wife arrived at the scene, authorities detained her instead.

Arlit Maria Martinez-Carrada, a Mexican national, was detained by ICE on January 3 while on her way to work in Wicomico County. Her son Kevin died from cancer just days later on January 5, but an immigration judge initially denied her release, deeming her a flight risk. After a federal judge approved her release on January 26 with a $12,000 bond, Martinez-Carrada returned to Salisbury with an ankle bracelet monitor.

Brazilian migrants deported from the United States arrived at Belo Horizonte International Airport on January 25, 2025, reporting abuse, threats, and degrading treatment by U.S. immigration agents during their deportation flight. The deportees reported they were handcuffed for 50 hours without air conditioning, subjected to poor conditions, and opened an emergency door to alert Brazilian authorities. The Brazilian government requested explanations from the Trump administration regarding the treatment of the passengers.

Minneapolis rapper Nur-D was arrested by federal agents on January 24 while participating in protests. The arrest occurred following the shooting death of Alex Pretti by U.S. Border Patrol agents. Nur-D says he was hit by a projectile, thrown to the ground, and arrested for allegedly assaulting a federal officer. He is pursuing legal action against the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, and U.S. Border Patrol.

On January 23, 2025, ICE agents detained Giovanni Duran, an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador, during a traffic stop in Echo Park, Los Angeles, while his wife Loreal and their children were present. Duran had lived in the U.S. for nearly four decades. According to ICE, Duran entered the country illegally before 2001 and had prior convictions for sex with a minor in 2012 and DUI in 2014, with a deportation order issued in 2014. He is currently held at Adelanto detention facility awaiting deportation.