Human Impact Project

Grace Stephanie Calero Cabanilla, 39, and her 19-year-old daughter Giulianna Mía Carriel Calero, both of Ecuadorian origin, were arrested by ICE agents inside the emergency room of HCA Florida Poinciana Hospital while being treated after a car accident. The crash occurred when another vehicle crossed into their lane, causing their car to roll over; Grace was diagnosed with neck injuries and fitted with a cervical collar, while Giulianna suffered a nervous breakdown from the emotional shock. Polk County Sheriff's Office deputies, who participate in the federal 287(g) program, went to the hospital to question the women before ICE took them into custody, handcuffing and escorting them out in front of other patients and staff while Giulianna was still wearing her hospital gown. Grace's sister, Gia Calero, said the women were still receiving medical care when they were detained and that they had a pending asylum process. Video of the arrest circulated widely, prompting reaction from the Ecuadorian community and immigrant rights organizations opposed to ICE operations at hospitals and other places where people seek medical care.

Edgar Chacon-Miranda, 45, was detained by ICE agents in the parking lot of La Familia Health/Medical Center in Santa Fe as he drove his young daughter to a medical appointment, after apparently being followed from home. Clinic staff, including chief information officer Jasmin Milz, said agents blocked his vehicle and took him into custody without entering the building, and the child was later picked up by a family member with help from community advocates. DHS labeled Chacon-Miranda a 'criminal illegal alien' with an 'extensive criminal history,' citing 2018 battery, criminal sexual penetration, and child abuse charges, but court records show those charges were dismissed after the alleged victim declined to cooperate. His attorney, Allegra Love, said he has full legal custody of his children under a New Mexico family court order and received a U visa in 2022 for cooperating with law enforcement, which expired in May while his residency application remains pending. Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies criticized federal officials for citing the dismissed case without noting its outcome. U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernández said ICE reported eight people detained in Santa Fe that day and called leaving the child in the parking lot 'cruelty.' New Mexico House Majority Leader Reena Szczepanski confirmed agents had followed the parent and child from their home.

Edwin Jovanny López Cornejo, a 39-year-old Salvadoran national who had lived in the U.S. for nearly 20 years, died August 1, 2026, at University Hospital in Newark following a medical emergency at the Delaney Hall ICE detention facility. He suffered from epilepsy, diabetes, and high blood pressure requiring daily medication, and leaves behind a 12-year-old U.S. citizen daughter, Ashley. ICE arrested him June 18, 2026, in Plainfield, New Jersey, reviving a 2006 deportation order, though his family said he held a valid work permit. His mother, Maria Cornejo, said he called her feeling very ill with numbness in his face and hand after seeing a facility medical provider, and described him as hardworking and a good father, saying, "I lost him to the hands of immigration authorities." The ACLU of New Jersey and his family allege he was denied adequate medical care, which DHS denies, stating he received proper treatment. His death was the second at Delaney Hall since it opened in May 2025, following months of detainee complaints and lawsuits alleging denial of medication, and prompted Governor Mikie Sherrill and Newark Mayor Ras Baraka to call for the facility's closure.

On August 2, a man was reportedly detained inside the emergency room at NewYork-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital by masked federal agents. A DHS vehicle pulled into the emergency bay while protesters gathered outside, and the detained man was removed through another exit. The incident prompted community concern about immigration enforcement in medical settings.

A woman discovered she was pregnant while in ICE detention and subsequently miscarried. After the miscarriage, she was shackled to a hospital bed while officers questioned her. The incident raises serious concerns about medical care and treatment of pregnant detainees in immigration custody.

Sarafinah Bukirwa, a 31-year-old Ugandan immigrant and founder of Sarafinah Sickle Cell Society, a nonprofit treating sickle cell anemia, was detained by ICE on July 22, 2026, at Muhammad Ali International Airport in Louisville while traveling to a sickle cell anemia conference in California. Bukirwa entered the U.S. legally on a visa to expand her nonprofit work and has a pending asylum claim with valid work authorization. After being held at Grayson County Detention Center in Leitchfield, Kentucky, her family reported she was denied her required sickle cell medication for nearly a week despite having the medication with her, with prescriptions reportedly diluted in water and withheld. She experienced a medical crisis requiring hospitalization at a Louisville hospital the day before her detention. Her brother Isaac Kabunga stated at a press conference that ICE agents claimed she was arrested for overstaying her visa, though U.S. Rep. Morgan McGarvey confirmed she is following proper legal procedures and called for her immediate release, stating her condition could become life-threatening without proper treatment.

Marco Antonio Roblero Pérez, a 25-year-old Guatemalan immigrant, was arrested by ICE agents at a gas station in Chamblee, Georgia on July 19, 2026, while stopping to buy drinks on his way to work. According to his family and eyewitness accounts, agents subjected him to physical strikes, a chokehold, and electric shocks with a taser during the arrest. He was hospitalized in Atlanta with a broken nose, broken teeth, severe facial trauma, and spinal injuries requiring a cervical neck brace. An ICE agent remained stationed at his hospital bed during his recovery. His family has questioned the medical care he received, while ICE agents stated they used a stun gun during the operation.

José Gregorio González, a 43-year-old Venezuelan immigrant, traveled to the United States to donate a kidney to his brother José Alfredo Pacheco, who has end-stage renal disease. González was arrested in March 2025 after accompanying his brother to a dialysis appointment, despite having no criminal record and a deportation order on file. ICE temporarily released him in April 2025 to proceed with the kidney donation. The transplant occurred in August 2025. González's one-year humanitarian parole expired in March 2026, and his attorney was seeking an extension to allow him to remain in the country through March 2027 for post-transplant medical monitoring. On July 21, 2026, González was detained by ICE during a routine immigration check-in while the parole extension was being pursued. Pacheco has experienced complications since the transplant and relies on González for care.

Neride Montoya was detained by ICE in the United States for three months before being deported to Venezuela. She arrived in Caracas on the same day a major earthquake struck the country. Shortly after landing, she was taken to a building by authorities when the earthquake began. She attempted to escape down the stairs but a wall collapsed on her, injuring her severely. She sustained fractures in two bones of her right leg, multiple traumatic injuries to her left leg and other parts of her body. She was trapped under rubble but managed to remove debris from her head to her waist before someone helped free her legs. She is now hospitalized at Hospital General del Sur, where she is fighting a serious infection and severe psychological trauma.

Jaime Alanis Garcia, a 57-year-old farmworker at Glass House Farms in Camarillo, California, died from injuries sustained during a federal immigration raid in July 2025. While fleeing federal immigration agents who deployed rubber bullets, tear gas, and stun guns, Garcia fell approximately 30 feet from a greenhouse roof, sustaining a broken neck and skull fractures. He was placed on life support before his family decided to discontinue his care. Garcia's wife and daughter filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Glass House Farms and the federal government, alleging that federal agents' use of excessive force caused Garcia to seek shelter on the roof. The raid resulted in more than 360 arrests of undocumented workers across Camarillo and Carpinteria locations. The Department of Homeland Security stated that Alanis was never in custody and was not being chased by federal agents. Community members later marched through Carpinteria to commemorate Garcia's death and demand accountability.

Multiple ICE agents were recorded engaging in physical violence with a man outside Sentara BelleHarbour Hospital Emergency Room in Suffolk, Virginia. According to witness accounts shared on social media, after the man was thrown to the ground, agents punched and kicked him while he had his hands up in a compliant position. The incident occurred in broad daylight at the corner of Bridge Road and Plummer Boulevard.

Isalia Martínez, a 46-year-old Mexican mother, was detained by ICE agents in the parking lot of Community Care clinic in Austin on June 29 while heading to a medical appointment. After six days in immigration custody and being transferred between two detention centers, she was deported to Michoacán, Mexico. Martínez has two sons, ages 17 and 22, who remain in the United States. She expressed devastation at the separation, saying she feels helpless being separated from her children and hopes to reunite with them someday.

Adrian Andreas Florian, an 85-year-old German national, died at Valley Baptist Medical Center in Harlingen, Texas on June 24, 2026, after spending nearly eight months hospitalized while in ICE custody. Florian presented himself at the Colombia Solidarity Bridge port of entry in Laredo on August 28, 2025, without valid documentation and was taken into ICE custody the following day. He was transferred to the hospital on November 4, 2025 due to dementia, high blood pressure, cognitive impairment, and ulcers. He is the 21st person to die in ICE custody in 2026 and the first German national to die in custody that year, with the cause of death pending autopsy results.

Federal immigration enforcement officials conducted a vehicle chase that ended in the parking lot of Steilacoom High School in Washington on June 12, 2026. The chase began at Western State Hospital parking lot and continued onto Sentinel Drive before concluding at the high school. The driver, a middle-aged man, attempted to flee on foot but was apprehended by immigration authorities.

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.

A Venezuelan man detained at a Vermont immigration facility developed a severe infection from flesh-eating bacteria on his leg after staff failed to bring him to a scheduled doctor's appointment. His leg became purple and swollen as a result of the missed care. His case is among hundreds documented across at least 33 states where detainees allege medical neglect in ICE facilities.

Aliya Rahman, a Bangladeshi American U.S. citizen with autism and traumatic brain injury, was detained by ICE agents in Minneapolis on her way to a doctor's appointment during Operation Metro Surge. At the intersection of 34th Street and Park Avenue, agents smashed her passenger side window and violently pulled her from her car despite her calling out that she was disabled. Four agents carried her handcuffed in a hogtied position before placing her in an SUV and transporting her to the Whipple Federal Building. At the facility, her requests for medical care were denied for more than an hour until she lost consciousness and was transported to the emergency room. She was released without charge and never cited, and subsequently filed formal complaints alleging violations of her First, Fourth, and Fifth Amendment rights, as well as human rights breaches, and pursued a tort claim for damages from unlawful detention and detention conditions.

On May 2-3, 2026, ICE agents arrested Chidozie Wilson Okeke, a Nigerian national who had overstayed his tourist visa since August 2023, during an enforcement operation near Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Brooklyn. Okeke sustained injuries during the arrest and was taken to the hospital's emergency room. Approximately 200-300 anti-ICE protesters gathered outside the hospital in response, resulting in a five-hour confrontation with NYPD. Nine people were arrested on charges including obstructing traffic, blocking emergency entrances, resisting arrest, obstructing governmental administration, reckless endangerment, and criminal mischief. During the protest, ICE vehicles were damaged, pepper spray was used against agents, and an ICE vehicle struck a protester; four NYPD officers and several DHS agents sustained minor injuries. On May 4, elected officials and community leaders, including City Council Member Sandy Nurse, rallied against the incident, citing direct coordination between ICE and NYPD and demanding the city respect sanctuary city laws.

Elmer Flores, a 27-year-old from Honduras, was detained by ICE agents on March 9, 2026, outside the Mecklenburg County Health Department while dropping off his pregnant wife for a medical appointment. Flores has lived in the U.S. for over three years and has no criminal record. His wife is five months pregnant with a high-risk pregnancy, and the family includes two other children. ICE is holding Flores at a detention facility in Georgia while his family remains in North Carolina. Community organizations have responded by alerting the public about safety concerns at public service locations.

Jose Guadalupe Ramos-Solano, a 52-year-old Mexican national married to Antonia Tovar for 28 years with two adult children, died of COVID-19 pneumonia at Adelanto ICE Processing Center on March 25, 2026. He was arrested by ICE on February 23 after appearing at a courthouse in Torrance for a traffic ticket, following a conviction for possession of a controlled substance and theft. During intake screening, staff documented pre-existing medical conditions including diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension. His wife reported that despite these documented conditions, he did not receive adequate medical care during his month-long detention, complaining of poor food, crowded conditions, and lack of medicine for minor ailments. On the evening of his death, he removed his shirt while feeling feverish, lost consciousness, and was pronounced dead at Victor Valley Global Medical Center approximately one hour after emergency services were called. His death was one of at least 14 ICE custody deaths reported between January and late March 2026. A federal judge subsequently ordered sweeping improvements to Adelanto, including potable water, adequate sanitation, improved medical care, and appointment of independent monitors.

Civil rights groups including the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center and ACLU of Michigan say ICE enforcement activity has increased at or near Michigan hospitals and clinics following federal withdrawal of guidelines that previously restricted law enforcement in health care settings. Health care providers report a rise in ICE encounters and worry about increased fear among patients and staff.

A 10-year-old U.S. citizen girl recovering from brain cancer was deported to Mexico along with her undocumented parents and four American-born siblings in February 2025. The family was detained at an immigration checkpoint while traveling from Rio Grande City to Houston for the child's emergency medical checkup. The girl, who had undergone surgery to remove a brain tumor, has been unable to continue her specialized medical treatment and rehabilitation in Mexico. An 11-year-old U.S. citizen recovering from brain cancer was deported to Mexico with her family by Border Patrol agents despite her documented citizenship and need for ongoing medical treatment. The family was traveling to Houston for emergency care when agents ignored a hospital letter the family had used previously at checkpoints and detained the family, deporting them the next day. The citizen child's 18-year-old brother, Fernando Hernández García, was not detained and remained in the U.S. to earn money and send medicine to his sister. The family's lawyers report they have been unable to access proper medical care in Mexico and have applied for humanitarian parole.

Valeria Mendoza Santiago, a 25-year-old pregnant woman from Oaxaca, Mexico, was arrested by ICE agents at a bus stop in Anchorage on March 20, 2026, and transferred to Hiland Mountain Correctional Center. She was scheduled for transfer to federal detention in Tacoma, Washington, but her lawyers obtained a temporary restraining order citing ICE's own guidelines against detaining pregnant women, resulting in her release. Santiago remains in federal immigration removal proceedings and lives at home with her son.

Daphy Michel, a 31-year-old Haitian asylum seeker who arrived at the southern border in 2022, died from hypothermia on March 2, 2026, after being released by ICE on February 27 or 28, 2026, under the Alternatives to Detention Program with an electronic ankle monitor. Michel had spent six months in Washington County Correctional Facility awaiting a preliminary hearing on misdemeanor charges stemming from an arrest for yelling due to untreated severe mental health issues. After her release, she was taken approximately 25 miles away to Pittsburgh and left at a bus shelter in sub-freezing temperatures (20–30°F) while wearing summer clothes, where she spent 24 to 30 hours alone before being found unresponsive. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner ruled her death a homicide. Her family plans to sue the U.S. government and other entities, alleging ICE failed to account for her severe vulnerability, including untreated mental health conditions and significant language barriers.

Emmanuel Damas, a 56-year-old Haitian who arrived in the U.S. under the Biden Administration's Humanitarian Parole program with a pending Temporary Protected Status application, died on March 2, 2026, from sepsis caused by an untreated dental infection. Damas was detained at Florence Correctional Center in Arizona and repeatedly reported tooth pain to facility staff starting in mid-February, requesting dental care multiple times but receiving only ibuprofen. After two weeks of complaints and developing difficulty breathing, he was taken to a Scottsdale hospital on February 19, but the infection had already progressed to septic shock and pneumonia. Damas died at the hospital. Representatives Ansari, Grijalva, and Stanton demanded a full investigation, noting he was the tenth person to die in ICE custody in the first two months of 2026.

A 7-year-old girl and her parents from Venezuela were detained by immigration agents outside a Portland hospital emergency department on January 16 while seeking emergency medical care for the child's prolonged nosebleed. After three weeks at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas, the family was released on February 7, though Congresswoman Maxine Dexter stated she was unsure why ICE approved their release. The detention marked one of the first confirmed cases of an entire family detained in Oregon during the Trump administration's escalated deportation campaign.

Amalia, a 1-year-old, and her parents including mother Kheilin Valero Marcano were detained at Dilley Immigration Processing Center. Amalia developed a fever and grew lethargic. Her parents returned to the facility's medical clinic repeatedly but were only given Tylenol and warned not to complain. When Amalia lost consciousness, her mother asked clinic employees if they would let her die. Amalia spent more than a week in an outside hospital after her oxygen levels dropped to dangerously low levels, diagnosed with COVID-19, an ear infection, pneumonia, bronchitis, and RSV. The family was released in February 2026 after two months at Dilley.

Makengo Nzeza was detained by ICE on January 23, 2026, while returning to the hospital after his wife gave birth via C-section to their newborn daughter. Nzeza, a member of First Parish Congregational Church in Saco, was arrested as part of Operation Catch of the Day. He had been granted asylum. DHS stated that Nzeza entered the country on a tourist visa in 2017 that expired in 2018. His wife was left alone at the hospital with their newborn and three other children ages 3, 6, and 11. A fundraiser was created to support the family and cover legal fees and bond costs.

A 62-year-old Somali elder was detained by ICE agents at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis on December 31 without a warrant. ICE officers remained at the patient's bedside for approximately 28 hours while she received medical care. During her detention, the patient was allegedly shackled to her hospital bed and denied family visits. She was subsequently transported to the ICU where she remains unresponsive.

Liborio Parral Ortiz and Bonfilia Sanchez Dominguez, a married couple from Mounds View, Minnesota, were stopped by ICE agents early Thursday morning while driving to Mercy Hospital's Unity Campus in Fridley because Sanchez Dominguez was experiencing back pain. ICE immediately detained Parral Ortiz and transported him to El Paso, Texas within 20 hours, separating him from his wife who remained hospitalized. According to their daughter Shelly Parral Ortiz, ICE agents were posted outside the mother's hospital room, and hospital staff told the family they would not be allowed to return to visit if they left. Security staff also threatened to arrest the family's lawyer when he attempted to speak with Sanchez Dominguez.

A family of three from Venezuela—parents Yohendry De Jesus Crespo and Darianny Liseth Gonzalez De Crespo, and their 7-year-old daughter Diana—were detained by immigration officers in a parking lot at Portland Adventist Health on January 16, 2026, while attempting to seek medical care for the child's nosebleed. The family, who entered the U.S. through a port of entry in California and have a pending asylum application, is now being held at ICE's South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas.

A 31-year-old Cuban man, identified as Ricardo H., reported being beaten by approximately 15 guards at Camp East Montana detention center at Fort Bliss military base in El Paso, Texas, after spending more than 20 hours without food and banging on a metal door to request meals. According to his account documented in a Human Rights Watch and ACLU report, six agents held him down face-first, stomped on his neck, and caused injuries to his ear and collarbone. The 84-page report, based on interviews with 80 people detained at the facility between October 2025 and June 2026, documents a pattern of alleged abuses including raids by masked agents without visible identification, unsanitary conditions, and cases of people detained despite documentation of legal status. The report also documents the death of another Cuban detainee, Gerardo Lunas Campos, 55, on January 3, 2026, whose autopsy determined the cause of death was asphyxiation due to compression of the neck and torso, classified as homicide.

Neysis Mairena, a Nicaraguan immigrant six months pregnant with twins, was hospitalized while in ICE detention at the Basile, Louisiana processing center after experiencing contractions. She was shackled to a hospital bed during her hospitalization. Mairena had been arrested on allegations of child endangerment related to an incident in which her 7-year-old daughter was present during an altercation with her partner; her attorney states she was acting in self-defense. She was released from detention on November 26, 2025, following a news outlet's inquiry into her case.

Izzy Aly, a 40-year-old Egyptian national, has been detained by ICE at Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Pennsylvania since December 2025. A DHS medical exam in January found stage 3 kidney disease, but Aly was not informed until March. Advocates allege ICE has denied his requests for treatment, and he recently reported seeing blood in his urine. Immigrant rights groups are calling for his release to receive proper medical care.

U.S. citizens were detained by federal agents at an Aurora school hospital. Protesters confronted the agents at the scene. The detained individuals have since spoken out about their experience.

Nayra Guzmán, a 22-year-old Mexican immigrant with pending asylum and visa applications, was detained by ICE in late October 2025 while traveling to a hospital to breastfeed her newborn daughter, who was in the NICU following birth complications. Guzmán had given birth via C-section approximately 15 days prior and was experiencing severe postpartum pain and a breast infection at the time of arrest. She was held at the Broadview ICE facility alongside her brother and mother, despite all three presenting valid work permits and documents showing they had been in the U.S. since 2022 after fleeing cartel violence in Mexico. During her approximately 34–36 hour detention, Guzmán was held in overcrowded conditions without adequate medical care, blankets, food, or water. A federal judge ordered the release of Guzmán and her family members, preventing their scheduled transfer to detention facilities in other states.

On Friday, October 2, 2025, federal immigration agents handcuffed Alderman Jessie Fuentes of the 26th Ward at Humboldt Park Hospital while she was confronting them about an arrest. Fuentes asked agents if they had a signed warrant before being handcuffed and led outside the hospital. Agents were at the hospital pursuing a person who had been injured and brought for medical care. The incident occurred during broader immigration enforcement operations across Chicago that included tear gas deployment and multiple arrests, including at least one U.S. citizen. Mayor Brandon Johnson stated that elected officials have a First Amendment right to document ICE actions and inform constituents of their rights. Governor Pritzker called for an investigation into treatment of children during a separate federal raid in South Shore.

Chicago Alderperson Jessie Fuentes was handcuffed and threatened with arrest by federal immigration agents at Humboldt Park Health on Friday after she questioned them about their authority to conduct enforcement at the medical facility. Fuentes said agents shoved her when she asked if they had a warrant to make arrests in the hospital, and later restrained her while claiming she was impeding their work. She reported that agents were attempting to detain a person with a broken leg at the hospital, and noted that federal agents have brought multiple injured people to local hospitals following arrests.

On October 3, 2025, 26th Ward Alderperson Jessie Fuentes was shoved and handcuffed by masked ICE agents at Humboldt Park Health Hospital while advocating for a detained constituent during Operation Midway Blitz. Fuentes filed a federal tort claims lawsuit in October 2025, and formally sued the federal government in May 2026 after the Department of Homeland Security failed to respond within the required timeframe. The lawsuit alleges battery, assault, false arrest, false imprisonment, and intentional infliction of emotional distress, claiming Fuentes suffered shoulder pain, anxiety, nightmares, and emotional distress from the encounter.

Sabrina Medina, a 28-year-old pregnant U.S. citizen and mother of four, has been detained and arrested multiple times by ICE agents searching for her undocumented husband Jorge. On June 12, 2025, ICE agents conducted a heavily armed raid on her Huntington Park home in the presence of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, arriving in about a half-dozen tactical vehicles. The agents showed Medina a warrant naming her husband but with an incorrect first name; her husband was not at home. On August 7, 2025, Medina was arrested by ICE agents while leaving a pregnancy clinic. She claims agents have tracked her down four times since the June raid and that she was arrested based on an outstanding warrant from 12 years ago for shoplifting. During the August arrest, Medina experienced abdominal pain. She expressed fear about her family's financial future and stated she and her children would likely follow her husband to Mexico if he is deported.

A visibly pregnant U.S. citizen and her undocumented mother were arrested by federal agents outside a health clinic in Los Angeles.

After a Guatemalan woman gave birth at Tucson Medical Center in Arizona while in Border Patrol custody, she was told she faced immediate deportation and would have to decide whether to take her U.S.-citizen newborn daughter with her. Agents stationed at the hospital refused to let her attorney access her so that she could sign a G-28 form. After public pressure and intervention from local officials and counsel, the mother and baby were released into the care of a nonprofit in Phoenix.

An undocumented immigrant was detained by CBP outside St. Joseph's Hospital in Tucson, Arizona. He had gone to the hospital to care for a family member.