Human Impact Project

Maryam Tahmasebi, a psychology and statistics professor at Los Angeles Pierce College, her husband Eissa Hashemi, an educator at The Chicago School, and their 16-year-old son were detained by ICE despite all holding valid green cards and having no criminal records. The family says they were targeted because Eissa's mother, Masoumeh Ebtekar, served as a spokesperson during the 1979 U.S. Embassy hostage crisis in Tehran, decades before Eissa or his son were born. Maryam and her son have been held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas, while Eissa is held nearby at the South Texas Detention Center in Pearsall, with the family restricted to a 10-minute phone call every two weeks. Their attorney, Curtis Morrison, says there are no specific allegations against any of the three beyond their family relationship, and colleagues describe Maryam as dedicated to her students and Eissa as kind and joyous. After more than 120 days in detention, the family's offer to voluntarily depart was denied, and lawyers report deteriorating physical and mental health along with poor facility conditions including black mold and non-potable water. A federal judge has temporarily barred the government from deporting the family while their petitions challenging the detention's legality proceed.

Linda Wolff, a 72-year-old fashion stylist and longtime immigrant rights supporter from Manhattan, was pepper-sprayed in the face by a masked ICE agent while filming federal officers near Seaman and Isham Avenue in Inwood during an enforcement operation officials called 'Operation Rotten Apple.' Wolff said she learned of ICE's presence via social media and was recording from a distance, never touching or acting aggressively toward officers, when an agent sprayed her without provocation; she said her eyes and skin burned afterward but vowed to continue documenting ICE activity. DHS said agents used pepper spray to control an 'unruly, combative' crowd while recovering a vandalized government van, calling their response appropriate and within training, while an ICE spokesperson said officers used 'the minimum amount of force necessary.' Wolff, represented by attorney John Burris, filed a federal tort claim against ICE and plans to sue under New York's newly enacted law allowing individuals to sue ICE officers in state court, with her attorney calling the incident 'purely punitive' and one of the first tests of the statute. Governor Kathy Hochul condemned the incident and appeared with Wolff at a press conference highlighting the new law, which also bars local police from participating in immigration enforcement.

Women detained at the Diamondback Correctional Facility in Watonga, Oklahoma, allege in a federal lawsuit that they are suffering vaginal infections after being given used and unwashed underwear. A leaked video shared by the advocacy group Injusticias De ICE features a detainee saying in Spanish that 'almost all' female detainees at the facility have vaginal infections. The lawsuit, filed by lawyers for several women held at the facility, accuses ICE contractors and staff of 'systemic medical neglect,' including delayed responses to emergency symptoms, unfilled or delayed prescriptions, and postponed gynecological exams.

A citizen of Algeria entered the United States in March 2023 on a B2 nonimmigrant visitor visa authorized until September 5, 2023, but did not leave as required. She timely filed for asylum in January 2024, derivative of her mother's pending I-589 application, and has no documented criminal history. On August 17, 2026, she reported to a scheduled interview and was arrested for overstaying her visa, served with an administrative warrant, and issued a Notice to Appear charging her as removable. She was transferred to and remains detained at the California City Detention Facility in California City, California. She filed a habeas corpus petition and sought a temporary restraining order, arguing she was entitled to a bond hearing where the government would bear the burden of proving she is a flight risk or danger. The court found her detention is governed by 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) and granted her habeas petition, ordering that she receive a bond hearing before an immigration judge within 14 days, denying the TRO request as moot, and enjoining her re-detention absent proper notice and a further bond hearing.

Keiber Alexander Esposito Martinez, a Venezuelan asylum seeker who entered the U.S. legally in 2023, was detained by ICE while driving to or from his job in Buffalo. Over three years he rose from dishwasher to sous chef at Casa Azul restaurant in the Allentown neighborhood, holding legal work authorization and a New York driver's license with no criminal record. Restaurant owner Zina Lapi called him a 'model citizen' and said his detention caused other asylum-seeking employees to quit out of fear. Martinez, who is married to a U.S. citizen, is being held at the federal detention facility in Batavia. His attorney, Matthew Borowski, filed a federal lawsuit seeking his release, saying the family received no explanation for the detention and alleging visibly Latino or Bangladeshi individuals are being targeted.

A man was detained by ICE on a Wednesday morning while on his way to work. His wife described him as a hardworking man who has been the family's main support since her father passed away seven months earlier, leaving her mother to care for two young children alone. The family started a fundraiser to help cover expenses following his detention.

A construction worker was detained by ICE agents while on the job at a construction site near Esperanza Homes in the Texas Heights area of Weslaco, Texas. A coworker told the agents he was from the area, but agents ignored him, entered the property without a warrant, and took the worker away. As the coworker filmed the encounter, agents reportedly threatened to accuse him of 'impeding' for documenting the incident.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged a detainer against Meliza Campos-Sanchez, 26, a Cuban national, after she was arrested and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami. Authorities allege she was involved in an incident at her Miami home on Aug. 16 that led to two counts of child neglect, along with child abuse and arson charges, and she was taken to a hospital for a mental health evaluation under Florida's Baker Act before being booked; jail records recommend she be held without bond. DHS said ICE asked local officials to notify federal authorities before her release so she could potentially be taken into ICE custody, and the agency said it intends to seek her removal after her criminal case is resolved. She entered the United States through Florida without legal authorization in May 2022, according to DHS, and prosecutors have cited social media videos as evidence in the pending case.

Wilbert Jean Baptiste was chased down and apprehended by law enforcement near a car wash at the Southern Village Shopping Center in Springfield, according to bystander videos posted to social media in which an officer identified himself as being with ICE. He is currently incarcerated at the Butler County Jail on an ICE hold, under the jail's agreement with ICE to house suspected noncitizens.

Local advocacy group Granite State Organizing Project reported 10 ICE detentions in New Hampshire and Vermont between Aug. 7 and Aug. 10, including three in West Lebanon and five others stopped en route to a construction site in Londonderry, Vermont. Additional detentions were reported in Keene, New Hampshire. Lebanon's city manager confirmed ICE activity in the city but said he had no details on arrests, while Hanover police said they had not been contacted by ICE about any operations in that town. Advocates said the enforcement activity felt like an increase from baseline levels but had not confirmed further incidents since Aug. 10.

Beaubrun Charles Ardouin, a naturalized U.S. citizen who drives for a transportation company shuttling workers, was pulled over near Topre America in Springfield, Ohio, in what DHS called a 'targeted enforcement' stop. Ardouin said he showed officers his ID and told them he was a citizen, but they demanded identification from his five Haitian passengers and threatened to break his van's windows if he didn't unlock them. All five men, who said they had pending asylum applications, were detained and booked into Butler County Jail under ICE holds; jail records identified them as Canot Monnimat, Albert Francois, Nero Adrien Toussaint, Cadet Vixama and Wislain Fenelon. The stop occurred amid broader ICE activity across Springfield, including arrests near a car wash in an area with several Haitian-owned businesses, with some detainees' mugshots showing them still in work uniforms. Butler County Jail held 17 people listing Haiti as their birth country under ICE detention as of one recent Monday, as many of Springfield's estimated 10,000 to 15,000 Haitian residents became vulnerable to detention after a federal judge lifted a stay on the revocation of Temporary Protected Status for Haiti. Legal experts questioned whether officers had reasonable suspicion for the traffic stop, and DHS said several of the detained men have since been released or transferred.

A U.S. citizen born in Yakima, Washington, was pulled over by ICE agents on the morning of August 17 while driving to work near the Sundome area on Fair Avenue. A masked agent approached without identifying himself, telling the man there was a warrant for his arrest for "being here illegally." He was handcuffed and placed in the back of a squad car while agents verified his citizenship, and was released once his identity was confirmed. He said the agents refused to provide their badge numbers or names before leaving, and he photographed their vehicles and license plates. His sister also posted about the incident on Instagram, sharing photos and urging others in the community to "move with caution."

ICE agents forcibly detained a person with irregular immigration status outside a Dollar Tree store in Jacksonville, Florida. During the operation, another person inside the store questioned the agents' actions and argued that they were on private property.

A man was taken into custody by federal immigration agents at Summit Avenue and 21st Street in Union City, New Jersey, according to a witness. The witness said three ICE vehicles arrived and agents detained the man while he sat on the corner with a friend; he provided identification before masked agents handcuffed him, searched his bag and pockets, and took him away. The incident follows a New Jersey law signed by Gov. Mikie Sherrill barring law enforcement from wearing masks while interacting with the public, which ICE has continued to disregard. The report is part of a series of immigration enforcement actions recently reported across Hudson County, including in West New York, Guttenberg, North Bergen, and Weehawken.

A video submitted to HudPost appears to show a federal immigration agent kicking a man during an encounter at 52nd Street and Hudson Avenue in West New York, New Jersey. The footage shows an agent making physical contact with the man, though the circumstances leading up to the moment are unclear and could not be independently verified. ICE did not comment on the incident, citing its policy of not discussing active investigations or arrests. The report follows a series of other immigration enforcement actions across Hudson County in recent weeks, including in Guttenberg, North Bergen, Weehawken, and Union City.

A Guatemalan young man has been held for more than a week in ICE custody at a facility in Miramar, Florida, that is authorized to hold detainees for up to 72 hours, according to his mother. She reports he faces overcrowding and limited access to food and water. He signed voluntary departure paperwork on a Tuesday but remains detained. An activist following the situation says his case is not isolated and that other immigrants have also been held at the facility for several days.

Yousof (Yousef) Azizi, a 40-year-old Iranian researcher, journalist, and Virginia Tech PhD candidate who had lived legally in the U.S. for 13 years, was arrested outside his Germantown, Maryland home on April 13 shortly after dropping his children at school. More than ten FBI and Homeland Security Investigations vehicles were involved, with agents pointing rifles at him before transferring him to detention facilities, eventually moving him over six days through Louisiana, Arizona, and California, including a stay in a freezing Arizona facility that he said harmed his health. Authorities alleged he lied on his student visa application about past membership in Iran's Student Basij Organization, but he said no evidence was ever presented despite multiple court hearings, and his wife called the visa issue a pretext for targeting his public commentary on U.S.-Iran relations. A judge denied bond despite 250 pages of support letters from professors at Harvard, Virginia Tech, the University of Michigan, and other institutions. Azizi, a regular media commentator critical of U.S. and Israeli foreign policy, said an FBI agent twice threatened his wife, and after roughly three months in custody he accepted voluntary return to Iran, where he hopes to defend his dissertation remotely.

Nqobile Malangeni, a pregnant South African woman who lives in Connecticut with her fiancé, a U.S. Army veteran, was arrested by ICE agents at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas as she prepared to board a JetBlue flight home. She had traveled to Las Vegas for a vacation to celebrate her birthday. In footage of the arrest shared across U.S. media, agents told her they had a final order of removal against her for overstaying her authorized period of stay. Her fiancé told reporters they followed all proper procedures and never received a removal letter in the mail, describing the arrest as completely unexpected. She is being held at the Henderson Detention Center in Nevada.

L, who came to the U.S. from Honduras in 2012 to escape gun violence, was unexpectedly detained during a routine immigration check-in and later deported to Honduras, leaving behind four children ages 15, 9, 3, and 2. Her mother, M, took unpaid leave from work to care for the grandchildren and support L's case, during which time she lost her health insurance and access to care for her diabetes. A GoFundMe campaign is raising money for plane tickets to reunite the children with their mother, M's lost wages, and legal fees.

Guillermo "Memo" Gallardo Barrera, a longtime Arizona resident, construction worker and welder who helped raise his two U.S.-born children, has spent over a year in ICE custody at the Florence Correctional Center following a routine traffic stop in Gilbert. His wife and family say he was healthy before detention but now relies on a cane, suffers severe numbness in his hands and worsening pain, and has not received a diagnosis or adequate treatment from facility officials. Advocates from the National Day Laborer Organizing Network and Proyecto Progreso say Gallardo has no criminal record and is being denied proper medical care. A federal court denied his attorneys' amended petition for writ of habeas corpus seeking his release. His family fears that without proper medical care or release, he will not survive in custody.