Human Impact Project

Heriberto 'Eddie' Reyes-Ochoa, a 34-year-old marine construction worker who came to the U.S. from Minatitlán, Veracruz, Mexico as an unaccompanied 14-year-old, has lived in Kiln, Mississippi for nearly 20 years. He was stopped by a Mississippi Highway Patrol trooper after a minor traffic accident for driving without a license and following too closely, then detained after officials found an immigration warrant and determined he lacked legal status. He was held at the Hancock County jail before ICE transferred him to the Adams County Correctional Center in Natchez. Reyes-Ochoa has no criminal record and was in the final stages of obtaining a green card through consular processing, awaiting a visa interview when he was detained. His wife of over a decade, U.S. citizen Catherine Cool, is pregnant with their first child, due in January. DHS initially claimed he had been charged with felony hit and run, a claim Hancock County officials disputed. His wife and attorneys are pursuing a habeas corpus petition seeking his release on bond, and DHS says he will remain in custody pending removal proceedings.

Mikel Junior Sanchez Ortiz, a 24-year-old Venezuelan man, was pulled from his car and beaten while driving to work with his girlfriend, Haklin Olivares, 22, on Dawsonville Highway in Gainesville, Georgia, on August 19. Olivares said men in trucks surrounded their vehicle, forced open the doors, struck Sanchez Ortiz until he bled, and confiscated her phone, demanding she delete photos; she said she is unsure whether the men were ICE agents or bounty hunters. Sanchez Ortiz suffered a broken nose, internal mouth injuries, a cut on his forehead, and neck marks from being grabbed, and is now held at Stewart Detention Center. The couple has a pending asylum case with a 2027 court date, hold valid work permits and driver's licenses, and say they have no criminal record. Olivares started a GoFundMe seeking $1,600 to support him. The incident occurred the same week members of Congress visited Stewart Detention Center and raised concerns about overcrowding and poor conditions.

A man from Oceanside, California, originally from Mexico, was deported by ICE to Tijuana in January 2024 after being detained; ICE said he had previously been deported three times. Seven months later, he was shot and killed during an armed robbery, with gunmen shooting him in the heart. His daughter, Evelyn González, described him as a strong man who always fought for his family and taught her to be independent. His family is seeking help to transport his body back to his hometown in Mexico for a dignified farewell.

Degnis Nelson Bofill Miranda, a 39-year-old Cuban-born percussionist, composer, and founder of the group Golpes Libres, was detained by ICE agents at Miami International Airport on August 19 immediately after returning from performances and a music conference in New York. He entered the U.S. legally in April 2023 through a State Department-backed music exchange visa program and has a pending asylum petition that had not yet reached its initial interview stage. His wife, Mara Delgado, said agents were waiting for him at the arrival gate and that he was initially not listed in ICE's detainee locator, complicating efforts to secure legal representation, before he was moved to the Krome North Service Processing Center. ICE said he had not complied with the terms of his 2023 admission but would receive due process, while Delgado said she fears he will be deported to Cuba and separated from her. Delgado described him as a beloved figure in Miami's Cuban music community who teaches local workshops, and fellow musicians publicly voiced support for him. A GoFundMe campaign for his legal defense raised more than $45,000 from over 500 donors within two days.

Luis Adolfo Nouel Gonzalez, a Venezuelan immigrant who worked in construction helping build the QTS data center in Fairfax, Iowa, was detained by ICE after appearing for a scheduled check-in appointment at the Cedar Rapids ICE office. Gonzalez had lived in Iowa for three years with his wife and daughter, was inspected and paroled into the U.S., applied for asylum and Temporary Protected Status, and has no criminal record in Iowa. Advocacy group Escucha Mi Voz said he complied with all conditions of his parole, with member Rogelio Lagunas stating, "Luis did everything the government required of him." His attorney, Raziel Argueta, said the detention followed the Trump administration's termination of TPS for Venezuela, which was upheld by a court in June. The Department of Homeland Security said Gonzalez entered the country near San Luis, Arizona in 2022 and does not hold lawful immigration status. He is being held in Hardin County.

Federal immigration authorities arrested 17 employees of Melhorn Sales Service and Trucking in and around Mount Joy Borough, Pennsylvania, in a series of early-morning traffic stops between August and September 2026. ICE agents stopped company vehicles on West Main Street on Aug. 21 and Sept. 17, arresting four workers each time, and stopped a van near a Sheetz on Route 230 in Rapho Township on Aug. 31, arresting nine additional workers. Mount Joy Borough police Chief Robert Goshen said the stops were 'targeted enforcements' carried out with warrants, and that ICE agents knew the identities of those they were arresting in advance; some employees who showed proof of legal status were not detained. The four individuals arrested Aug. 21 were identified as Guatemalan nationals. Chris Herr, president of the PennAg Industries Association, confirmed those arrested worked for Melhorn, which provides management and transport services for poultry operations, and said farmers already struggle to find skilled labor to safely move birds while maintaining biosecurity standards amid bird flu response.

The petitioner entered the United States without inspection in June 2021 and was apprehended by immigration authorities upon arrival. He was released on parole about two weeks later. On or about August 21, 2026, he was re-detained by immigration authorities. He is currently held at the Golden State Annex Detention Center. He filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus and a motion for a temporary restraining order challenging his renewed detention. Respondents conceded the case was not materially distinguishable from prior rulings by the same court. The court granted the habeas petition, ordering his immediate release on the same conditions as before his re-detention, and enjoined the government from re-detaining him without notice and a pre-deprivation bond hearing before an immigration judge, at which the government must justify detention by clear and convincing evidence.

Arturo Garcia Becerril was pulled over and arrested on August 21 while traveling between jobs, then taken into ICE custody where he has remained in detention. His children say he has a clean record and has always worked hard to support his family, but ICE is allegedly conflating him with another person who has had prior immigration issues. His family is worried about his well-being in detention because he has diabetes, and they are raising money to cover his attorney fees.

The petitioner is an immigration detainee who filed a habeas corpus petition and a motion for a temporary restraining order in federal court. The court had previously ordered respondents to show whether any facts distinguished this case from its prior rulings on detention. Respondents conceded that a recent Ninth Circuit decision established that 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) applies to individuals in the petitioner's circumstances, meaning he is entitled to a custody redetermination hearing before an immigration judge. The court granted the habeas petition and ordered that he receive a bond hearing before a neutral arbiter within ten days. The order requires 72 hours' written notice of the hearing in a language he understands, allows for representation by an attorney, and requires the decisionmaker to consider his financial circumstances and alternative release conditions. If no bond hearing is held within the deadline, respondents must release him. He is currently held at the Golden State Annex detention facility.

A young mother in Miami is caring alone for her one-year-old twin daughters after her husband was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The family is now facing unexpected expenses for housing, food, diapers, formula, childcare, transportation, and legal assistance related to his immigration case. A GoFundMe campaign was created to help support the mother and her daughters during this time.

A close family friend, described as a father of two, uncle, and brother, was arrested by ICE. According to the organizer, he had worked and paid taxes in the U.S. for years without incident. The family started a fundraiser to help cover future costs related to his detention, citing uncertainty over his timeline in the detention facility.

A father detained by ICE while at work in Albuquerque, New Mexico on August 21st was the subject of a habeas corpus petition filed in federal court. On September 28, 2026, a U.S. District Court judge in New Mexico ruled that his continued detention without a bond hearing violated his due process rights and ordered immigration officials to release him within 48 hours. His daughter had started a fundraiser to cover potential bail, which the family's lawyer said could range from $5,000 to $10,000, plus legal fees. The family describes him as 'the pillar' of their household.

Gustavo was arrested by ICE on a Wednesday morning while on his way to work. His wife, Flor Cecilia, who is unable to work due to health issues, and their children Kenia and Gustavo Jr. are struggling financially as a result. The family is raising money to hire an attorney to secure his release from jail and fight his deportation case.

A Black man with no connection to an ongoing traffic stop was questioned and handcuffed by a US Border Patrol agent at an Orion gas station in Lake Worth Beach, Florida. Video shows the agent demanding his identification and telling him it was 'because you're an immigrant' before officers forced his arms behind his back and restrained him. He was released minutes later after a status check cleared him. A second man who appeared Latino was seized shortly afterward, and an older man filming the encounter was ordered to move away from the scene.

A Mexican mother of three said about eight ICE agents in five vehicles blocked her outside her Los Angeles home as she returned from dropping her children at school, with her young daughter still in the car. A neighbor began recording and told the agents to leave, which paused the arrest and allowed the mother to avoid being taken into custody. The woman, who said she had a scheduled appointment with federal immigration officials, said she now fears being deported.

More than 160 people were deported from the U.S. to Cap-Haïtien, Haiti, on a flight Thursday, the first such deportation since the Trump administration ended Temporary Protected Status for Haitians. The group included TPS holders who had lived and worked legally in the U.S. since 2010, as well as people of Haitian descent born in the Dominican Republic who are not recognized as citizens there. One deportee, Jean Diane Louis, told reporters he left Haiti at age 5, that his family lives in New York City, and that ICE detained him without questioning before sending him back. Upon arrival, Haitian immigration officials offered deportees a maximum of $65 along with food and water, and many said they had nowhere to go and no family remaining in Haiti.

Andrés, a Colombian immigrant living in College Point, Queens, was driving his wife and 6-year-old daughter home from getting food in late June when masked ICE agents in unmarked cars boxed in his vehicle and ordered him out. Agents used a vehicle registration lookup on his New Jersey plates to confirm his identity and immigration status before arresting him, even though he had no criminal history, a valid work permit, and an upcoming immigration court date. He spent about three weeks at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn before a federal judge ordered his release following a habeas corpus lawsuit. Since his release, his daughter has continued to break down in tears, and he now carries copies of his release papers in case he is stopped again.

Angel Acosta Ramirez, 43, a former mechanical engineer from Venezuela who later worked as an Uber driver in Branson, was pulled over by the Christian County Sheriff's Office for allegedly speeding near Highlandville in January 2026. Despite holding a valid work visa, he was arrested and jailed on an immigration hold, spending six weeks in the Greene County Jail before being deported. He had fled Venezuela in 2022 with his wife, Maria Fernanda Arrioja Romero, their infant son Santiago, and his parents, believing he had a right to remain in the U.S. Acosta Ramirez said the hardest part of his detention was being separated from his wife and not knowing what would happen to their young son. His wife was later held for months in the same Greene County Jail, which contracts with ICE to detain hundreds of immigrants daily. Acosta Ramirez said life since his deportation has been 'really hard,' with his family now struggling to earn enough money to survive.

Wendy Vanessa Triviño Carrillo, a Colombian woman from Cúcuta, has been detained for more than nine months at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana. Her father, Luis Eduardo, says she has experienced health problems while in custody and has appealed to the Colombian government and its Foreign Ministry for consular assistance. "We are not asking them to bypass the law. We are asking someone to look at my daughter's case, that someone listen to us," he said. The family is seeking more information about her immigration case, detention conditions, and medical care, and says that if she must return to Colombia they want it handled through proper procedures.

Carlos Téllez-Sanchez, a 35-year-old Venezuelan man who fled to Dallas, Texas, worked at a car dealership and delivered for Uber Eats to support his family while awaiting the birth of his son. He held a 2021 Withholding of Removal order protecting him from deportation and had no criminal record beyond civil immigration violations, but ICE detained him in December 2025 during what he believed was a routine work permit renewal check-in. He said an ICE agent told him to 'shut up' when he tried to explain his protection order, and he was moved between detention facilities more than six times over nearly eight months, during which he said he witnessed constant verbal abuse by officials. On August 20, 2026, he was flown in handcuffs to Liberia with 19 other deportees, nearly 6,000 miles from his wife and newborn U.S. citizen son, whom he has only seen via video calls. His brother Juan Tellez described him as 'a good person and hard worker' who 'doesn't deserve what happened to him,' and Téllez-Sanchez, fearing for his safety in Venezuela, is weighing whether to seek asylum in Liberia or travel elsewhere.