Human Impact Project

A Mexican national who re-entered the U.S. without inspection in 2021 and was living in Redwood City with his partner and three children was detained by ICE officers in his driveway on July 9, 2026, while taking his two-year-old child to daycare. Officers claimed to have an arrest warrant but only showed a zoomed phone screen and did not allow inspection. The warrant later produced was signed in June 2025 with handwritten markings added after arrest. The court found the warrant invalid because no basis for probable cause was checked, and the officers made no individualized determination that he was a flight risk as required by law. The court granted a temporary restraining order, ordering his immediate release and prohibiting re-detention pending an evidentiary hearing.

Karina Alvarez San Juan, a Mexican national who has lived in the U.S. since age 12, was arrested during a traffic stop in Florida on May 6, 2026, for an allegedly broken taillight. She is the mother of four U.S. citizen children and was nursing her youngest child, born on January 7, 2026, at the time of her arrest. ICE transferred her to South Louisiana Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana, where she remained detained for over three months. Her attorney Michelle Borton reported that conditions at the facility were inadequate, with detainees lacking sufficient clean water for basic hygiene including bathing and flushing toilets. San Juan alleged due process violations, including a cancelled bond hearing and a denied emergency motion without explanation. On July 8-9, 2026, U.S. District Judge David C. Joseph, a Trump appointee, ordered ICE to release her within five business days after finding that the agency violated its own Directive 11032.4, which prohibits detention of postpartum and nursing mothers unless release is prohibited by law or exceptional circumstances exist. ICE officials stated they had no additional evidence to justify her continued detention.

A 48-year-old citizen of Mexico who has lived in the United States for thirty years was detained by ICE agents on July 8, 2026 while standing at a bus stop in Brooklyn with other Hispanic men and asked to produce identification. He was arrested and taken to 26 Federal Plaza, then transferred to the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn on July 15, 2026. On July 22, 2026, he filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, arguing his detention was unlawful. Respondents conceded that ICE detained him under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) without first conducting the individualized custody determination required by the court's prior ruling in H.A.C.F. v. Francis. The court issued a Temporary Restraining Order on July 24, 2026 directing his immediate release, and Respondents subsequently acknowledged that the H.A.C.F. precedent controlled the outcome of the case. The court granted the habeas petition on August 6, 2026 and enjoined Respondents from re-detaining him absent compliance with applicable regulations or prior court authorization.

ICE arrested at least five immigrants at New York immigration courthouses in late June despite a federal judge's order limiting such arrests, and advocates have asked U.S. District Judge Kevin Castel to determine whether the agency violated that order. ICE says the arrests were lawful, with acting supervisory officer Roberto Rodriguez stating courthouses are the safest location because enforcement elsewhere in New York risks protests and bystander intervention. Attorney Katherine Rosenfeld's June 29 letter raised concerns about ICE's compliance and noted a near-daily ICE presence at the courthouses. Of the five arrested, three were released without explanation while two remain detained awaiting habeas corpus petitions; one was from the Dominican Republic and another from Ecuador.

Jose Enrique Ojeda Duarte, a 31-year-old Venezuelan asylum-seeker and father of two who entered the U.S. legally in 2024, was arrested by ICE agents in Chicago on September 15, 2025, while driving to work during Operation Midway Blitz. He was told he was being taken to a court date but instead spent about seven months in detention, including at Camp East Montana in El Paso, Texas, where he described 'inhumane' conditions such as frozen or expired food and lack of medical care when he contracted COVID-19. In April 2026, despite his pending asylum case, he was deported to Venezuela; DHS later admitted in court filings that a data error in its removal system caused the wrongful deportation. After his attorneys and partner, Leydimar Castillo, pushed for his return, a federal judge intervened and he was brought back to the U.S. in June 2026, reuniting with Castillo and their two children on Chicago's South Side. He has since struggled with anxiety, insomnia and fear, saying, 'Sometimes, I get a terrible feeling, like a fear of going out.' His asylum case remains unresolved.

Erianny Rodriguez Balza, a Venezuelan woman with active Temporary Protected Status (TPS), was detained by ICE at Eloy Detention Center in Arizona for approximately 9 months. Court filings show that a federal government attorney acknowledged her legal status, yet she remained in detention despite this acknowledgment. She was eventually released after the wrongful detention.

The petitioner has lived in the United States continuously since 2000 and is married to a U.S. citizen wife, with four U.S. citizen children ages 14 to 24, three of whom are minors who rely on him for financial and emotional support. He owns and operates JMQ Construction Inc., a family business that supports his household. He was paroled from custody in February 2022 under ICE's Alternatives to Detention program and was later placed in withholding-only proceedings after a positive reasonable fear determination, with an appeal pending before the Board of Immigration Appeals since June 2025; he also has a pending U-visa application based on being the victim of a 2016 machete assault. On July 6, 2026, he was detained by immigration agents while appearing for a scheduled biometrics appointment at a USCIS Application Support Center in connection with renewing his work authorization, and was held at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center. He filed a counseled habeas petition under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 seeking a bond hearing or release, arguing his re-detention without notice or a hearing violated procedural and substantive due process and the APA. The court found his re-detention without a pre-deprivation hearing violated procedural due process and ordered him released within 24 hours on the same conditions that existed before detention, with his belongings and documents returned and a status report filed confirming compliance.

A Georgian citizen who was paroled into the United States on May 8, 2023 to pursue a pending asylum application was detained by ICE on July 6, 2026 at the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center in Basile, Louisiana. She filed a habeas petition challenging her detention and seeking a temporary restraining order to prevent removal, arguing violations of due process rights and procedural requirements under immigration law. The federal court denied her emergency motion for a temporary restraining order and stay of removal, finding it lacked jurisdiction over the removal order and finding insufficient grounds for the extraordinary relief sought.

Two noncitizens, who entered the United States without inspection several years prior and were not encountered by immigration officials at the border, were arrested and detained by ICE on July 6, 2026. They were not presented with properly executed warrants at the time of arrest nor informed of the basis for their arrests. A federal court granted their habeas corpus petition, finding the warrantless arrests violated 8 U.S.C. § 1357(a)(2), and ordered their immediate release. The court ruled that if the government seeks to re-detain them, it must provide seven days' notice and hold a bond hearing.

An Eritrean asylum seeker entered the United States in September 2023 and has a pending asylum application. He was detained on July 5, 2026, and is currently held in ICE custody at the Jackson Parish Correctional Center in Jonesboro, Louisiana. He filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus arguing that his continued detention without an individualized custody determination violates his due process rights. He also moved for a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction seeking either a custody redetermination hearing or immediate release, and requested an expedited hearing. The court denied the motions, finding that he showed no threat of imminent harm beyond ordinary detention hardships and was effectively trying to obtain the ultimate relief sought in his habeas petition through emergency motions. The court noted he had only been detained for one month and provided no basis to prioritize his case over the 1,406 other alien detainee habeas petitions pending in the district.

A party worker from India entered the United States without inspection in March 2022 and was apprehended by U.S. Border Patrol. He timely filed an asylum application on August 12, 2022, seeking asylum, withholding of removal, and Convention Against Torture protection based on political opinion, and had been faithfully conducting ICE reporting check-ins. On February 16, 2026, he was arrested by local police for assault with a deadly weapon following an altercation at a convenience store where he worked as a clerk; he claims the charge was subsequently dropped. On July 5, 2026, he was arrested by ICE during a routine supervision check-in and taken into custody at Golden State Annex Detention Facility in McFarland, California. He filed a habeas corpus petition challenging his re-detention without a bond hearing as a violation of his Fifth Amendment due process rights. The federal court granted his petition in part, finding that 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), not § 1225(b), governs his detention, and ordered respondents to provide him an individualized bond hearing within 14 days before an immigration judge where the government must prove by clear and convincing evidence that he poses a danger to the community or flight risk.

A 56-year-old Mexican citizen who entered the United States lawfully on a border-crossing visa in 1994 and has resided in the US for 32 years. She was apprehended by Immigration and Naturalization Services during an airport raid following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, released on $10,000 bond, and accepted Voluntary Departure from Denver Immigration Court in 2004. On July 3, 2026, she was arrested by ICE at Denver International Airport while attempting to board a domestic flight and was detained without being told the reason for her arrest or given documentation regarding her detention. She filed a Verified Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus challenging her detention as improper under 8 U.S.C. § 1231(a). The respondents did not oppose the petition. Judge Regina M. Rodriguez granted her habeas petition and ordered her immediate release within 24 hours, with release conditions limited to those specified in 8 U.S.C. § 1231(a)(3), and enjoined respondents from re-detaining her without written notice and a hearing where they must prove by clear and convincing evidence that re-detention is warranted.

An Indian citizen who entered the U.S. on July 15, 2023, was detained on July 3, 2026, when he appeared at a local ICE office for a routine check-in appointment. He had been released on his own recognizance in an Alternatives to Detention program and had a pending asylum application with valid employment authorization. The court found his detention violated due process and ordered his immediate release, prohibiting future detention without seven days' notice and a bond hearing before a neutral arbiter.

An immigration detainee held at California City Detention Center filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus challenging her detention. Respondents argued she was subject to mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c)(1)(A) due to a 2014 petty theft conviction under California Penal Code § 484(a), claiming this made her inadmissible as having committed a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). However, the court found that she qualifies for the petty offense exception because she has only one CIMT conviction, the petty theft offense carries a maximum penalty of less than one year (6 months), and she was sentenced to 180 days or less. The court rejected respondents' argument that a separate simple battery conviction disqualified her from the exception, noting that simple battery is not categorically a CIMT. The court granted the petition for writ of habeas corpus and ordered respondents to provide her with a bond hearing before a neutral arbiter pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) within seven days, or release her if they fail to do so.

Two Lane County residents identified by initials H-F-M-J and A-V-L were detained by ICE officers during a vehicle stop near Eugene on July 3, 2026. According to legal petitions filed by Catholic Community Services of Lane County, the officers boxed in the vehicle without displaying arrest warrants, explaining the reason for the stop, or identifying themselves as immigration officials. The petitions allege the arrests were based solely on the detainees' perceived race and ethnicity rather than individualized assessment of flight risk or immigration status, and claim officers failed to inquire about family, employment, or community ties. ICE stated the detainees were arrested during a targeted enforcement action and that warrants had been issued for both men.

Miguel Angel Gomez Alvarado, who had lived in the United States for 14-15 years as an undocumented immigrant, was stopped by police during a traffic stop between November 2025 and February 2026 and turned over to ICE, which held him in deportation proceedings without a bond hearing. Gomez had no criminal record and was raising American citizen children. A federal judge found that holding him without a bond hearing violated his due process rights and ordered his release. The Trump administration appealed the decision to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled on July 2, 2026, that the government cannot hold undocumented immigrants for more than 90 days without a bond hearing and must articulate individualized justification for detention.

A Venezuelan man who entered the United States in July 2022 was initially apprehended by immigration officials and released pending removal proceedings, after which he lived in Portland, Oregon. He was re-detained on July 2, 2026, apparently without any notice beforehand, and has a pending application for Temporary Protected Status. He did not receive a bond hearing until a month after his re-detention. He is currently held at the Northwest ICE Processing Center and filed a habeas petition along with a motion for a temporary restraining order, arguing that a transfer out of the district would strip the court of jurisdiction over his case and harm his ability to pursue relief and stay in contact with family members. The court found he was likely detained under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a) rather than subject to mandatory detention, and that the lack of an individualized hearing at the outset of his re-detention likely violated due process under the Mathews test. The court granted the temporary restraining order, barring his removal or transfer to another facility, and ordered a preliminary injunction hearing and briefing schedule within 14 days.

An Egyptian citizen entered the United States in June 2024 without inspection and was released on his own recognizance into removal proceedings. He settled in Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania, where he worked at a diner and had no criminal record. On July 2, 2026, he was arrested while walking along a road by local police, who turned him over to ICE, and he has since been detained without bond at the Pike County Correctional Facility. He has no final order of removal. He filed a habeas corpus petition arguing he was being unlawfully held under the INA's mandatory detention provision, 8 U.S.C. § 1225(b), rather than the discretionary provision, 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a), which entitles detainees to a bond hearing, and that his detention without a bond hearing violated his Fifth Amendment due process rights. The court agreed, finding that § 1225(b)(2)(A) applies only to noncitizens actively seeking admission at the border, not those already residing in the U.S., and granted the petition. The court ordered Respondents to immediately release him and permanently enjoined them from detaining him under § 1225(b), though he may be redetained under § 1226(a) with notice and a timely bond hearing before an immigration judge.

An Indian citizen who entered the U.S. in 2018 without inspection was detained on July 2, 2026, following a traffic stop by Indiana State Police in Indianapolis. ICE determined he was eligible for removal proceedings and issued a warrant under 8 U.S.C. § 1226. He was placed in full removal proceedings but held at Clay County Jail without receiving a bond hearing. The court granted his habeas petition, ordering the government to either provide him an individualized bond hearing before an immigration judge or release him within ten days.

Two federal judges in Iowa held ICE Supervisory Detention and Deportation Officer Quintin Erdman in civil contempt for knowingly and willfully transferring detainee Pardeep Saini from Iowa to Nebraska in direct violation of a court order blocking such transfers. In a separate case, detainee Osmar Jose Arraiz Montilla was transferred between federal judicial districts while his case was pending. The judges sharply criticized ICE officials for a pattern of repeatedly violating court orders in immigration cases, with one judge warning that noncitizens are not 'bargaining chips' to be moved based on litigation strategy.