Facts of the week in immigration: ICE changes its face amidst controversies, resignations and tension due to immigration operations

David Venturella will be the new acting director of ICE following the departure of Todd Lyons at the end of this month.
The veteran ICE official will take office amid controversy by the violent ICE (and CBP) operations across the country that claimed the lives of two US citizens in Minnesota at the hands of immigration agents, and when the agency faces multiple lawsuits for violations of rights, including of citizens, during the interventions of both agencies.

Venturella also assumes duties in the midst of a deadlock between Democrats and Republicans over the reforms demanded by the former regarding the conduct of agents and a currently non-existent accountability process. That roadblock caused a partial closure of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)and now Republicans are seeking to add another $70 billion for ICE and CBP through the conciliation process and without Democratic support, as it is approved with a simple majority.

What is most striking is that Venturella is a former GEO Neighborhood executivethe questionable private firm that operates 23 ICE detention centers with more than 26,000 beds, many of which have been reported for abuses, including lack of adequate medical care, and where several deaths have even been recorded.

As reported by La Opinión, “according to public documents, GEO Neighborhood maintains contracts with ICE valued at more than a billion dollars… Democratic Congresswoman Delia Ramírez harshly criticized the appointment. “Let’s be clear: His appointment is aimed at ensuring that Trump’s corporate bosses continue to profit. at the expense of the suffering of our communities.”
La Opinión also reported that “according to a report published by The Unique York Cases“Venturella would have personally intervened in an immigration case to ensure the detention and deportation of a woman linked to a close ally of Trump.” The DHS denies this.

Meanwhile, the head of the Border Patrol resigns

Michael Banks submitted his immediate resignation as head of CBP. CNN reported that “during Banks’ tenure, a subordinate Border Patrol official, Gregory Bovino, took charge of the government’s immigration crackdown inside the United States, with the approval of then-DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.”

Trump praised Banks and Bovino for their performance, but after the American public rejected the operations they described as excessive, both officials are now out.

Last month, The Washington Examiner revealed that six current and former CBP employees accused Banks of paying for the services of prostitutes on trips abroad over the past decade. Banks was apparently investigated, but the probe stopped during Noem’s direction.
Despite high-level resignations and dismissals, immigration operations continue to terrorize the community.

La Opinión reported on a UnidosUS report that concluded that “UnidosUS Affiliates serving local Hispanic communities frequently report that entire families avoid medical care for fear that ICE agents may show up at hospitals or clinics and make arrests based on their appearance or speech.”

“Other Trump administration policies have eroded health access…Indiscriminate enforcement of immigration laws, sharing of Medicaid records with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and public charge regulations have generated a profound deterrent effect,” according to the report.

To complete, ICE will be in some stadiums of the 2026 World Cup

Great concern is being generated by the announcement that ICE agents will be present at some 2026 FIFA World Cup games across the country performing security “support” duties. There was no talk of mass raids, but the possibility of some arrests was not ruled out.

It was indicated, however, that there would be no agents at SoFi Stadium or the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
“International visitors who legally arrive in the United States to attend the World Cup have nothing to worry about,” a DHS spokesperson was quoted as saying by The Hill. “What makes a person the object of immigration control measures is whether or not they are in US territory illegally; period.”

“At the same time, foreign visitors SHOULD be proactive and start preparing their travel plans and documents well in advance to ensure a smooth travel experience,” the agency added.

Democrats advocate permanent legislative solution for ‘Dreamers’

La Opinión reported that “Democratic senators and immigrant advocacy organizations raised alarm bells about the future of thousands of beneficiaries of the DACA program, after denouncing delays in renewals, detentions and deportations under the administration of Donald Trump.”

“Data cited by legislators indicate that during 2025 at least 261 DACA beneficiaries were detained and 86 deported, despite having active protections,” the newspaper indicated.
“One of the most shocking testimonies was that of Ariel, a nurse based in San Francisco who arrived in the United States when she was two years old and who now faces the risk of losing her job due to the delay in renewing her immigration protection,” he added.

“He is about to lose his job caring for the sick and the promotion he had worked for, due to the failures and cruelty of the Trump administration,” said California Democratic Senator Alex Padilla.

Kevin González is fired in Durango

“With white flowers, war band music and applause, family, classmates and teachers said their last goodbye to Kevin González, an 18-year-old young man who died due to colon cancer in the terminal phase in Durango. The tribute of the present body was held at the high school where he studied, in an environment marked by sadness, but also by the affection of those who shared moments with him,” wrote La Opinión.

Telemundo reported that the young man was fired from high school from which he did not graduate and that the young man aspired to become a lawyer. They also said goodbye to him in an emotional ceremony at the Durango Cathedral.

Kevin and his parents lived an odyssey to be reunited before the young man died this past Sunday, as they had been detained while trying to enter the United States without documents to see their son. Kevin moved to Mexico to wait for them.

A federal judge in Arizona finally ordered his expedited deportation to Mexico and his parents were able to see him before his death.

Quote of the week:
“It leaves us with a broken heart… An empty heart,” Maricela Ramírez, aunt of Kevin González, the 18-year-old terminally ill cancer patient, told Telemundo that he moved many because of the odyssey he experienced to see his parents detained by immigration before they died.