ICE has detained dozens of military family members. Experts warn it undermines military preparedness

In June 2025, the Marine Corps officially stopped advertising enlistment as a way to protect immigrant family members

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The Trump administration has detained dozens of parents and spouses of active-duty U.S. troops , an Associated Press investigation has revealed, as it rolls back immigration protections for military families in pursuit of its mass deportation agenda.

This marks a significant departure from decades of bipartisan consensus that shielded such individuals from deportation.

More than 50 parents and spouses of active-duty service members have been detained since Trump took office, with at least six already deported, according to the AP’s first accounting of these cases, which the government does not track.

Currently, at least eight immediate family members of U.S. service members remain in federal immigration custody.

Experts warn that this reversal could undermine military preparedness, even as the U.S. is engaged in conflict abroad.

The policy has left military personnel without crucial emotional support and caretakers for their children, delayed deployments, and forced some to take leave.

"How can I even focus on my military career because I have to worry about how my wife is doing?" said Army Sgt. Hedar Leonel Turcios Juarez, whose wife was detained in front of their 6-year-old daughter in July while he was stationed at Fort Bliss, Texas.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) states it does not compile data on these cases.

The AP obtained its information by analyzing thousands of federal court records, reviewing existing media coverage, and verifying details with family members and attorneys, suggesting the actual number of affected families is likely higher than the 51 cases identified.

While DHS did not provide specific information for most cases, it noted that at least seven individuals had been removed from the U.S. previously, at least eight had removal orders, and at least two had drunken driving or drug-related convictions.

"DHS and ICE value the contributions of all those who have served in the U.S. military," DHS said in a statement. "U.S. military service alone does not automatically grant lawful immigration status, or exempt aliens from the consequences of violating U.S. immigration laws."

The Pentagon declined to comment on the AP’s findings.

Air Force Tech. Sgt. Wendy Gbeve, 30, described her anguish after her father, Luis Alberto Ramirez Zavala, was detained and deported to Mexico last month during a routine interview about his pending legal status application. "It’s the most frustrating, helpless feeling," Gbeve said.

Her father, who spent most of his life in the U.S. as a ranch hand, was removed quickly, leaving his wife of 30 years, a legal permanent resident, contemplating a return to Mexico.

This would leave Gbeve, whose husband is also in the Air Force, without their "entire safety net" for their two young children if both were deployed.

Army Staff Sgt. Alexis Jaramillo, an aviation operations specialist with over a decade of service, is now on administrative leave, caring for his 5-year-old stepson after his Brazilian wife, Maisa Lopes Eliaser, was detained in early July during what they believed was a routine appointment.

"It is really overwhelming because I need to take care of my kid by myself. No one is here to help me out," Jaramillo said. In another instance, an active-duty soldier halted an imminent deployment after her husband’s detention left no one to care for their then-5-year-old son.

A new policy, implemented in April 2025, explicitly states that "military service alone does not exempt aliens from the consequences of violating U.S. immigration laws."

Experts in military immigration law, including Dan Gividen, who served as ICE’s deputy chief counsel from 2016 to 2019 under Trump, describe this as a stark shift.

Gividen stated that during his tenure, immigration authorities rarely detained service members' immediate family members unless they had committed violent crimes.

"We would not place them into removal proceedings, period. That’s insane," Gividen said.

"The fact that they’re doing it now is just outrageous." Margaret Stock, an immigration attorney and retired lieutenant colonel, noted that previous administrations typically canceled past removal orders to ensure troops could focus on their duties. "If soldiers are preoccupied with detained or deported family, they're not concentrating on their job anymore," she explained.

Even some congressional Republicans, generally supportive of Trump’s immigration policies, have advocated for the release of service members' relatives. Florida Republican Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar stated, "The immigration system is failing the honorable and good Americans."

While DHS does not track data for active-duty troops, it has released figures for former service members.

From Jan. 20, 2025, through Jan. 26, 2026, immigration authorities detained 125 military veterans and arrested over 150 immediate family members. Anh Dung Cong Tran, whose father and son both served, was deported in July after living in the U.S. for decades.

His son, Antonio Tran, who enlisted at his father’s urging, said, "He has a totally different view on America now."

Military recruiters frequently tout immigration benefits, such as "military parole-in-place," as a selling point for enlistment.

This policy, implemented under Republican President George W. Bush and codified under Democratic President Barack Obama, allows spouses, children, and parents of service members and veterans to obtain legal immigration status from within the country.

However, under Trump, the average processing time for military parole-in-place has more than doubled to 12 months, leaving families more vulnerable to detention.

The AP found that immediate family members have repeatedly been detained by ICE while applying for parole-in-place or seeking to adjust their status, someti...

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