On July 18th 2025, Gerson Josué Santamaría Turcios, a graduate of Rhinebeck High School and active member of the Rhinebeck community, was taken into custody and detained by ICE on his way to work. Santamaría Turcios is 23 years old and immigrated from Honduras six years ago. He has become an avid member of the community, and runs a local lawn care, maintenance, and landscaping business in town.
His arrest sparked immediate action, and community members rallied in his defense, raising money for legal battles and showing up to court hearings. Over $100,000 was raised for Turcios through grassroots organizations, like New York Neighbors United, while he was being held at Orange County Correctional facility. Though it was initially denied, a judge quickly issued an order to temporarily prevent the government from deporting or removing him from the Southern District of New York, providing him more time to strengthen his legal battle and stay in his community.
After thorough research, his current whereabouts are unknown: his name does not appear in any ICE digital databases, and no articles have been published detailing what happened next. Santamaría Turcios’ detainment sparked outrage and sorrow throughout the community towards this “unstable system that we have” (Brendan Dougherty, one of Santamaría Turcios’ friends). Many announced their confusion as to why Santamaría Turcios would be singled out by ICE; he has no criminal record, which completely contradicts the Trump Administration’s goal of focusing on deporting “dangerous criminals.” Seventy percent of people held in ICE detention do not have a criminal conviction, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse.
The Trump administration has cracked down on immigration laws over the past year. In August and September alone, ICE made over 1,200 arrests. Trump has now staffed the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a department established to oversee applications for immigration, with armed law enforcement. This makes it harder and more intimidating for immigrants to apply for the benefits that they are eligible for. With the change in administration, USCIS special agents can make arrests, carry firearms, and execute search and arrest warrants, which is exactly the opposite of what USCIS was originally established to do—deciding immigrants benefits, not law enforcement. Immigration officers are now working with other law enforcement agencies, like police departments, to identify migrants during stops for minor infractions. Arrests have become increasingly random and violent, with officers sometimes masked and dragnet-style arrest tactics being used. People are seemingly targeted based on their ethnicity, and arrests are being made without probable cause, which goes against the Constitution and is causing terror within Latino communities.
Santamaría Turcios’ story is just one of over 200,000 detainments that have occurred since the start of Donald Trump’s second term, and his story only scrapes the surface of the horrors and heartbreak that come from a corrupt immigration force. ICE arrests have broken up families and taken away individuals who make the majority of their family’s income, resulting in fear throughout the nation. False promises and a blatant defiance of the Constitution has sparked national protest against the mass deportation for immigrants who play a key role in our communities and lives.
If you are coming to the US in search of a better life, it’s challenging to immigrate legally, and if you immigrate illegally, it’s nearly impossible to gain legal status. America should be a place where people can openly seek legal pathways to citizenship, and the weaponization of ICE is preventing that from happening. As Americans, we should advocate for change in these systems. Even as a citizen, ICE affects you and your community.
