An Associated Press investigation found that President Donald Trump’s administration has detained dozens of parents and spouses of active-duty U.S. military service members as it rolls back immigration protections for their families while pursuing its mass deportation agenda. Immediate family members of U.S. troops have generally not been targets of immigration enforcement. The AP found they are now routinely being detained for months as they try to adjust their legal status through policies available to close relatives of service members, even as the military recruits by advertising those benefits.

The AP found that at least 51 parents and spouses of active-duty service members have been detained by immigration officers since Trump took office for a second term. At least six have been deported, and at least eight immediate family members of U.S. service members remain in federal immigration custody. The review is the first accounting of such detentions and is likely an undercount because the government does not track the data.

  • The AP analyzed thousands of federal court records compiled by Habeas Docket, a project run by the Immigration Justice Transparency Initiative.
  • The review also included existing media coverage and information verified with family members and attorneys.
  • The Department of Homeland Security said military service alone does not automatically grant lawful immigration status or exempt aliens from the consequences of violating U.S. immigration laws.

Detentions have also affected service members’ support networks and child-care arrangements. Experts warned that detaining troops’ family members undermines military preparedness even as the U.S. is at war in Iran. Military members whose spouses or parents have been detained lose emotional support and caretakers for their children, delaying deployments and forcing some to take leave.

Army Staff Sgt. Alexis Jaramillo took administrative leave from his job training soldiers at Fort Polk, Louisiana, to care for his 5-year-old stepson, Noah, after his Brazilian wife, Maisa Lopes Eliaser, was detained in early July. “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. At least one soldier delayed deployment to care for her 5-year-old son after her husband was detained by ICE, according to court records. The Pentagon declined to comment.