Maria Sacchetti

Washington, D.C.

Reporter covering immigrant communities and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Education: University of Massachusetts at Amherst, BA in journalism; University of Texas at Austin, MA in Latin American studies

 Maria Sacchetti covers immigration for The Washington Post. She previously reported for the Boston Globe, where her reporting led to the release of several immigrants from jail. She investigated the secrecy surrounding the U.S. immigration system and covered the deportation hearings of President Barack Obama's Kenyan relatives. She was a member of the Boston Globe staff that shared in the Pulitzer Prize for reporting on the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings.

Overseas, she covered the refugee crisis in Europe in 2015, the Haiti earthquake in 2010, and traveled to Brazil, Guatemala, Colombia and Ecuador on assignment. She received the 2015 French-American Foundation's Immigration Journalism Award for her article "The Unforgotten," about hundreds, possibly thousands, of immigrants missing along the southern U.S. border.

Before the Globe, she investigated the education of Latino schoolchildren for the Orange County Register in California, which led to an initiative to improve their education. She has lived and worked in Puerto Rico and Costa Rica and spent a summer in Colombia. In Puerto Rico, she covered the legislature and multiple hurricanes. In Costa Rica, she covered five hostage situations, including the sieges on the Nicaraguan embassy and the Costa Rica Supreme Court.

Latest from Maria Sacchetti

When Trump declared national emergency, most detained immigrants were not criminals

Critics of the president say figures undermine the stated rationale for the emergency.

Feb 22, 2019

ACLU asks judge to order Trump administration to determine how many children were separated from their parents at border

Lawyers say an inspector general report estimated that “thousands” more may have been separated than the government disclosed.

Feb 21, 2019

‘You want a cookie?’: As families arrive en masse, border agents offer snacks and medical checks

The influx of Central American families, and two child deaths, have created a new reality at the border, officials say.

Feb 19, 2019

Trump’s emergency declaration to pay for border wall faces a lengthy court battle

Judges will probably decide how much deference to give presidential power and what, if any, evidence Trump needs to support his claims.

Feb 19, 2019

Crash causes serious injuries, shuts down part of Baltimore-Washington Parkway

A 20-year-old man with life-threatening injuries was taken to the hospital via helicopter after the crash in Prince George’s.

Feb 17, 2019

‘I think it’s long overdue’: Catholics in D.C., where McCarrick once presided, are both relieved and dismayed

Although relieved, D.C. Catholics remain concerned about trust that has been broken with the church and the length of time it took to bring McCarrick to justice.

Feb 16, 2019

Homeland Security IG questions ICE’s oversight of detention facilities

A report by the department’s inspector general says ICE cited thousands of violations but rarely fined contractors.

Feb 1, 2019

Hundreds show up for immigration-court hearings that turn out not to exist

Similar confusion erupted months earlier over “fake dates.” But court officials said it shouldn’t happen again.

Jan 31, 2019

‘Digging a bigger and bigger hole’: Shutdown stalls Trump’s deportation efforts

Shuttered courts derailed the president’s plan to remove immigrants at a faster pace, and left immigrants confused about their futures.

Jan 25, 2019

Going home to El Salvador, as the American dream slips away

Guillermo Mendoza, who will soon lose his permission to live in the United States legally, returned to El Salvador after 18 years to see loved ones and contemplate building a life there.

May 30, 2018