Adam Yahya Rayes
Data ReporterLarge sets of numbers add up to peoples’ stories. As Michigan Public’s Data Reporter, Adam Yahya Rayes seeks to sift through noisy digits to put the individuals and policies that make up our communities into perspective.
Adam was born and raised in southeast Michigan and graduated from Western Michigan University in 2019. He returns to Michigan Public about three years after completing an internship at the station.
In the interim, he worked as a Rural and Small Communities Reporter for KUNC in Colorado and then as Statewide Labor and Employment Reporter for Indiana Public Broadcasting.
These roles taught him the power of data to bring seemingly disconnected ideas and groups of people together. He also learned to carefully analyze and present numbers to avoid misleading or misrepresenting anyone.
Adam is excited to be back in his home state. He looks forward to spending more time on the Great Lakes, eating more of the Syrian/Arabic food he grew up with and spending time with family and friends.
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In Michigan, immigrants being held inside detention centers often have no idea of when their cases will be resolved. Dozens have been held for over six months and for some it's been closer to a year. Mental health experts say the uncertainty coupled with the prolonged isolation can take a psychological toll, with the effects often growing more severe the longer a person is detained. -
![PLACEHOLDER: An editorial collage set against a muted gray-purple background, combining three layered elements. On the left, a torn envelope or piece of mail bearing the logo and address of the GEO Group's North Lake Processing Center. In the center, a heavily distorted, glitched portrait of a person whose face is obscured through digital fragmentation, suggesting anonymity and erasure. On the right, a partially visible medical report form with several fields heavily redacted in black. Visible handwritten entries include an incident date of 3-16-2026, a time of 09, a checked "Yes" box next to "necessary to notify physician?", "N/A" written next to a "Fighting" checkbox, and a handwritten description reading "Sexual assault from housin[g]" occurring at "3-4am."](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9b8d60f/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1920x1070+0+5/resize/280x156!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F9f%2F3d%2F1547e7294b60b5ff7f4823f3a84d%2Fq-story-headers-wip-10.png)
Una ex detenida asegura que sufrió agresiones sexuales reiteradas en North Lake Processing Center y que sus intentos de reportarlas a los administradores del centro no recibieron respuesta inicial. -
A former detainee says she was repeatedly sexually assaulted at the North Lake Processing Center and that her attempts to alert administrators initially went unheeded.
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Hundreds of detained immigrants were granted bond after suing the federal government. High costs and government appeals may be keeping some locked up. -
![An editorial collage combining a black-and-white photograph of the Patrick V. McNamara Federal Building, home to the Detroit Immigration Court, with colorful torn-paper fragments of text clipped from immigration court bond hearing documents. The scraps — in pink, blue, and green — display partial phrases including "Granted" (with a checked checkbox), "Denied" (with a checked checkbox), "a flight risk," "Respondent is a flight risk," "the Immigration Judge denied Pe[titioner]," "(ICE), released Petit[ioner]," "under bond of $5,000," "bond of $15,000, with," and "Denied, because." The overlapping fragments visually contrast bond grants and denials, evoking the bureaucratic and high-stakes nature of immigration detention proceedings.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0595959/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1920x1070+0+5/resize/280x156!/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F75%2F7b%2Fa875b7d043b4b67d5862f5501af5%2Fbond-headers-5.png)
Los inmigrantes detenidos en Michigan demandaron al gobierno federal para intentar obtener su libertad. Las demandas funcionaron para cientos de personas, pero un nuevo análisis muestra que eso está cambiando. -
Immigrants locked up in Michigan sued the federal government to try and go free. The lawsuits worked for hundreds of people, but a new analysis shows that’s changing.
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As the population of detainees at North Lake Processing Center topped a thousand people late last year, dozens of emergency calls came into the county emergency dispatch center. Audio from these 911 calls give us a small window into what’s happening inside. -
As the population in the privately-run North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin grew in September 2025, habeas corpus petitions started to show up in Michigan’s federal District Courts. Judges granted most of the hundreds of petitions they’ve ruled on. -
Following Michigan Supreme Court rulings, Oakland County is asking judges to resentence 16 people to life without parole. Kent County is asking for 15 renewed life sentences. -
County prosecutors are running out of time to make key decisions for people serving life without parole for crimes they committed as young adults. Progress varies by county.
![PLACEHOLDER: An editorial collage set against a muted gray-purple background, combining three layered elements. On the left, a torn envelope or piece of mail bearing the logo and address of the GEO Group's North Lake Processing Center. In the center, a heavily distorted, glitched portrait of a person whose face is obscured through digital fragmentation, suggesting anonymity and erasure. On the right, a partially visible medical report form with several fields heavily redacted in black. Visible handwritten entries include an incident date of 3-16-2026, a time of 09, a checked "Yes" box next to "necessary to notify physician?", "N/A" written next to a "Fighting" checkbox, and a handwritten description reading "Sexual assault from housin[g]" occurring at "3-4am."](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/750b7f9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1920x1070+0+5/resize/560x312!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F9f%2F3d%2F1547e7294b60b5ff7f4823f3a84d%2Fq-story-headers-wip-10.png)
![An editorial collage combining a black-and-white photograph of the Patrick V. McNamara Federal Building, home to the Detroit Immigration Court, with colorful torn-paper fragments of text clipped from immigration court bond hearing documents. The scraps — in pink, blue, and green — display partial phrases including "Granted" (with a checked checkbox), "Denied" (with a checked checkbox), "a flight risk," "Respondent is a flight risk," "the Immigration Judge denied Pe[titioner]," "(ICE), released Petit[ioner]," "under bond of $5,000," "bond of $15,000, with," and "Denied, because." The overlapping fragments visually contrast bond grants and denials, evoking the bureaucratic and high-stakes nature of immigration detention proceedings.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c57a8e5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1920x1070+0+5/resize/560x312!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F75%2F7b%2Fa875b7d043b4b67d5862f5501af5%2Fbond-headers-5.png)
