Elyssa Pachico on Muck Rack

Elyssa Pachico

As seen in: HuffPost, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, International Journalists Network, InSight Crime, Editor & Publisher, War is Boring, Hecho En California
Covers:  hispanic affairs, latin america, colombia, security, crime, mexico, venezuela, el salvador, ms-13, zetas, farc, non-fiction, politics, technology, media
Doesn't Cover: immigration
Media Engagement Coordinator at @ImmCouncil

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Elyssa Pachico’s Biography

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I’ve written mostly about Latin America since I graduated from Wesleyan University in 2008.

I've specialized in writing about security issues and politics, with a special interest in Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, and Central America.

However, I'm not limited to those areas. I've also written personal essays, feature stories, metro news, technical manuals, podcast scripts -- you name it, I can take a crack at it.

Elyssa Pachico’s Journalist Portfolio

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Fragmenting Criminal Gangs: Mexico Follows Colombia

Fragmenting Criminal Gangs: Mexico Follows Colombia

Mexico's security situation is looking increasingly like that of Colombia several years ago -- indicating tha…

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Uruguay Police Smuggled Weapons to Brazil

Uruguay Police Smuggled Weapons to Brazil

Uruguay authorities are investigating police accused of trafficking some 300 weapons to Brazil, an indication…

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Torture 'generalized' in Mexico: UN's top recommendations to stop it

Torture 'generalized' in Mexico: UN's top recommendations to stop it

From abolishing a law that allows suspects to be held for 80 days without formal charges to improving medical…

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Zetas Leader Z42 Reportedly Captured in Mexico

Zetas Leader Z42 Reportedly Captured in Mexico

The leader of the brutal Mexican drug trafficking organization the Zetas, Alejandro "Omar" Treviño Morales, a…

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'Crime Ring Laundered $1 Billion in Colombia Gold Exports'

'Crime Ring Laundered $1 Billion in Colombia Gold Exports'

Colombia's Attorney General's Office announced the results of an investigation involving an illegal network t…

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The challenge of tracking displaced populations in El Salvador

The challenge of tracking displaced populations in El Salvador

Gang violence has uprooted many communities in El Salvador, which gained headlines during last summer's uptic…

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Articles

How to Restore Credibility, Humanity to Immigration Enforcement

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By Elyssa Pachico
| Hecho En California
Washington DC, May 12 Tues – Today, the American Immigration Council released a new framework calling for the overhaul of the United States’ immigration enforcement system. The framework argues that the country’s current approach is fundamentally disconnected from public safety and has trapped the immigration debate into a false binary between either mass deportation or no enforcement at all.
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As Public Support for Mass Deportation Falls, New Proposal Seeks to Restore Credibility and Humanity in Immigration Enforcement

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By Elyssa Pachico
| americanimmigrationcouncil.org
Washington DC, May 12 Tues – Today, the American Immigration Council released a new framework calling for the overhaul of the United States’ immigration enforcement system. The framework argues that the country’s current approach is fundamentally disconnected from public safety and has trapped the immigration debate into a false binary between either mass deportation or no enforcement at all.
Open in Who Shared Issue with article?

Federal Court Weighs Unchecked Immigration Detention

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By Elyssa Pachico
| Hecho En California
April 29, 2026 (New Orleans, LA) — On April 29, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit heard oral arguments in a set of cases that could determine whether people can be held in immigration detention without ever getting any chance to challenge why they are being locked up while their case moves forward. At stake is a basic constitutional principle: whether people have the right to a meaningful opportunity to challenge their detention.
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Interview

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What was your first job as a journalist?

I went to press conferences in NYC involving Latino entertainers like Thalia and Daddy Yankee.

Have you ever used a typewriter?

I have not.

How is social media changing news?

How has it not changed news?

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