A federal judge halted construction of Florida's Alligator Alcatraz on Thursday for 14 days while the court decides if the opening of the facility violated federal environmental laws and regulations. Immigrant detainees will remain on the site as the environmental legal challenges continue.
Alligator Alcatraz, a state-run immigration detention center, is located on 30 square miles of the Everglades in Miami-Dade County. Florida officials announced plans for the project on June 19 and began construction just days later. Despite opposition from Miami-Dade's Democratic Mayor Daniella Levine Cava—who called for an updated appraisal of the property and environmental impact report—Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis took possession of the land through emergency powers in place since 2023. After only eight days of construction, the facility was operational and began accepting immigrant detainees on July 3.
But before the immigration detention center even opened, environmental groups filed suit in the federal district court in Miami in June, arguing that construction on the land threatens the environmentally sensitive area and failed to comply with federal and state law.
