Federal judge issues ruling blocking expansion of Florida’s ‘Alligator Alcatraz’

A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction on Thursday blocking Florida from further expanding the “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration detention center built in the middle of the Florida Everglades.

U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams’ injunction formalized the temporary halt she had ordered two weeks ago.

Witnesses continued to testify over multiple days in a hearing to determine whether construction of the facility should stop until the case is decided.

Advocates have argued that the expansion of the facility violated environmental laws.

LAWSUITS THREATEN TO UPEND ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ OPERATIONS

Environmental groups and the Miccosukee Tribe said that further construction and operations at the facility should be stopped until state and federal officials complied with environmental laws. Their lawsuit argued that the detention center threatens environmentally sensitive wetlands that have protected plants and animals and that it would reverse billions of dollars in environmental restoration.

Attorneys for the state and federal governments claimed that the construction and operation of the facility was under the state of Florida despite its use for holding federal detainees, meaning the federal environmental law would not apply.

The judge found that the detention center was at least a joint partnership between the state and federal government.

Williams said she expected the number of detainees in the facility to dip within 60 days through transfers to other facilities, and that fencing, lighting and generators should be removed. She said the state and federal defendants cannot bring anyone other than current detainees at the facility onto the property.

The order does not halt modifications or repairs to existing facilities, which the judge said are “solely for the purpose of increasing safety or mitigating environmental or other risks at the site.”

FLORIDA TO OPEN ‘DEPORTATION DEPOT’ AT SHUTTERED PRISON WEEKS AFTER LAUNCHING ‘ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ’ FACILITY

An aerial view of a migrant detention center, dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” is seen located at the site of the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in Ochopee, Florida on July 7, 2025.  (Chandan Khanna/AFP via…