A federal judge in Miami heard arguments Monday that detainees at the remote immigration jail in the Florida Everglades, known as “Alligator Alcatraz,” are facing human rights abuses and being denied due process before deportation.
The ACLU lawsuit is one of two pending cases that could shut down the controversial facility, which Donald Trump once celebrated for its tough conditions. In a separate case, District Court Judge Kathleen Williams is expected to rule this week on a claim by environmental groups and a Native American tribe that the jail is causing irreversible damage to the Everglades. Williams earlier issued a temporary restraining order halting new construction and expansion, though ICE operations continue.
The jail currently holds about 700 detainees. Monday’s hearing before Judge Rodolfo Ruiz focused on alleged violations of immigrants’ rights.
ACLU attorney Eunice Cho called conditions there “anomalous from what is typically granted at other immigration facilities.” She told reporters that officers have pressured detainees to sign voluntary removal orders without legal counsel.
“We heard a case of an intellectually disabled man being presented with a paper … he was told that he should sign the paper to get a blanket, and it turned out to be a voluntary departure form. And he was deported very soon after,” Cho said.
Cho also disputed claims by Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida’s Department of Emergency Management (which operates the facility for ICE) that all detainees are criminals.
“There are people who have no criminal history whatsoever, people who have been living in the United States and Florida for decades, have had the same job for over 20 years, have five children and families here,” she said.
Testimony submitted to the court described inhumane conditions, including detainees kept in cages in extreme heat, plagued by mosquitoes, suffering from broken toilets, and exposed to malfunctioning air conditioning that left temperatures either freezing or sweltering. Attorneys warned a respiratory virus, possibly Covid-19, was spreading unchecked.
The ACLU is asking Ruiz to order the facility’s closure. Built hastily on a disused airstrip with disaster relief funds, the camp opened in July. Democrats who toured it described the conditions as inhumane, noting that even non-criminal immigrants and a U.S. citizen child were detained there.
Defense lawyers for the Justice Department and the state of Florida argue the Miami court lacks jurisdiction because the camp is in Collier County and should fall under Florida’s middle district. Ruiz said he would decide on venue after the hearing.
Meanwhile, Gov. DeSantis announced construction of a new federal immigration jail at the closed Baker Correctional Institute, to house another 1,300 detainees, dubbing it the “deportation depot.”
Protests against Alligator Alcatraz are growing. Noelle Damico, director of social justice at the Workers Circle, said nearly 300 people rallied Sunday, vowing to protest every weekend until the camp is permanently shut down.
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