Judge hears arguments for halting ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ over environmental concerns – Washington Examiner
A federal judge heard arguments regarding a lawsuit aiming to halt construction and operation of the “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center in the Florida Everglades, citing environmental concerns. The facility, run by Florida to detain illegal immigrants before deportation, has drawn criticism for potentially harming the surrounding ecosystem, including worries about runoff, increased traffic, and bright industrial lighting affecting the area. environmental groups, led by Friends of the everglades, argue that the state and federal government proceeded without proper environmental reviews. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice contends that the alleged environmental harm is speculative and stresses the national interest in combating unlawful immigration. The judge has yet to decide whether to issue an injunction to stop the facility’s operations. The “Alligator Alcatraz” site is also facing separate lawsuits over alleged constitutional rights violations of detainees.Despite controversy, plans have been announced for a similar facility in Indiana, dubbed the “Speedway Slammer.”
Judge hears arguments for halting ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ over environmental concerns
A federal judge heard arguments Wednesday on whether to halt construction of the “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center, in a lawsuit filed against the Trump administration over concerns about the facility’s environmental impact.
The Florida-run immigration facility in the Everglades has garnered national headlines due to its unique location for holding illegal immigrants for detention before deportation. Judge Kathleen Williams of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, an Obama appointee, heard arguments in a federal courthouse in Miami over a proposed preliminary injunction to halt operations at the detention facility.
The environmental groups suing over the facility, led by Friends of the Everglades, argued that Florida and the federal government have built and operated “Alligator Alcatraz” without environmental reviews and raised concerns that it could harm the surrounding ecosystem.
“We are very concerned about potential impacts of runoff,” Eve Samples, executive director of Friends of the Everglades, said during the Wednesday hearing, per NBC News.
“Large, new industrial-style lights that are visible from 15 miles away, even though having a dark sky designation,” Samples said, also noting increased traffic around the facility since it began operations earlier this summer.
The “Alligator Alcatraz” facility is located on the site of a largely unused airstrip that has been there for decades. During Thursday’s hearing, a lawyer for the state questioned Samples on whether her group had filed any lawsuits over the past decade. She said the group had not, per the Associated Press.
The Department of Justice argued in a brief to the court prior to the hearing that the alleged harm the environmental groups would suffer over harm to the environment from the facility’s continued operation is “too speculative and conclusory.”
“The significant national interest in combatting unlawful immigration favors allowing Florida to continue the development and use of its facility,” the DOJ said in a filing arguing Williams should deny an injunction.
When asked about the potential for “Alligator Alcatraz’s” operations to be halted by the pending lawsuit, Trump border czar Tom Homan told reporters at the White House that he did not “understand the environmental concerns” about the facility.
Williams has not set a timeline for when she will decide on whether to grant an injunction halting operations at “Alligator Alcatraz.”
NOEM REVEALS PLANS FOR ‘ALLIGATOR ALCATRAZ’ SUCCESSOR IN INDIANA CALLED ‘SPEEDWAY SLAMMER’
The facility, which has become a frequent target of criticism from Democratic politicians, is the subject of a different lawsuit alleging that people being held at the facility are having their constitutional rights violated by not having access to their lawyers and being held without charges.
Despite uproar from Democrats, the Trump administration has continued to tout “Alligator Alcatraz” as part of its immigration agenda and has announced plans for a similar facility in Indiana, which it has dubbed the “Speedway Slammer.”
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