Appeals court weighs fate of Alligator Alcatraz in the Everglades

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Naples Daily News

April 7, 2026, 6:28 p.m. ET


The future of Alligator Alcatraz, the immigration detention center built in the Florida Everglades, now rests with a three-judge federal appeals panel following oral arguments in a lawsuit brought against the state of Florida. Judges with the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday, April 7 heard more than an hour of arguments on whether the facility must be halted or allowed to continue operating without a federal environmental review.

The case stems from a preliminary injunction granted to Friends of the Everglades, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida, which are seeking to stop construction and operation of the site in Big Cypress National Preserve in eastern Collier County. No ruling was issued from the bench. A written decision is expected.

Does Alligator Alcatraz require federal environmental review?

The court must determine whether the project qualifies as a federal action under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which would trigger a full environmental review. Jesse Panuccio, representing the Florida Division of Emergency Management, argued the state controls the project and does not meet that threshold. "The ultimate use of this property is Florida's," Panuccio told the panel. He said Florida retains authority over who is housed at the facility and how the site is used, including decisions to reject certain detainee populations or shut it down entirely.

Paul Schwiep, representing Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biological Diversity, disputed that argument."The project is to serve an exclusively federal function. This facility would not exist but for immigration enforcement. The federal government has outsourced immigration detention to the state of Florida," Schwiep told judges.

Read more: https://www.naplesnews.com/story/news/2026/04/07/alligator-alcatraz-in-everglades-environment-case-appeals-court-in-florida/89487910007/

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REFERENCES

https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143484753
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143484759
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143486902
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143489408
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143490543
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143507106
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143508451
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143509050
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143512305
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https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143520056
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143524085
https://www.democraticunderground.com/10143552067

[eppur_se_muova]

1. At some point, shouldn't the judiciary note that the Constitution outlaws "cruel and unusual punishment" ? nt

Forcing detainees to endure tropical heat for months on end, in utterly primitive conditions, could be genuinely lethal for some. That alone should trigger enforcement of that clause. But it should also be considered that the whole point of such conditions is deliberate cruelty, even towards people who have not yet had a hearing -- many cannot even contact a lawyer, nor can any lawyer reach them -- and are not known to be guilty of any crime. So the whole concept of this kind of miserable imprisonment is outside of US law to begin with.

[BumRushDaShow]

2. The U.S. and yes FDR, didn't give a shit about the Japanese citizens who were kept in horse stables

at a race track during WW2 so why should it care now?