Migrant Detention

The battle over “Alligator Alcatraz” came to a head in a Miami-Dade courtroom. Judge Kathleen Williams has granted a temporary restraining order that has stopped any future construction on the site.

In order to meet the 1 million deportations in one year mandate, lawyers say local authorities are utilizing racial profiling to target people who have legal status to stay in the county.

A federal judge considered whether detainees have been denied their legal rights at a temporary immigrant detention center in the Florida Everglades. This is the second lawsuit challenging practices at the facility known as “Alligator Alcatraz.” On Monday, civil rights attorneys in Miami asked a judge to ensure detainees have confidential access to their lawyers. They also want the judge to identify an immigration court with jurisdiction over the center. Florida officials dispute claims that attorneys have been unable to meet with clients. Government attorneys said at the start of the hearing that they would designate a Miami-area immigration court for the Everglades detainees.

Civil rights lawyers say many migrant detainees in Florida's "Alligator Alcatraz" are being barred from meeting regularly with attorneys and are being held in dangerous conditions.

A federal judge has ordered a temporary halt to construction of an immigration detention center — built in the middle of the Florida Everglades and dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz" — as attorneys argue whether it violates environmental laws. Under Thursday's order, the facility can continue to operate and hold detainees for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Environmental groups and the Miccosukee Tribe have asked U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams to issue a preliminary injunction to halt operations and further construction.

A July 2025 CBS/YouGov poll asked Americans, "Do you approve or disapprove of the Trump administration's program to find and deport immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally?"The respondents were divided, with 49% of Americans approving and 51% disapproving.

A federal judge has ordered officials to produce agreements showing who has legal authority at "Alligator Alcatraz," an immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades. The order, issued Monday, is part of a civil rights lawsuit claiming detainees' rights are being violated. Officials must provide documents by Thursday. The facility was hastily constructed over a month ago. The lawsuit says detainees are being held without charges and are barred from meeting attorneys. Environmental groups have also sued over the facility, arguing the project didn't follow environmental laws. The Archdiocese of Miami celebrated the first Mass at the center on Saturday.

The Urban Institute found that immigrants worried about essential activities such as driving, talking to police, seeking health care services, or taking their children to school a month before Trump came back to the White House.

From LA to New York, to the belly of Florida, immigrants and supporters didn't go to work and school in protest of Donald Trump's immigration policies

Haitian American advocate calls measures such as school and church raids un-American