Governor Ron DeSantis announces the permanent closure of the Alligator Alcatraz detention center and says officials processed more than 22,000 detainees with transfers to facilities in South Florida, California, Arizona, Louisiana and Texas.Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava says the 17,000-acre site will be decommissioned and folded into the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan while the underlying airstrip remains in use.Detainees and advocates reported unsanitary and unsafe conditions at the tented facility, including worms in food, non-flushing toilets, floors flooded with fecal waste and widespread insect infestations, and lawyers say access to counsel was difficult.Governor
Ron DeSantis and former President
Donald Trump defend the center as speeding deportations, while environmental groups including the
Miccosukee Tribe and
Friends of the Everglades have filed lawsuits and critics say contractors profited millions and taxpayers paid about $1B.