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Winnipeg Free Press
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Winnipeg Free Press
Judge considers whether ‘Alligator Alcatraz' challenge was filed in wrong venue
MIAMI (AP) — A legal challenge to a hastily-built immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades was filed in the wrong venue, government attorneys argued Wednesday in the first of two hearings over the legality of 'Alligator Alcatraz' in a lawsuit brought by environmental groups. Even though the property is owned by Miami-Dade County, Florida's southern district is the wrong venue for the federal lawsuit by environmental groups since the detention center is located in neighboring Collier County, which is in the state's middle district, according to government arguments. Any decision by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams in Miami about whether to move the case could also influence a separate lawsuit brought by civil rights advocates who say that detainees at 'Alligator Alcatraz' have been denied access to attorneys and immigration courts. The federal and state government defendants in the civil rights case also argue that the lawsuit was filed in the wrong venue. At the request of a judge, the civil rights groups on Tuesday filed a revised class-action complaint arguing that the detainees' constitutional rights were being violated. Environmental groups filed their lawsuit against federal and state officials in Florida's southern district last month, asking for the project being built on an airstrip in the heart of the Florida Everglades to be halted because the process didn't follow state and federal environmental laws. Besides Wednesday's hearing over venue, a second hearing has been scheduled for next week on the environmental groups' request for temporary injunction. The first of hundreds of detainees arrived a few days after the lawsuit was filed, and the facility has the capacity to hold 3,000 people. The detention center was opened by Florida officials, but critics said it's unclear whether federal immigration officials or state officials are calling the shots. Deportation flights from 'Alligator Alcatraz' started last week. Williams on Monday ordered that any agreements be produced in court between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Florida Department of Emergency Management, a move that could shed some light on the relationship between federal and state agencies in running the facility. Critics have condemned the facility as a cruel and inhumane, as well as a threat to the ecologically sensitive wetlands, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Republican state officials have defended it as part of the state's aggressive push to support President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration. ___ Follow Mike Schneider on the social platform Bluesky: @
Hamilton Spectator
11 hours ago
- Politics
- Hamilton Spectator
Judge considers whether ‘Alligator Alcatraz' challenge was filed in wrong venue
MIAMI (AP) — A legal challenge to a hastily-built immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades was filed in the wrong venue, government attorneys argued Wednesday in the first of two hearings over the legality of 'Alligator Alcatraz' in a lawsuit brought by environmental groups. Even though the property is owned by Miami-Dade County, Florida's southern district is the wrong venue for the federal lawsuit by environmental groups since the detention center is located in neighboring Collier County, which is in the state's middle district, according to government arguments. Any decision by U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams in Miami about whether to move the case could also influence a separate lawsuit brought by civil rights advocates who say that detainees at 'Alligator Alcatraz' have been denied access to attorneys and immigration courts. The federal and state government defendants in the civil rights case also argue that the lawsuit was filed in the wrong venue. At the request of a judge, the civil rights groups on Tuesday filed a revised class-action complaint arguing that the detainees' constitutional rights were being violated. Environmental groups filed their lawsuit against federal and state officials in Florida's southern district last month, asking for the project being built on an airstrip in the heart of the Florida Everglades to be halted because the process didn't follow state and federal environmental laws. Besides Wednesday's hearing over venue, a second hearing has been scheduled for next week on the environmental groups' request for temporary injunction. The first of hundreds of detainees arrived a few days after the lawsuit was filed, and the facility has the capacity to hold 3,000 people. The detention center was opened by Florida officials, but critics said it's unclear whether federal immigration officials or state officials are calling the shots. Deportation flights from 'Alligator Alcatraz' started last week. Williams on Monday ordered that any agreements be produced in court between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Florida Department of Emergency Management, a move that could shed some light on the relationship between federal and state agencies in running the facility. Critics have condemned the facility as a cruel and inhumane, as well as a threat to the ecologically sensitive wetlands, while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Republican state officials have defended it as part of the state's aggressive push to support President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration . ___ Follow Mike Schneider on the social platform Bluesky: @ Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Reuters
2 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
U.S. to help Argentina reenter visa waiver program, DHS says
BUENOS AIRES, July 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is taking steps to bring Argentina back into its visa waiver program in the coming years, the agency said on Monday during Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's visit to Buenos Aires. Argentina was part of the program between 1996 and 2002. The scheme allows citizens of certain countries to travel to the U.S. for business or tourism for up to 90 days without a visa, if their home nations meet counter-terrorism, law enforcement and immigration requirements. Noem in a statement said that Argentina had the lowest visa overstay rate among Latin American countries, and that Argentine travel to the U.S. had been increasing. She noted that Argentina had become an "even stronger friend" to the United States under President Javier Milei. Libertarian Milei has sought to align himself with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has lauded Milei's deregulation efforts and called the Argentine leader his 'favorite president." The DHS announcement comes shortly after Argentina decided to loosen visa requirements for Chinese visitors, saying those with valid U.S. entry visas would not need Argentine visas to enter the country for tourism or business.
Straits Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Straits Times
U.S. to help Argentina reenter visa waiver program, DHS says
FILE PHOTO: The seal of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is seen in Del Rio, Texas, U.S., September 19, 2021. REUTERS/Marco Bello/File Photo BUENOS AIRES - The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is taking steps to bring Argentina back into its visa waiver program in the coming years, the agency said on Monday during Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem's visit to Buenos Aires. Argentina was part of the program between 1996 and 2002. The scheme allows citizens of certain countries to travel to the U.S. for business or tourism for up to 90 days without a visa, if their home nations meet counter-terrorism, law enforcement and immigration requirements. Noem in a statement said that Argentina had the lowest visa overstay rate among Latin American countries, and that Argentine travel to the U.S. had been increasing. She noted that Argentina had become an "even stronger friend" to the United States under President Javier Milei. Libertarian Milei has sought to align himself with U.S. President Donald Trump, who has lauded Milei's deregulation efforts and called the Argentine leader his 'favorite president." The DHS announcement comes shortly after Argentina decided to loosen visa requirements for Chinese visitors, saying those with valid U.S. entry visas would not need Argentine visas to enter the country for tourism or business. REUTERS
Chicago Tribune
2 days ago
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Column: Quirk in SAFE-T Act muddles death of Antioch woman
It was Winston Churchill who pointed out decades ago: 'A lie gets halfway around the world before truth gets its pants on.' A Lake County judge last week unfortunately found the British statesman's thoughts to be true. This after she followed the guidelines of the Illinois SAFE-T Act, which was signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker on Jan. 22, 2021. Associate Circuit Court Judge Randie Bruno was condemned in national media reports last week for releasing a Waukegan man charged with letting the corpse of an Antioch woman rot in his garbage bin for several weeks. 'Significant threats and harassment', authorities said, were forthcoming from morons who either don't know Illinois law, believed incorrect reporting or casually decided to ignore what are considered to be jailable offenses here. Authorities are investigating the threats for the judge's lawful actions in the first-appearance hearing of Jose Luis Mendoza-Gonzalez, 52, who has been charged with concealing the death, among other charges, of Megan Bos, 37. Yet, the damage was done after a U.S. Department of Homeland Security official said, 'It is absolutely repulsive this monster walked free on Illinois' streets after allegedly committing such a heinous crime.' This came after federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents picked up Mendoza-Gonzalez, an immigrant from Mexico, for being a 'criminal illegal alien.' He's scheduled to be deported, although the Lake County State's Attorney's Office is seeking to keep him in the U.S. to prosecute him for the Bos charges. While the alleged crimes are indeed gruesome and would seem to be enough to put an individual in jail until trial, they surprisingly don't fall under the guidelines of the SAFE-T Act. In this instance, the act required the judge to release the defendant until trial. Five years old, the law's effectiveness is still being debated, especially in the case of Megan Bos, whose cause of death remains under investigation. We need to remember the SAFE-T Act, pushed by the Democratic-controlled Illinois legislature, ended cash bail in the state, undercutting judicial discretion and stripping judges of the authority to determine either to jail alleged criminals before trial or set bond to allow them to roam free until their days in court. The law prohibits Illinois judges from independently initiating detention proceedings, regardless of the case or circumstances before them. That's an important consideration, obviously overlooked by detractors of Judge Bruno. In Lake County, State's Attorney Eric Rinehart campaigned heartily in favor of the act. It has seemed to work here until it doesn't due to quirks in the law. A statement issued July 22 from the office of Lake County Circuit Court Chief Judge Daniel Shanes spelled out the foibles in the SAFE-T Act. It notes that the charges in the death of Bos, which include abuse of a corpse and obstructing justice, are excluded in the law. As such, it 'forbids the court from holding an individual charged with the offenses against this defendant in jail prior to trial.' The legal community agrees that the SAFE-T Act created one of the most restrictive procedures in the nation for determining whether a person charged with a crime can be detained in jail before trial. Instead, according to the judicial statement, the act requires criminal defendants be released before trial unless a state's attorney's office charges them with certain detainable offenses specified by the statute, and a petition is filed seeking to detain defendants. In December 2024, the Illinois Judges Association issued a statement clarifying aspects of the SAFE-T Act: 'Judges must make detention decisions within the framework of the law.' In the case of Mendoza-Gonzalez, the State's Attorney's Office did not file a petition seeking to jail him because the charges weren't detainable. Bruno, an experienced jurist and former assistant state's attorney, placed him on pretrial release with conditions, including reporting to pretrial services and not leaving Illinois. 'Disinformation undermines our Republic,' the judicial statement from the chief judge's office said. 'Threats of violence and intimidation against judges weaken our democracy. Knowing what happens in court and understanding the law are essential to public trust.' So true. It's a sad America when judges receive threats for doing their jobs as quacks ignore what the law spells out. Wonder how many of these online threats come from Illinois residents? If they are Illinoisans, who should be familiar with the SAFE-T Act, they are targeting the wrong public official. They need to direct their ire at their legislative representatives who adopted the law.
