Latest news with #detentionCenter
E&E News
16 hours ago
- Politics
- E&E News
DeSantis rejects ‘Alligator Alcatraz' concerns, says detention center poses ‘zero' threat to Everglades
TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday rejected environmental criticism of a proposed immigration detention center in the Everglades dubbed 'Alligator Alcatraz.' 'There's zero environmental,' DeSantis said during a press conference in Tampa. 'You're talking about the guy who plowed how much money into Everglades restoration?' Details: Environmental groups and Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava have raised environmental concerns about the detention center being built at a 10,500-foot air strip west of Miami owned by the county. Advertisement But DeSantis labeled the county's response as 'more posturing.' He insisted the facility will be temporary and said the state, which has offered to buy the property, eventually would let the Everglades 'grow over' the site.
CBS News
a day ago
- Politics
- CBS News
DeSantis considers second immigrant detention facility in NE Florida, touts Everglades "Alligator Alcatraz"
"Alligator Alcatraz" getting closer to becoming reality as critics ramp up fight "Alligator Alcatraz" getting closer to becoming reality as critics ramp up fight "Alligator Alcatraz" getting closer to becoming reality as critics ramp up fight Florida officials are pursuing plans to build a second detention center to house immigrants, as part of the state's aggressive push to support the federal government's crackdown on illegal immigration. Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday he's considering standing up a facility at a Florida National Guard training center known as Camp Blanding, about 30 miles (48 kilometers) southwest of Jacksonville in northeast Florida, in addition to the site under construction at a remote airstrip in the Everglades that state officials have dubbed " Alligator Alcatraz." The construction of that facility in the remote and ecologically sensitive wetland about 45 miles (72 kilometers) west of downtown Miami is alarming environmentalists, as well as human rights advocates who have slammed the plan as cruel and inhumane. A detention center made of heavy-duty tents, trailers Speaking to reporters at an event in Tampa, DeSantis touted the state's muscular approach to immigration enforcement and its willingness to help President Donald Trump's administration meet its goal of more than doubling its existing 41,000 beds for detaining migrants to at least 100,000 beds nationwide. State officials have said the detention facility, which they've described as temporary, will rely on heavy-duty tents, trailers, and other impermanent buildings, allowing the state to operationalize 5,000 immigration detention beds by early July and free up space in local jails. "I think the capacity that will be added there will help the overall national mission. It will also relieve some burdens of our state and local (law enforcement)," DeSantis said. Managing the facility "via a team of vendors" will cost $245 a bed per day, or approximately $450 million a year, a U.S. official said. The expenses are to be incurred by Florida and reimbursed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In the eyes of DeSantis and other state officials, the remoteness of the Everglades airfield, surrounded by mosquito- and alligator-filled wetlands that are seen as sacred to Native American tribes, makes it an ideal place to detain migrants. "Clearly, from a security perspective, if someone escapes, you know, there's a lot of alligators," he said. "No one's going anywhere." Critics condemn the plan as cruel Democrats and activists have condemned the plan as a callous, politically motivated spectacle. "What's happening is very concerning, the level of dehumanization," said Maria Asuncion Bilbao, Florida campaign coordinator at the immigration advocacy group American Friends Service Committee. "It's like a theatricalization of cruelty," she said. Advocates were already sounding the alarm about conditions at a federally-run detention center in South Florida, where reports have poured in about a lack of water and food, unsanitary confinement and medical neglect. DeSantis is relying on state emergency powers to commandeer the county-owned airstrip and build the compound, over the concerns of county officials, environmentalists and human rights advocates. Now the state is considering standing up another site at a National Guard training facility in northeast Florida as well. "We'll probably also do something similar up at Camp Blanding," DeSantis said, adding that the Florida Division of Emergency Management is "working on that." Evacuation plans for hurricane season State officials have said they're drafting evacuation plans in the event detainees have to be relocated ahead of a natural disaster, as Florida braces for what forecasters have warned could be another unusually busy hurricane season. Hurricane preparations are happening at the same time as site development planning, a spokesperson for DeSantis said, adding that having emergency storm plans in place is "standard procedure" for all state facilities. "The facility will be evacuated if a tropical cyclone with windspeeds higher than the temporary facility's wind rating is forecasted to impact the area," said Molly Best, deputy press secretary for DeSantis. She did not specify what the site's wind rating is. "FDEM is coordinating with several partners on potential locations for relocation, but ultimately it will be scenario dependent based on facility population and the projected storm path," Best said. The significant investment of resources into immigration enforcement by Florida's emergency management agency comes as some officials were already raising concerns about the department's ability to respond to disasters, as federal support for the work dwindles. Trump has said he'll begin "phasing out" the federal agency that responds to disasters after the 2025 hurricane season, a change that will likely put more responsibilities on states to provide services following storms.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Florida AG proposes ‘Alligator Alcatraz' detention center
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, a Republican, says the state is proposing a new detention center on a parcel of land owned by Miami-Dade County. The land is situated in the middle of the Everglades, surrounded by alligators and pythons, leaving detainees with 'nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.' Read more:
National Post
11-05-2025
- Politics
- National Post
Newark's mayor was arrested at an immigration detention center. Here's what to know
Article content Alina Habba, interim U.S. attorney for New Jersey, said on the social media platform X that Baraka was arrested after the mayor allegedly trespassed at the detention facility. She accused him of ignoring warnings to leave the facility, which he has denied. Article content Baraka was arrested, booked and released the same day. He said he has a court appearance scheduled for Thursday. Article content In video reviewed by The Associated Press, a federal official in a jacket with the logo of the Homeland Security Investigations can be heard telling Baraka he could not enter the facility because 'you are not a congress member.' He was arrested after returning to the public side of the gate at the facility where protesters were gathered, video shows. Article content Baraka, who is running to succeed term-limited Gov. Phil Murphy, has argued against the opening of the center, citing building permit issues. The facility, located along an industrial stretch of Newark Bay, opened on May 1. Article content Article content Delaney Hall is a two-story building next to a county prison in Newark Bay that operated as a halfway house in previous years. In February, Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced that it and the GEO Group reached a $1 billion, 15-year deal for the detention center. The deal is significant for its size and duration, and GEO officials cited it in messages to investors as a big revenue generator Article content Article content The 1,000-bed capacity is also significant in advancing President Donald Trump's goals of expanding detention capacity in the U.S. beyond the previous 41,000 beds, in New Jersey, Michigan, and other states to 100,000 beds. Article content Democrats, including Baraka, have opposed the opening of the facility. As mayor, Baraka sued to block the opening of the detention center, saying it hadn't completed all building requirements. Article content
Daily Mail
10-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
NJ mayor held for trespassing after 'ignoring warnings' to stay away from migrant detention center
A New Jersey mayor was dramatically arrested after 'ignoring' warnings to stay away from a detention center allegedly being used to illegally house migrants. Newark Mayor Ras Baraka was detained Friday for 'trespassing' at the ICE facility, according to Alina Habba, the U.S. attorney for the state. Habba said the politician 'ignored multiple warnings' to leave by Homeland Security Investigations officers. Dramatic footage showed frantic people scrambling outside the gates of the facility, before Baraka was arrested and escorted away by police. Officers were seen shoving protesters out of the way amid the chaos. Rep LaMonica McIver - who was at the facility - claimed she and her colleagues were assaulted by ICE officers. Habba said of Baraka: 'He has willingly chosen to disregard the law. That will not stand in this state. He has been taken into custody. NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW.' Governor Phil Murphy said he was 'outraged' by the arrest and called for the 'immediate' release of Baraka, who was freed a few hours later. The mayor claims the detention center has been illegally housing migrants amid Trump's mass deportation push. The mayor claimed the jail has a contract with the city that precludes the housing of migrants. Last week he attempted to break in, vowing to turn up daily until he was let in. A spokesperson for the company which operates the facility confirmed to that migrants have been housed at the facility for a week. 'Delaney Hall houses illegal aliens. It is not a family detention facility, nor does it house minors,' a spokesperson told Mayor Ras Baraka was arrested at the Delaney Hall ICE detention center after an argument with agents. Members of congress here for a scheduled visit, were shoved after trying to include Baraka in conversations after he gained entry through the gate. @news12nj #newark @News12NJ — Amanda Lee (@amandaleetv) May 9, 2025 But the building's owners, GEO Group, did not receive permits or a valid certificate of occupancy to house 1,000 migrants a day, The New York Times reported. A GEO Group employee had chained the front gates shut on Monday and fire officials gave them three citations for code violations, the Times said. 'They're keeping us out through the gates and the fences and all this other kind of stuff, but we're going to come down here every day and we're going to get in one way or the other,' Baraka told the Times. 'We want them to follow our rules, follow our laws.' GEO Group accepted a 15-year $1billion contract with ICE in February, agreeing to hold migrants while they wait for deportation. Delaney Hall has previously been used as a jail, halfway house, and migrant detention center and is located near the Newark Airport, making it easy to ship migrants back to their native countries. The building has not been used in over a year and with the renovations on top of it, the City of Newark claimed the occupancy certificate would be invalid, the Times reported. GEO Group spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin, told The Times that Baraka is 'more than welcome to enter the facility as long as he follows security protocols like everyone else.' 'He keeps refusing to do so, presumably in an effort to stage press opportunities to help him in his bid for governor,' the spokesperson said. Another spokesperson, Christopher Ferreira, told the Times Baraka's action was a 'publicity stunt.' He said it was an 'unfortunate example of a politicized campaign by sanctuary city and open-borders politicians in New Jersey to interfere with the federal government's efforts to arrest, detain and deport dangerous criminal illegal aliens in accordance with established federal law.'
