Ron DeSantis, Florida’s Republican governor, confirmed the closure of the notorious immigration jail dubbed 'Alligator Alcatraz' on Thursday, boasting that 21,000 people had been deported from the facility during its year-long operation. Standing beside Tom Homan, Donald Trump’s border czar, at a press conference at the dismantled site in Ochopee, Florida, DeSantis presented the jail’s operation as a victory for the president’s aggressive immigration enforcement agenda.
DeSantis Defends the Jail’s Record
'Alligator Alcatraz fulfilled the role it was designed to serve,' DeSantis said, adding that all detainees held there until last week had been transferred into federal immigration custody elsewhere. 'When you start talking about 21,000 folks, that without question has made our state safer, and it’s made the country safer as well.' The governor maintained that most of those who passed through the tented jail were criminals, citing 10 names of individual detainees he said had 'massive rap sheets' including sexual assault of minors, drugs trafficking, fraud, DUI, and domestic battery.
Critics Denounce Inhumane Conditions and High Costs
Critics, however, said the jail, which cost Florida taxpayers an estimated $1.2 million per day, was a political liability for DeSantis. Reports of 'inhumane' treatment of undocumented detainees—including physical abuse and isolation from legal representation—sparked widespread condemnation. Noelle Damico, director of social justice at the Workers Circle, an advocacy group that held weekly 'freedom vigils' outside the jail, said: 'Alligator Alcatraz is now shut down due to the relentless action of thousands of people who refused to stand idly by. We denounced the brutality, lawlessness, chaos and corruption that was Alligator Alcatraz. We, the people, made it politically toxic.'
Homan Dismisses Abuse Reports as Hoax
Tom Homan was even more forthright, in effect calling reports of mistreatment a hoax, and claiming without evidence that up to 70% of those arrested were criminals or had pending charges. 'People say this administration is inhumane. Let me tell you something, illegal immigration right now is down 97% at the border. That means less women are being sexually assaulted making that journey. That means less children are dying making that journey. That means less fentanyl is getting into the country to kill Americans,' Homan said.
Evidence Contradicts Official Claims
Evidence collected by media investigations during the year that Alligator Alcatraz was in operation contradicted the assertions of DeSantis and Homan. Hundreds of detainees had no criminal records or charges, it was disclosed last July, with their only alleged violation being that of being in the US without legal documents, a civil offense. The majority of people detained in federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) jails around the country have no criminal convictions.
Environmental Concerns and Ongoing Lawsuit
DeSantis briefly addressed the environmental impact at the site, which is the subject of an ongoing lawsuit brought by several advocacy groups and the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians, who claim the jail has harmed the fragile Everglades wetlands with pollution and acres of new concrete slabs. 'They did a really good job of keeping this contained, so that it didn’t have that impact on the surrounding environment,' DeSantis said. The governor also said he expected the federal government to reimburse Florida for up to $1 billion spent on the jail, but could not provide a timeline.
Advocates Vow to Continue Fight
Damico said the closure of Alligator Alcatraz represented a humiliation for the DeSantis and Trump administrations, but forced the immigration fight to other places, such as the governor’s touted 'deportation depot' at a former state prison in Baker county. 'For their own political ends, they tried to convince Americans to hate and fear immigrants and tolerate or justify brutality toward them. They failed,' she said. 'Together we stood as immigrants and citizens alike, reflecting the strength of America, a belief in our constitution, and the commitment to go the distance, shoulder-to-shoulder for freedom and justice.'
