Florida AG's 'Alligator Alcatraz' Plan: Detention Center Amid Everglades Predators

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has unveiled plans for a 1,000-bed immigration detention facility, dubbed 'Alligator Alcatraz,' situated on a 30-square-mile Everglades site teeming with alligators and pythons. Critics question the practicality and morality of housing detainees amid such natural hazards.
Environmentalists, recalling the 1969 halt of the Everglades Jetport due to ecological concerns, argue that introducing a prison could disrupt the delicate ecosystem. Uthmeier counters, emphasizing the site's isolation and existing infrastructure as ideal for rapid deployment.
The proposed facility, leveraging a 1968-built runway, aims to be operational within 30 to 60 days, raising questions about the intersection of immigration policy and environmental stewardship.