Government officials must clean up the environmentally damaging mess they made at “Alligator Alcatraz.” To make sure they do, we’re going back to court.  Friends of the Everglades and our conservation partners filed an updated lawsuit today presenting new information for U.S. District Court Judge Kathleen Williams to consider as we return to her courtroom in Miami on Friday.  The new lawsuit shows that government officials withheld critical information from the court during our legal challenge, proving that Florida applied for federal funding for the detention center and that the project should have undergone federal environmental reviews. This information could have upheld the preliminary injunction granted by Judge Williams in August 2025 that halted the facility from operating. Instead, [...]

This week marks one year since state and federal officials rushed to build the detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz” in the heart of the Everglades, ignoring environmental laws and putting one of America’s most treasured landscapes at risk.  Today, we have confirmation that the makeshift prison is no longer housing detainees.  We welcome this news and are deeply grateful to our legal partners, tribal allies and to all of you who have stood with us in opposition to this assault on our Everglades — but the damage done to this fragile ecosystem cannot be undone overnight.  We will not rest until we see sure proof that every temporary and permanent structure is being deconstructed.  As Friends of the [...]

One year ago this month, we mounted a once-in-a-generation fight to protect the Everglades from reckless threats inflicted by our own government at “Alligator Alcatraz.” We’re now on the verge of shutting it down. The Atlantic just published a story that underscores how pivotal our legal action was in turning the tide against this ill-conceived detention center: The Alligator Alcatraz Boondoggle After 11 months of environmental harm, and an astonishing price tag borne by taxpayers, the same state leaders who rushed this prison into existence have yet to provide clear answers about its future. The Miami Herald laid bare the total lack of accountability in this blockbuster investigation: How DeSantis signed away $1 billion for state run immigration detention [...]