Jurisdictional Battle Brews In Florida Over “Alligator Alcatraz” Detention Center
A federal judge is set to weigh arguments over the proper jurisdiction for a lawsuit aiming to halt the controversial “Alligator Alcatraz” immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades.
Florida’s top emergency official, Kevin Guthrie, on Monday urged the court to dismiss the case, arguing environmental groups filed their lawsuit in the wrong district.
Guthrie, executive director for the Florida Division of Emergency Management, asserted that while Miami-Dade County owns the property, the detention facility itself is located in neighboring Collier County, which falls under Florida’s middle district.
He also pointed out that decisions regarding the facility were made in Tallahassee and Washington.
However, Paul Schwiep, an attorney for the environmental groups, countered that the southern district, where Miami-Dade is located, is the appropriate venue because “a substantial portion of the events” related to the facility took place there.
Schwiep later accused the state of “judge-shopping,” suggesting their sudden concern over jurisdiction arose after the case was reassigned to U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams, who recently held Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier in contempt in a separate case.
Schwiep emphasized that Miami-Dade County is a defendant and the site is partially located within the county, making the filing in the Southern District appropriate.
Environmental groups filed the lawsuit last month against federal and state officials, seeking to halt the project, which is being built on an airstrip in the heart of the Everglades, due to alleged violations of state and federal environmental laws.
Judge Williams has scheduled a hearing on July 30 to determine the correct venue. She also stated she would defer ruling on the environmental groups’ request for a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction until an August 6 hearing in Miami.
Despite the ongoing legal battle, Schwiep estimated that approximately 900 people have been sent to “Alligator Alcatraz” in the past three weeks, highlighting the group’s goal to halt further construction and the movement of additional detainees to the facility.
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