Alligator Alcatraz opens as Florida and federal immigration enforcement converge

The first group of detainees has arrived at the hastily assembled detention facility in the Florida Everglades that is already being called "Alligator Alcatraz." The Florida Division of Emergency Management tweeted a photo of white vans behind a locked gate at the remote site near Ochopee, though it was unclear whether anyone was inside them at the time. The facility — a collection of tents and trailers along an aging airstrip — is nearing full operation after a turbulent few weeks of protests and lawsuits.

How the facility works and who runs it

A sworn court declaration from a top ICE official this morning clarified a critical distinction: the state of Florida will ultimately decide who is detained at Alligator Alcatraz, and immigrants held there will be in the custody of Florida state officials, not ICE. This matters because the federal government has effectively deputized Florida state and local troopers to act as ICE agents. The arrangement is meant to relieve pressure on an overcrowded federal detention system.