COLLIER COUNTY, Fla. – Local 10 News heard from Florida lawmakers Friday who are suing the state for access to the “Alligator Alcatraz” migrant detention facility, just hours before they join fellow Democrats and Republicans on a tour of the controversial center.
This will be the lawmakers’ first-ever tour inside Alligator Alcatraz, even though a group of Democrats tried to get inside a week prior.
The denial sparked a lawsuit that won’t be settled by Saturday’s tour.
They argue that the overall lack of access and transparency goes against state law.
State Sen. Shevrin Jones, D-West Park, said he expects the tour to be a scrubbed-down version of the detainees’ true experiences.
“The administration (will show) us what they want us to see, but not what we need to see. Not what we would see if we went for an unexpected visit,” Jones said.
He and other Florida Democratic lawmakers are suing Gov. Ron DeSantis, asserting it’s state law that they be able to visit the detention center unannounced.
State Rep. Ashley Gantt, D-Miami, who filed the lawsuit, said, “Please don’t be under any misguided thoughts that this is the only facility we’re going to see in the state of Florida. There will be more detention centers. And we want to establish that the rule of law is still the rule of law.”
The issue is who has jurisdiction on county land ― the site of the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport ― that DeSantis took over through an emergency order.
The state’s emergency management department is running it, but the detainees are in custody through U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
DeSantis’ staff call the lawsuit “frivolous” and “dumb,” expecting it to be quickly dismissed.
However, Jones calls the basis of the center flawed, stating that the state is “going after individuals who have built their lives here, who are part of this community here in South Florida.”
“It is extremely unfortunate that this is what we’ve resorted to and we call this immigration policy,” he said.
Local 10 News has been denied requests to visit the facility and accompany lawmakers on their tour.