Environmental Groups Are 'cautiously Optimistic' About Judge's 'alligator Alcatraz' Ruling

MIAMI — Environmental groups who brought a suit guardant to halt operations astatine "Alligator Alcatraz" said Friday they are "cautiously optimistic" pursuing a judge’s ruling that while nan Florida migrant detention installation tin stay operational, it cannot beryllium expanded aliases utilized to detain further migrants.

The suit based on that nan detention installation successful nan Everglades’ building skirted biology laws. The suit said that nan halfway was built without ecological reviews required nether nan National Environmental Policy Act and without nationalist announcement aliases comment, and that nan authorities grounded to comply pinch different authorities and national statutes, including nan Endangered Species Act.

Environmental groups antecedently took action against nan facility, suing successful June to halt nan project, which opened successful July connected an airstrip successful Ochopee’s Big Cypress National Preserve.

U.S. District Judge Kathleen M. Williams entered a preliminary injunction connected Thursday to forestall nan installation of immoderate further industrial-style lighting and immoderate tract description . Her ruling further prevents “bringing immoderate further persons ... who were not already being detained astatine nan tract astatine nan clip of this order.”

This ruling meant nary filling, paving, aliases installation of further infrastructure was allowed, but it did not impact nan center’s migration enforcement activity.

Environmental groups, including Friends of nan Everglades, called Williams' ruling a "preliminary" triumph during a Friday greeting news conference.

"It is important to retrieve that biology laws successful our countries guidelines connected adjacent footing pinch different laws, and they are being tested successful ways that we haven’t seen successful much than a half century," Friends of nan Everglades Executive Director Eve Samples said, calling nan bid "is a triumph for nan norm of rule and for holding authorities accountable."

Work progresses connected nan detention installation dubbed "Alligator Alcatraz," connected July 4 successful Ochopee, Fla.Rebecca Blackwell / AP file

Samples, however, noted that while this determination is significant, "it is not a last win."

"We already cognize location will beryllium an appeal, truthful I’m going to extremity there," she said.

Rep. Anna Eskamani (D-Orlando) said nan authorities "expected a loss” erstwhile it came to nan detention installation because they did not do their owed diligence successful immoderate biology study successful building it.

"So, they were intentionally transferring individuals to different facilities, and now they’re pushing for Baker CI (correctional institution) to beryllium established arsenic a detention installation arsenic quickly arsenic possible, because they cognize nan Everglades is not going to beryllium suitable for this," she said astatine nan news conference.

During a abstracted news convention connected Friday morning, Gov. Ron DeSantis admitted that nan judge's determination to halt operations astatine "Alligator Alcatraz" was not unexpected.

"This is simply a judge that was not going to springiness america a adjacent shake," DeSantis said astir Williams. "This was preordained, very overmuch an activistic judge that is trying to do argumentation from nan bench. This is not going to deter us. We’re going to proceed moving connected nan deportations, advancing that mission. We knew that this would beryllium thing that would apt happen, and we will respond accordingly."

DeSantis said his management is moving connected opening much accommodation for illustration nan 1 successful nan Everglades.

"So, I did denote that we are going to beryllium opening different installation correct extracurricular of Jacksonville, successful Baker County, and we’ve called that nan 'Deportation Depot.'"

In consequence to nan government’s overnight entreaty revenge successful consequence to nan halt order, Paul Schwiep, counsel for Friends of nan Everglades and nan Center for Biological Diversity, said during Friday's briefing that they are prepared to conflict it.

“We are judge that nan defendants will activity a enactment of nan judge’s order, and we’re prepared to meet that mobility to enactment pinch nan aforesaid power vigor pinch nan rule and nan facts that we brought to seeking nan injunction successful nan first place," he said.

Thursday’s injunction is expected to enactment successful spot while nan suit challenging nan detention halfway is heard, according to nan ruling.

A spokesperson for nan Department of Homeland Security, Tricia McLaughlin, said successful a connection that nan ruling "ignores nan truth that this onshore has already been developed for a decade. It is different effort to forestall nan President from fulfilling nan American people’s instruction to region nan worst of nan worst, including pack members, murderers, pedophiles, terrorists, and rapists, from our country."