Florida District Judge Rules to Shut Down Alligator Alcatraz, Gives the Order to Dismantle the Facility

In a ruling that was surprising only in how long it took to be handed down, another activist judge has come out to oppose a Trump administration policy. This time, it involves the hotly debated illegal immigrant holding facility in the Florida Everglades, the so-called Alligator Alcatraz.

This ruling follows a preliminary ruling that was handed down weeks ago, calling for a pause on new construction at the location. Now it has gone further.

Judge Kathleen Williams, late Thursday evening in a Miami courtroom, issued a temporary restraining order requiring the state to refrain from bringing in any additional detainees, and declared that in 60 days the facility needs to be cleared of all of those being held, and the process of hauling out the installed infrastructure begins to take place.

BREAKING: Florida federal judge Kathleen Williams (Obama appointee) is ordering Florida to shut down Alligator Alcatraz within 60 days and is blocking the state & the Trump admin from bringing any new detainees into the facility from this point forward.

She is also demanding…
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) August 22, 2025

The suit was brought by environmentalists and the Miccosuki Tribe of Florida, claiming that the operation on the site is adversely affecting the protected environment of the Florida Everglades. Land was not cleared to install the detention center, but it was using a decommissioned airfield in western Dade County. One of the plaintiff’s lawyers underscored how this was a centerpiece of their suit.

“This brutal detention center was burning a hole in the fabric of life that supports our most iconic wetland and a whole host of endangered species, from majestic Florida panthers to wizened wood storks,” attorney Elise Bennett of the Center for Biological Diversity said in a statement. “The judge’s order came just in time to stop it all from unraveling.”

Williams, a Barack Obama appointee, stated that an environmental impact assessment was to have been conducted prior to installing the new structures and other operational needs. She noted that no such advance research was conducted by the defendants, although the state did argue with a reference to a “Preliminary Ecological Assessment” that was conducted in late July. While that study alluded to several species possibly endangered, the state asserted that installations around the facility were erected to shield those in the surrounding area.

As a result of her decision, the Williams TRO commands that all of the new functional installations be removed, including the holding tents, fencing, generators, and waste collection objects. As expected, this decision and the TRO will be challenged, as questions on the legitimacy are in play.

First-World Problems: Ron DeSantis Responds to New Laughable Complaint From Alligator Alcatraz Critics

Immediately after Judge Williams issued her 80+ page ruling, the state appealed to the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals.

One of the probable challenges is the legitimacy of this court ruling on the matter. Former Gov. DeSantis Press Secretary Jeremy Redfern is now the Communications Director for Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier. Redfern notes that Williams is operating in the incorrect judicial district on matters involving the facility.

Just this week, a judge in the same district as Judge Williams refused to hear a case because the Southern District of Florida was the improper venue for suits about Alligator Alcatraz.

Once again, she oversteps her authority, and we will appeal this unlawful decision. https://t.co/IkbEcqNiVx
— Jeremy Redfern (@JeremyRedfernFL) August 22, 2025

That case he referenced was one brought by the ACLU concerning the legal rights of those detained at the facility. That suit was dismissed earlier this week as moot due to the court being the wrong location for their case. The State of Florida made a similar argument in the Alligator Alcatraz suit, but that had been waved away by Judge Williams.

The nuances in this case will be interesting to watch play out, and for now, we have at least two months to see where this goes. In the meantime, Gov. DeSantis has already put into motion the construction of a second immigrant holding facility, this one in northern Florida. So even if the opponents manage to win out and see to it that Alligator Alcatraz is closed, the bid to curtail these facilities will not be successful.

Editor's Note: The mainstream media continues to deflect, gaslight, spin, and lie about President Trump, his administration, and conservatives.

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