The aftershock of U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams’ is sending waves through the environmental and political realms as the future of Alligator Alcatraz, at this point, is unsure.
But less than a day after the ruling halting operations, Gov. Ron DeSantis said the state will not be deterred.
“We had a judge try to upset the apple cart with respect to our deportation and detainee center in south Florida at Alligator Alcatraz,” Desantis said at a news conference in Panama City on Aug. 22. “This is not something that was not expected. This was a judge that was not going to give us a fair shake.”
Williams put in place a temporary injunction that says DeSantis and President Donald Trump should pack up all the trucks, bunks, tarps, fences and people and vacate the property.
DeSantis response was no surprise to the opposition.
“This is a win for the environment,” said Betty Osecola, an influential member of the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida. “And though the preliminary injunction was issued, we still need to take a stand to continue this fight because we know very well the state and the federal government are going to continue in their efforts in appealing this decision.”
The Miccosukee reservation is just a few miles from the Alligator Alcatraz site, which was formly a flight training center operated by Miami-Dade County.
To make matters more complicated, the facility is actually in Collier County, where commissioners have vowed to stay out of this divisive matter.
Stars can be seen over the Everglades on Wednesday, July 30, 2025. Photographed from Burns Lake Campground looking east towards Alligator Alcatraz and the east coast of Florida. The Big Cypress Wildlife Management Area is considered a dark skies designated location. Some are concerned about the construction of Alligator Alcatraz, saying that it is causing light pollution.
Alligator Alcatraz is a controversial immigration detention center at the enterface of the Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park.
Construction started in June, after Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced the detention center on social media.
More: Judge tells Trump admin to pack up Alligator Alcatraz, leave the Everglades, Big Cypress
The center wasn’t the idea of a planning staff, a review committee or even the Department of Homeland Security.
And Alligator Alcatraz didn’t go through the typical review process as DeSantis declared a state of emergency to avoid staff review and public comment periods.
“You have people that are in the country that have already been ordered to be removed by the system,” DeSantis said. “And the previous administration didn’t want to do anything.”
Earlier Aug. 22, Alex Lanfranconi, the governor’s communications director, released a statement: “The deportations will continue until morale improves.”
The ruling stems from a June 27 lawsuit filed by Friends of the Everglades, the Center for Biological Diversity, and joined by the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida. The defendants in the case include the Florida Division of Emergency Management, the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, and Miami-Dade County.
“So, let’s celebrate this win today, but let’s stay determined for that fight for the long haul,” Osceola said.
DeSantis remained committed to the plan.
“We’re in the position of leading the state efforts to help the Trump administration remove these illegal aliens not just from Florida but from our country,” he said.
The other Alligator Alcatraz lawsuit
In another case focusing on plaintiffs legal and civil rights, U.S. District Judge Rodolfo Ruiz ruled Aug. 18 the matter should move to a different court while also declaring part of the lawsuit moot.
At the heart of the case was whether the government had violated detainees’ rights to due process and legal counsel. Civil rights attorneys had said the remote Everglades facility made it nearly impossible for immigrants to speak confidentially with lawyers or even find out which immigration court can hear their cases.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys filed suit in the Southern District of Florida, which includes Miami-Dade County, though state and federal officials argued that it should have been filed in the Middle District of Florida, which includes Collier County.
More: Alligator Alcatraz starting to take shape on the edge of sacred ceremony grounds
In his 47-page order, Ruiz agreed, transferring the case to the middle district. He also dismissed the immigration-court allegations in the lawsuit, saying they were moot after a federal decision that judges at Krome North Processing Service Center would handle the detainees’ cases.
The case now heads to “a sister court in the Middle District of Florida to reach the merits of plaintiffs’ remaining claims under the First Amendment,” Ruiz wrote.
DeSantis said the most recent ruling won’t affect operations.
“This is not going to deter us. “We’re going to continue the deportations and this mission,” he said.
Breaking News and Visuals Editor Stacey Henson contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Alligator Alcatraz will continue operations says Florida governor