ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — More than a month after Florida opened “Alligator Alcatraz” in the Everglades, the state and ICE have signed a latest agreement that spells out how state corrections will handle federal immigrant detainees in non-corrected facilities.
An addendum signed this week renews the 2020 agreement between the Florida Department of Corrections and the US immigration and customs enforcement agency. These explained how federal immigrant detainees can be handled at correctional facilities rather than in places like this new detention center. The update was released Thursday in court documents in response to a civil rights lawsuit alleging that “Wannial Catraz” detainees were unable to meet with lawyers or access immigration courts.
Gallery: Look inside the Alcatraz Crocodile
Attorney Nick Mellos, representing Florida, introduced state officials questions about the delayed timing of the addendum. A spokesman for the Florida Department of Corrections did not respond to email inquiries.
Miami US District Judge Rodolfo Lewis ordered federal and state authorities to create an agreement that indicates which agency or private contractor has legal authority to bind people, and that it will act as an immigration officer at the facility.
Another federal judge who filed another case in Miami on Thursday stopped the two-week suspension to more construction on the site as he is considering whether it is violating environmental laws.
According to the addendum, Florida correctional agencies must provide the ice with names and BIOs of all people who have authority over detainees, and federal agencies can reject anyone they find inappropriate. ICE provides surveillance and, according to the Addendum, can request that detainees be returned to physical custody.
According to an email with the state emergency official and the local emergency business manager obtained by the Associated Press, ICE has similar agreements with other Florida state agencies earlier this year, signed earlier this year, but the Department of Corrections was the main national agency of the Everglades Detention Center.
In another court filing Thursday, Florida disputed that detainees’ attorneys are unable to meet with their clients. Since July 15, when the video conferencing began, the state said the in-person meeting was granted all requests for detainees to meet with lawyers and that in-person meetings began on July 28. The first detainees arrived at the beginning of July.
