DeSantis Administration Blocks Statutory Right to Legislative Oversight at State-Funded Immigrant Detention Site
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EVERGLADES, FL — Today, Florida State Senator Shevrin Jones, Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith, and State Representatives Dr. Anna V. Eskamani, Angie Nixon, and Michele Rayner were illegally denied access to the immigrant detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz”.
Despite having clear statutory authority, pursuant to Florida Statutes 944.23 and 951.225, to inspect prisons and detention facilities, state lawmakers were denied entry to the newly constructed immigration detention center in the Everglades. Initially, the refusal came as a flat denial by state officials. When pressed, the justification shifted to vague “safety concerns”—yet no specifics were provided. In a disturbing turn, when legislators attempted to discuss the matter with representatives from the Florida Department of Emergency Management, the call was abruptly terminated.
The legislators arrived Thursday afternoon at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, a state detention facility on property seized from Miami-Dade County, to conduct an official inspection, citing mounting legal, moral, and humanitarian concerns after days of alarming reports—including flooding, inadequate infrastructure, extreme heat, and the sudden transfer of detainees into the camp. This follows the arrival of immigrants to the state-run facility the evening before, while the detention center was flooded due to ongoing rain storms.
Instead of transparency, they were met with locked doors and a wall of silence. The lawmakers said in a joint statement,
“This is a blatant abuse of power and an attempt to conceal human rights violations from the public eye. If the facility is unsafe for elected officials to enter, then how can it possibly be safe for those being detained inside?
“Florida law is unambiguous—state legislators have full access to inspect any state-operated facility. This is not a federal facility. It is a $450 million, state-funded, no-bid operation enriched by GOP donors and orchestrated under Governor DeSantis. Denying us entry is not only unlawful—it’s a disgrace.
“Alligator Alcatraz is not about public safety. It’s about spectacle. It’s about using cruelty and chaos as a political prop, while ignoring the very real crises Floridians face every day—rising housing costs, skyrocketing insurance premiums, and attacks on public education. This administration would rather build camps than build solutions.”
“We will not be deterred. The people of Florida elected us to fight for them. One of the ways we will do that is by holding this government accountable. That is exactly what we intend to do. We will be back.”
The denial of entry raises further questions about what the DeSantis administration is hiding. The lawmakers emphasized that they will continue to pursue legal remedies, legislative accountability, and public exposure until full transparency is achieved.
“Alligator Alcatraz” is one of at least three known detention centers in Florida operating under the DeSantis administration’s sprawling, unregulated immigration enforcement regime. Thursday’s illegal obstruction only adds to concerns that these facilities are functioning as shadow prisons with no public oversight.
The legislators are available for interviews and will be escalating the issue with relevant oversight bodies.
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