Florida attorney general proposes massive new immigration facility in the Everglades

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier is proposing to build a large immigrant detention center in the middle of the Florida Everglades.

Uthmeier said he wants to establish the state’s largest immigration facility at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport, a 30-square-mile property in Miami-Dade County, which has been used for military and law enforcement training. He said the site was picked because it already has an airstrip, and the proposal would include flying people directly out from the site for deportation.

The Everglades surrounds the remote area, but it is not part of the Everglades National Park.

“If somebody were to get out, there’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, only the alligators and pythons are waiting. That’s why I like to call it ‘Alligator Alcatraz,’” Uthmeier said.

The facility would serve as a three-in-one center for detaining, processing legal cases, and deporting migrants, he said.

It would include temporary structures and accommodate 1,000 beds, and the Florida National Guard would play a key role, with military attorneys trained as immigration judges to expedite legal proceedings.

The proposal is in its early stages, with further discussions expected.

If approved, set up for the facility would take 30-60 days.

Uthmeier said the facility would ease the pressure on the state’s county jails amid a crackdown on illegal immigration.