Judge Dismisses Parts of Alligator Alcatraz Lawsuit, Giving Trump Administration Partial Win

A federal judge has handed the Trump administration a partial victory in the mounting legal battles over Alligator Alcatraz, the controversial new migrant detention center built deep in the Florida Everglades.

Late Monday, U.S. District Judge Rodolfo Ruiz dismissed portions of a lawsuit brought by detainees who argued they were denied sufficient access to attorneys. Ruiz ruled that the administration’s recent move to designate Miami’s Krome Detention Center to handle the migrants’ cases makes their Fifth Amendment claims moot.

“This is a classic case of mootness,” Ruiz a Trump appointee wrote in his opinion.

Still, the ruling was not a full win for the administration. Ruiz allowed detainees’ First Amendment claims which allege they are being denied confidential communication with their lawyers to move forward. He ordered that those arguments be considered in the federal district covering the Alligator Alcatraz site, rather than his courtroom in Miami.

“The job of the District Court is not to rule first and ask questions later,” Ruiz noted, stressing the limits of judicial power.

The case, filed by migrants detained at Alligator Alcatraz alongside immigration advocacy groups like Americans for Immigrant Justice and the ACLU, underscores the deep legal and political controversy surrounding the facility. Opened in July, Alligator Alcatraz was championed by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as a “model” for state-run immigration detention nationwide.

Plaintiffs had pushed for an injunction to guarantee confidential and prompt attorney access, arguing migrants remain vulnerable to policy shifts. At Monday’s hearing, however, government lawyers claimed detainees have been meeting with attorneys “for weeks now” without issue.

The Alligator Alcatraz lawsuit is one of two major challenges facing the site. In a separate case, environmental groups successfully pressed a federal judge to block further construction, claiming the detention center violates federal environmental law. That ruling has not affected current detentions but has slowed expansion plans.

As litigation continues, Alligator Alcatraz stands as both a political symbol and a flashpoint testing the balance between immigration enforcement, constitutional rights, and the rule of law.

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