One of three federal lawsuits over the Everglades immigration detention center ended after the plaintiff, identified as M.A., agreed to be removed from the United States and asked a Fort Myers court to dismiss his case. His attorneys say he plans to return to Chile. The complaint alleged state-run operations at the remote facility lacked federal authority, that detainees were removed from tracking systems, and that access to legal help was impeded. Separate litigation over environmental review and confidential attorney communications remains pending.
‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Detainee Agrees To Leave U.S., Asks Federal Court To Dismiss Lawsuit
FILE - A loader holds a sign reading "Alligator Alcatraz" in its bucket as workers install it at the entrance to a new migrant detention facility at Dade-Collier Training and Transition facility, July 3, 2025, in Ochopee, Fla. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
One of three federal lawsuits challenging an immigration detention center in the Florida Everglades has been resolved after the detainee who filed the suit agreed to be removed from the United States and asked a Fort Myers federal court to dismiss his case, his lawyers said.
In a court filing, the attorneys wrote: "Petitioner is no longer detained at Alligator Alcatraz, he has formally agreed to be removed, and he will soon have left the United States." ACLU attorney Spencer Amdur told reporters that the detainee, identified only as M.A. in court records, plans to return to Chile.
M.A.'s complaint alleged that immigration enforcement is a federal responsibility and that Florida agencies and private contractors retained by the state lacked legal authority under federal law to run the remote Everglades facility, nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz." The lawsuit also claims that some detainees who entered the site disappeared from the standard detainee-tracking system and faced obstacles when trying to obtain legal help.
Court records show M.A. is married to a U.S. citizen and has five stepchildren who are U.S. citizens. He entered the United States on a visa in 2018 and later applied for asylum. Before his arrest last July, the filings say, he held a work permit, a Social Security card and a driver's license.
The documents further allege that, after his arrest but before his transfer to the Everglades site, officers pressured M.A. to sign a form written only in English that he did not understand; he was later told the document was a voluntary removal form.
While detained at the Everglades facility, M.A. was hospitalized twice and developed a condition that left him unable to feel his legs, after which he required a wheelchair.
"M.A. entered the facility able to walk, but he is now in a wheelchair," the lawsuit states.
The Everglades site was built last summer on a remote airstrip under the administration of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. It received its first detainees in July. Florida has also opened other detention centers in the state and has explored additional sites in the Panhandle to support expanded immigration enforcement driven by earlier federal policies.
M.A.'s case was one of three federal lawsuits alleging different problems at the facility. In a separate federal case last summer, a Miami judge ordered the site to wind down operations over a failure to complete a required environmental review; that order was temporarily stayed by an appellate court panel, allowing the facility to remain open for now.
The third lawsuit asks the court to ensure detainees have access to confidential communications with their attorneys. During an online status conference, lawyers for detainees and for state and federal defendants outlined plans for a hearing at the end of the month on a request for a preliminary injunction. ACLU attorneys said they expect to call former detainees now living abroad to testify remotely.
This development resolves one challenge to the facility, but two other suits — over environmental review and attorney-client access — remain active.
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