Overview
- U.S. District Court is expected to issue a Thursday ruling on a preliminary injunction that could further limit operations at the Everglades detention site.
- Friends of the Everglades and the Miccosukee Tribe challenged the project’s expansion after rapid buildout, leading to a two‑week halt on new construction.
- Witnesses described roughly 20 acres of new asphalt inside Big Cypress National Preserve and raised concerns about impacts on Florida panthers.
- Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost toured the site and called it an internment camp, citing reports of crowded cages, tents, heat exposure and medical delays.
- State officials say the facility 45 miles west of Miami meets required standards, while Frost reported a current population of about 336 detainees.