A new report has raised serious allegations against the Alligator Alcatraz immigration detention facility in Florida, claiming detainees are subjected to harsh conditions and human rights abuses. The facility welcomed its first residents in July 2025. It functions outside the purview of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), due to its independent control under the Florida Department of Emergency Management.
Former President Donald Trump toured Alligator Alcatraz shortly after its opening, bragging up the facility’s capacity to torture. However, reports leaking since then portray an alarming scene of life inside. Detainees are suffering in brutal conditions. They are being crammed and forced to sleep on a cargo hold of a bus without access to sanitation or ventilation for days on end.
The facility has been the target of major protests over its torture of detainees. A July 2025 report from Human Rights Watch alleged that individuals were shackled and forced to kneel to eat from styrofoam plates, described as being treated “like dogs.” Detainees have told us about being locked in a 2-foot high metal box, known as “the box.” They were left to sweat to death and suffer from debilitating dehydration for hours on end—all as punishment for seemingly benign behavioral issues.
Back in August 2025, one lone federal judge cut that short with a deeply consequential ruling. After environmental groups sued the government, he personally ordered the shuttering of Alligator Alcatraz. By October 2025, the facility resumed operations with hundreds of detainees after two appellate court judges, appointed by Trump, intervened.
Amnesty International has weighed in on the conditions at Alligator Alcatraz, calling it a site of “cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment” of migrants. The organization’s findings stemmed from interviews with detainees and advocates and included a site visit to Miami’s Krome immigration processing center in September 2025.
Molly Best, press secretary to Florida’s Republican governor Ron DeSantis, dismissed the allegations made in Amnesty’s report as politically motivated.
“None of these fabrications are true. In fact, running these allegations without any evidence whatsoever could jeopardize the safety and security of our staff and those being housed at Alligator Alcatraz,” – Molly Best
These denials notwithstanding, detainees have provided harrowing testimony of what goes on inside the facility. One detainee recounted the harrowing effects of being placed in “the box,” stating:
“It’s a box outside, exposed to the south Florida sun and humidity, and exposed to mosquitos,” – a detainee
Another individual shared a disturbing incident where fellow detainees were punished for attempting to assist him with medication:
“One time, two people in my cell were calling out to the guards telling them that I needed my medication. Ten guards rushed into the cell and threw them to the ground. They were taken to the ‘box’ and punished just for trying to help me. I saw a guy who was put in it for an entire day.” – a detainee
Amy Fischer, director of refugee and migrant rights at Amnesty International, said even they were surprised by the findings from their report.
“Krome’s extreme overcrowding, medical neglect, and reports of humiliating and degrading treatment paint a picture of harrowing human rights violations,” – Amy Fischer
The report calls on federal and state officials to act now. It underscores an alarming human rights crisis that demands immediate action. As Amnesty International explains, the treatment of people inside these detention centers amounts to cruel and unusual punishment and even torture.