US watchdog finds detainees were confined in outdoor cages at Florida immigration jail

Federal inspectors document the cages

A US Department of Homeland Security watchdog has found that migrants held at the Florida detention centre commonly called Alligator Alcatraz were placed in small outdoor metal enclosures, sometimes for nearly two hours. The inspection records covered 79 instances between July 2025 and January 2026. The enclosures provided about 18 square feet of floor space and had locking mechanisms, according to independent reports by the BBC and the Guardian published on September 14.

Facility employees described the structures as calming areas where detainees could spend time alone. Inspectors nevertheless found at least one documented disciplinary use and concluded that confining people in such restrictive spaces was unprecedented among the immigration facilities they had inspected. Their assessment was that the practice did not meet humane-treatment standards and created risks to detainees’ health and wellbeing.

Problems extended beyond confinement

The watchdog also identified broader deficiencies involving living space, recreation, medical services, sanitation, food handling and communications. Detainees reported limited access to clean drinking water, while inspectors found showers affected by insects and telephones that did not reliably allow people to contact relatives or lawyers. The findings turn previously disputed allegations about the cages into documented federal inspection results.

Responsibility for the facility remains politically contested. DHS officials told the watchdog that Florida authorities managed daily operations, while federal money covered operating costs. Florida officials defended the confinement arrangements and portrayed the detainees as difficult to manage. The inspection report, however, assessed compliance with detention standards rather than the political arguments used to justify the centre.

Closure does not end the accountability question

The Everglades facility opened rapidly in 2025 and became a prominent symbol of the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement campaign. President Donald Trump toured it on July 1, 2025, an event recorded in the White House’s official video archive. Florida closed the temporary centre in June 2026, citing the danger of housing detainees in tents during hurricane season.

The principal question now is whether the report produces administrative discipline, compensation claims or revised standards for temporary detention sites. Lawmakers and rights groups are likely to examine how federal funding, state management and ICE requirements interacted. Because the facility is closed, immediate remedial orders there may have limited effect, but the documented failures can influence oversight of other detention projects built under accelerated immigration policies.