TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Lawyers representing state and federal agencies last week told an appeals court that new documents environmental groups want to introduce in their challenge to an Everglades immigration detention center don’t change the relevant facts in the case.
Details: The Department of Homeland Security and the Florida Division of Emergency Management told the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that the records, contrary to the claims of the groups, do not show the detention center is a federal facility subject to review under the National Environmental Policy Act.
“They have achieved their goal of making unfounded allegations to revive their fundraising efforts,” lawyers for the state wrote in a response to the court. “But they have not presented a valid basis for relief in their motion.”
Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biological Diversity sued state and federal officials after the facility opened in July. The groups contend “Alligator Alcatraz” threatens water quality, the Florida panther and other rare wildlife species.
