Confirmed Judges, Confirmed Fears” is a blog series documenting the harmful impact of President Trump’s judges on Americans’ rights and liberties. It includes judges nominated in both his first and second terms.
What’s at stake in this case?
Several environmental groups and an Indian tribe sought to stop the detention of immigrants at, and additional construction of, Alligator Alcatraz, a detention facility in the Florida Everglades.
What happened in this case?
In 2025, the environmental groups and the tribe filed a federal lawsuit, seeking to stop the further construction and use of the “Alligator Alcatraz” detention center for immigrants in the Everglades. A district court granted the injunction, but two Trump judges on the 11th circuit stayed the order in September, 2025, as the case was being appealed.
In April 2026, Trump judge Andrew Brasher cast the deciding vote in a 2-1 decision to reverse and vacate the preliminary injunction in Friends of the Everglades,Inc. v. Secretary of Homeland Security. Chief Judge William Pryor, who was nominated by President George W Bush, wrote the decision, and Judge Nancy Abudu, who was nominated by President Biden, dissented.
What was the rationale of Bush judge Pryor and Trump judge Brasher?
The primary claim in the Pryor-Brasher opinion is that Alligator Alcatraz is a state not federal facility, with “Florida,not federal” officials controlling the land and doing the construction. The assertion that federal environmental laws are applicable is wrong, they wrote, and the case should be sent back to the district court and dismissed
Why did Judge Abudu dissent?
Judge Abudu firmly dissented, writing that the majority’s decision was “just plain wrong.” She explained that a careful review of the record shows “substantial federal control” over the project, with state officials exercising federal power “at the behest of federal officials” to perform “a uniquely federal function” involving immigration. The ruling is also dangerous, Abudu wrote, because it invites the federal government to “eliminate” its “duty to immigrants in its care wherever they are housed.”
Why is this decision harmful?
Although opponents of Alligator Alcatraz have vowed to continue their fight, Trump judge Brasher’s deciding vote may well make it impossible to stop the continued and expanded use of the facility, with continuing harm to the imprisoned people as well as to the environment. The ruling also sets a bad precedent on such issues, particularly in the Eleventh Circuit, which includes Florida, Alabama, and Georgia, It also illustrates the importance of our federal courts to health, welfare and justice and the significance of having fair-minded judges on the federal bench.