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New investigations reveal human rights violations in the detention centers of "Alligator Alcatraz" and Krome in Florida, according to Amnesty International.
Amnesty International denounced on Thursday that new investigations document cruel, inhumane, and degrading treatment of migrant individuals held in two centers in Florida: the Everglades Detention Center, nicknamed "Alligator Alcatraz," and the Krome North Detention Center (Krome).
The organization asserts that the findings describe a deliberate system to “punish, dehumanize, and conceal the suffering” of incarcerated individuals, in a context of increasingly hostile policies against immigration in the state under the governance of Governor Ron DeSantis, marked by mass detentions and intensified criminalization.
The report, titled "Torture and Enforced Disappearances in the Sunshine State: Human Rights Violations at 'Alligator Alcatraz' and Krome in Florida," is based on findings gathered during a research visit conducted in September 2025, and suggests that some of the documented violations could constitute torture.
Ana Piquer, regional director of Amnesty International for the Americas, warned that immigration control "cannot operate outside the rule of law" nor outside of human rights standards, and stated that what has been presented in Florida should "alarm the entire region."
In the case of “Alligator Alcatraz,” Amnesty concluded that people detained “arbitrarily” live in inhumane and unsanitary conditions, with clogged toilets that cause the presence of feces near where they sleep, limited access to showers, exposure to insects without protective measures, lights on 24 hours a day, poor quality food and water , and violations of privacy, including the installation of cameras over the toilets.
Interviewees also pointed out "inadequate" medical care, which was provided unequally or outright denied, posing serious risks to physical and mental health; some reported being kept shackled when outside their cell.
The document also describes punitive practices that the organization classifies as torture, including confinement in what is called the "box", a structure described as being similar to a 60 x 60 cm box, used as punishment for hours, with exposure to the elements, very little water, and with hands and feet tied to restraints on the ground.
Amnesty highlighted that this center would operate without federal oversight, outside of the basic registration and monitoring systems used in ICE facilities, which—according to the report—facilitates isolation detention and could constitute enforced disappearance when information about a detainee's whereabouts is denied to families, or when contact with lawyers is obstructed.
Regarding Krome, Amnesty confirmed that its investigation corroborated previous reports: overcrowding, prolonged and arbitrary isolation, sanitary deficiencies such as clogged toilets, lack of access to showers, constant lighting, and breakdowns of air conditioning, in addition to "serious medical neglect" that would include the refusal to provide treatments and examinations despite the presence of medical facilities in the center.
The organization claimed to have received testimonies of violence and mistreatment by guards, and noted that its team witnessed a guard striking the injured hand of a man with a piece of metal from an isolation cell door; others reported being beaten and punched.
Amnesty also indicated that some detainees faced challenges in accessing legal assistance and were unaware of how long they would remain in detention or what would happen next.
The report places these allegations within a legislative and operational shift in Florida.
Amnesty highlights that in February 2025, the state approved “extreme and discriminatory” laws that would endanger immigrant communities, and emphasizes the expansion of 287(g) agreements that allow local agents to act as immigration officials. According to the document, this has resulted in wrongful detentions, racial profiling, and a widespread fear that prevents families from accessing schools, hospitals, or other essential services.
The organization claims that Florida has become a "testing ground" for abusive policies aligned with a "racist and anti-immigration" agenda of the Trump administration, and states that since January 2025, the state has seen an increase of over 50% in the number of people detained for immigration-related reasons.
Amnesty also links the increase in detentions to budgetary decisions: between June and August 2025, the state is said to have signed 34 no-bid contracts worth over 360 million dollars for the "Alcatraz of the Caymans," with projected annual operating costs of 450 million, while cutting billions from health, food security, emergency response, and housing programs, according to the report.
Additionally, remember that immigration detention in the United States has a long history of abuses and states that, since October 2024, at least 24 people have died in ICE custody, six of whom passed away in centers in Florida, four of them in Krome.
In light of this situation, Amnesty International urged state and federal authorities to take urgent measures, including the closure of "Alligator Alcatraz" and the prohibition of using state-managed detention centers for immigrants.
Among their recommendations are: prohibiting chaining, isolation and punitive outdoor confinement; ensuring confidential access to legal representation and interpretation; transparent and independent investigations into torture and medical neglect; and establishing meaningful and independent oversight for all facilities.
At the federal level, he urged an end to the "cruel machinery" of immigration detention, to prohibit the use of state facilities for federal custody on immigration grounds, to thoroughly investigate deaths and allegations of torture, and to review ICE contracts with state and private actors to ensure respect for human rights.
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