A federal appeals court issued a ruling Tuesday that keeps an environmental lawsuit involving Alligator Alcatraz on hold, for now.
The Miccosukee Tribe, along with Friends of the Everglades and other environmental groups, filed the lawsuit in Miami last summer, claiming the state and federal governments violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) when they built the immigration detention facility in the middle of the Everglades without first assessing the environmental impact.
While the district court initially ordered the facility to be shut down in August, the Court of Appeals paused that order in September, allowing Alligator Alcatraz to continue operating.
The higher court also paused proceedings in the district court. Friends of the Everglades and their fellow plaintiffs asked the panel of judges to reconsider that decision, arguing they'd received new information about the construction of Alligator Alcatraz that supported their case. Their request was denied on Tuesday.
"Plaintiffs-Appellees' motion for reconsideration raises new arguments that were previously available but not pressed, and they provide no reason for not previously raising them," Tuesday's order said.
One judge on the three-judge panel disagreed with the other two, writing in a dissent that the appeals court has no legal basis to pause proceedings in the lower court.
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