For months, immigrants detained at the facility commonly known as “Alligator Alcatraz” were forced into outdoor cages, which officials called “calming areas,” to “reflect on their behavior choices,” according to a new report by the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General.
“The use of such restrictive spaces is highly unconventional and does not align with standards for humane treatment,” the report noted.
These findings paint a stark picture of the dehumanizing conditions inside centers the agency has repeatedly insisted have “higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons that hold actual U.S. citizens.”
Significance. According to the report, “Alligator Alcatraz,” which is officially known as the Florida Soft-Sided Facility (FSSF), confined 79 detainees in small metal enclosures — each offering about 18 square feet of floor space — for periods ranging from several minutes to nearly 2 hours, a practice unlike any OIG team has observed in ICE facilities.”
These incidents happened between July 17, 2025, and January 18, 2026.
The report showed that ICE officials called the cages “calming areas,” and said they were used for detainees to “reflect on their behavior choices, manage their emotions, reduce stress, and practice self-directed behavior.”
The average time a detainee spent trapped in the cage was 59 minutes and 27 seconds, with the longest period being an hour and 59 minutes.
The report is based on findings from an unannounced investigation conducted in January 2026.
The facility was permanently closed on June 25 and does not currently hold any detainees.
Overlooked angle. The Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency have long claimed that their detention centers have “higher detention standards than most U.S. prisons that hold actual U.S. citizens.”
The Emancipator recently investigated the claim by comparing the standards of care at three of the Bureau of Prisons’ most populated individual federal institutions and their associated work camps with the three most populated ICE detention centers.
Our findings: DHS’ claims are egregiously false.
Multiple independent investigations by government agencies have also found these claims to be false – findings that further underscore the flags raised in the DHS Office of the Inspector General’s latest report.
Power structure. Overall, the report found that “FSSF staff could not clearly identify which detention standards they used for holding detainees on immigration-related charges. The absence of well-defined standards at detention facilities increases the risk that detainees may not receive appropriate care.”
“Alligator Alcatraz was consistent with the same federal detention standards employed by previous administrations, including Biden and Obama,” a DHS spokesperson said in a statement to The Emancipator and claimed, “All detainee facilities are clean, and any allegations of inhumane conditions or excessive use of force are FALSE.”
Both the Biden and Obama administrations faced criticism from civil and human rights groups for their immigration detention standards.
What experts say. “I saw those conditions with my own eyes,” said Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost, D-Fla., in a statement to The Emancipator. “I went to Alligator Alcatraz twice, and before both visits, I was specifically told to see ‘the cage’ in the recreation area — including that there had been blood inside it. Both times, I was assured the cages were no longer being used. Now we know that wasn’t true. The federal government’s own watchdog confirmed that people were being held in outdoor metal cages barely larger than a telephone booth, sometimes for nearly two hours.”
“This does not end with Alligator Alcatraz. People in ICE custody across America are still facing horrific conditions. I will continue conducting oversight at facilities across Florida and demanding answers.”
