Attorneys for Alligator Alcatraz detainees claim no access, seek restraining order

A group of attorneys bringing a class-action lawsuit against Alligator Alcatraz said detainees at the Florida facility have been denied the ability to meet with legal representation and that lawyers have been unable to contact their clients or find the proper venue to contest their detentions in court.

The immigration attorneys argued in federal court Monday that the conditions at the facility were an “emergency situation,” The Associated Press reported.

“Officers at ‘Alligator Alcatraz’ are going around trying to force people to sign deportation orders without the ability to speak to counsel,” said Eunice Cho, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union.

The complaint, filed July 16, includes statements from several attorneys who said they had been unable to locate their clients after they were taken into custody by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In one case, they said, ICE’s detainee locator still did not show that their clients were being held at Alligator Alcatraz.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/attorneys-alligator-alcatraz-detainees-claim-205115916.html