‘Alligator Alcatraz’ Class Certified, Attorney Barriers Halted

All present and future immigrant detainees at “Alligator Alcatraz” may proceed as a class against federal and state officials for purposes of halting policies that allegedly interfered with their access to legal counsel, a federal judge said.

The detainees have suffered or will suffer the same injury, the named plaintiffs’ claims are typical of the class, and those plaintiffs would fairly and adequately represent the class members’ interests, Judge Sheri Polster Chappell of the US District Court for the Middle District of Florida said March 27. The federal and state officials’ conduct could be halted or declared unlawful only as ...