Florida has opened a second migrant detention facility at the former Baker Correctional Institution in Sanderson, state officials said, placing the site into service as part of the state's expanded detention operations.
The facility, which state officials have called "Deportation Depot," began receiving detainees this week. The first arrivals came on Tuesday, and by Friday the site held 117 people, according to the office of Gov. Ron DeSantis. State officials said the facility can house up to 1,500 detainees.
The site is located in Sanderson in northern Florida, about 45 miles west of Jacksonville. Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier told Fox News the Baker County facility "will now be a great supplement to Alligator Alcatraz," and said the state plans to "use as many of the detention spaces as we can." He added that the Baker County site "was actually a pre-existing state jail that was no longer in use. So it's already retrofitted out to hold a lot of people. We'll fill it up quickly, and we'll put it to good use."
State officials have characterized the Baker Correctional Institution as a supplemental location to other state-run detention operations. A separate facility referred to by state officials as "Alligator Alcatraz" had its operations restored after an appeals court halted a judge's order that had affected the site, according to state statements.
The conversion of the Baker facility follows a series of actions by Florida authorities to increase detention capacity for migrants. Officials have emphasized the speed with which the state refitted the previously unused correctional site and the number of beds available there.
Advocates and immigration experts have in past weeks criticized the expansion of state-run detention facilities for migrants, raising concerns about conditions, legal status of those detained and access to counsel and services. State officials have described the moves as necessary to manage arrivals and enhance enforcement of immigration policies at the state level.
The governor's office and the state attorney general's office provided initial details about the Baker site to media outlets; local officials in Baker County confirmed that the site had been unused as a state jail and was adapted for the current purpose. Federal agencies that oversee immigration enforcement did not immediately provide comment on the Baker facility's opening.
The state's announcement did not specify the demographics, nationalities or legal statuses of the people being held at the Baker site, and it did not detail timelines for processing, release or transfer. Officials said the state intends to place migrants in multiple detention locations as spaces become available.
Legal and advocacy groups have said they will continue to monitor developments at new and existing detention sites in Florida. Local authorities and state officials have said they will coordinate on operational needs at the former Baker Correctional Institution as it comes fully online.
