(NEW YORK) — Three men, including a 19-year-old, were killed and nine other people were injured early Sunday when a dispute inside a crowded New York City nightclub erupted into a shooting incident that police said appeared to have involved multiple gunmen firing dozens of shots.
No one has been arrested in the deadly incident, NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said at a noon news conference on Sunday, which followed an initial press conference she gave earlier in the morning. Police are examining security footage and interviewing witnesses in an effort to identify the shooters, Tisch also said.
Tisch said the shooting appears to be gang related but declined to elaborate, citing the ongoing investigation. She said that up to four gunmen opened fire inside the nightclub, hitting numerous bystanders.
The shooting unfolded around 3:27 a.m. Sunday inside the Taste of the City Lounge in the Crown Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, which Tisch said was packed with patrons at the time of the incident.
The commissioner said officers arrived at the lounge on Franklin Avenue within minutes of the first 911 calls reporting the shooting and found a chaotic scene, with multiple victims ranging in age from 19 to 61 inside the nightclub suffering from gunshot wounds.
Tisch said two of the victims — a 27-year-old man and a 35-year-old man, were taken to hospitals, where they were pronounced dead. She said the third fatality was a 19-year-old man, who died at the scene. She said the surviving victims, three women and six men, were taken to hospitals with what appeared to be non-life-threatening injuries.
“What we know preliminarily is there was a dispute inside a crowded club that led to the shooting,” said Tisch. “We have multiple shooters involved in this shooting.”
Tisch said investigators had collected at least 42 shell casings from inside the lounge that came 9mm and .45-caliber weapons.
A firearm was recovered nearby in the vicinity of Bedford Avenue and Eastern Parkway, Tisch said, adding that police were investigating whether it was involved in the shooting.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams asked for the public’s help in bringing the perpetrators to justice.
“If you were inside the club, if you heard individuals talking about this shooting, if you witnessed someone fleeing the location, every piece of information would allow us to put the puzzle together to solve this crime,” Adams said.
The shooting occurred as the NYPD has recorded the lowest number of shootings on record for the first seven months of the year, Tisch said. According to NYPD citywide crime statistics as of Aug. 10, the number of shooting victims had fallen nearly 22% this year compared to the same period last year, and the number of shooting incidents had declined 20.5% compared to the same period.
“Something like this is, of course, thank God, an anomaly and it’s a terrible thing that happened this morning,” Tisch said. “But we’re going to investigate it and get to the bottom of what went down.”
(NEW YORK)) — Three men were killed early Sunday in a shooting inside a Brooklyn lounge, the New York Police Department said, adding that it appeared multiple shooters had been involved.
The men were among 11 people hit by gunfire in the Taste of the City Lounge on Franklin Avenue, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said in a press conference. A total of eight men and three women were shot amid a dispute in the lounge, she said.
The initial 911 call was received at about 3:27 a.m., the NYPD said.
The three men who were shot and killed were pronounced dead at the scene, Tisch said, adding that one was 27, another was 25 and the third’s age was not yet known.
Some three dozen shell casings were recovered inside the lounge, police said.
A firearm was recovered nearby, in the vicinity of Bedford Avenue and Eastern Parkway, and police were investigating whether it was involved in the shooting, police said.
In this image released by the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, a timber rattlesnake is shown. Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency
(GRUETLI-LAAGER, Tenn.) — A man has died after he was bitten by a venomous snake at a Tennessee state park, according to park officials.
The victim, who was not identified, was hiking at the Savage Gulf State Park — about 60 miles northwest of Chattanooga — when he was bitten on Aug. 8, Grundy County Emergency Management Agency Director Matthew Griffith said in a statement to ABC News.
The hiker was about half a mile down a trailhead at 55th Avenue in Gruetli-Laager when first responders arrived to the scene shortly after being dispatched, around 12:30 p.m., Griffith said. Paramedics administered CPR before the man was transported to the hospital, where he later died.
A witness told first responders that the hiker picked up the snake, which is believed to be a Timber rattlesnake, and was bitten on the hand, Griffith noted.
The Timber rattlesnake is the largest and most dangerous of the four venomous snakes found in Tennessee, according to the state’s Wildlife Resource Agency. The species can measure between 3 feet and 5 feet long and prefers mature, heavily-wooded forests with rocky hillsides.
Timber rattlesnakes tend to be “more docile” than other rattler species and is likely to stay coiled or stretched out and motionless when encountered in the wild, according to the Smithsonian National Zoo.
The hiker may have had an allergic reaction to the snake bite, but full details of the actual cause of death have not yet been released, Griffith added.
“The family of the individual will be in our thoughts and prayers,” he said.
An estimated 7,000 to 8,000 people are bitten by venomous snakes each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). About five of those people die as a result of the bite, but more would die if they did not seek medical care, according to the CDC.
While victims of snake bites should always seek medical attention, the CDC recommends treating the bite yourself while waiting for first responders to arrive.
This includes removing rings, bracelets and watches in case of swelling, as well as washing the bite with soap and water.
The CDC then recommends covering the bite with a clean, dry dressing before marking the leading edge of the swelling on the skin and writing the time on it.
Do not try to suck the venom out, attempt to make a tourniquet, apply ice or put the bite in water, the CDC advises.
“If you encounter a snake simply remain calm and do not attempt to handle it,” Griffith said. “If bitten seek immediate medical attention.”
Griffith also recommended that hikers take first aid supplies when recreating outdoors and to be mindful of the dangers that wildlife could pose.
U.S. President Donald Trump and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
(ATLANTA) — After a gunman opened fire on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) campus in Atlanta last week — forcing hundreds into lockdown, hitting six buildings and killing a police officer — authorities found he’d been harboring years-long grievances with the COVID-19 vaccine.
Patrick White’s neighbors told ABC News that the 30-year-old believed he suffered negative health effects after he got the vaccine, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) found written documents at his home indicating that he wanted to make his discontent known. He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound during last Friday’s incident.
For many CDC employees, the shooting was the culmination of long-held fears that years of simmering anger and division that grew from those who disagreed with COVID-19 pandemic policies might turn to violence against the CDC, putting public health workers in physical danger.
“I think the environment has been set up for something like this to happen,” Jessica Rogers-Brown, a CDC epidemiologist who has worked in multiple centers across the agency over the past seven years, told ABC News. “But this is far worse than I feared.”
Rogers-Brown, who works at one of the buildings that was struck by gunfire, emphasized that she was speaking in her personal capacity, not in her professional role or on behalf of CDC.
For Rogers-Brown and some of her colleagues, that fear has turned to frustration with government leaders — including President Donald Trump — over the last week.
They feel the shooting has slipped into the background without even a public statement from the president about the attack on federal property or a sufficient denouncement from Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who oversees the CDC and has peddled vaccine skepticism throughout his career.
Earlier in this week, when Rogers-Brown went to pick up equipment that would allow her to continue to work from home while shattered windows and broken doors are replaced on CDC’s campus, she walked past bullet holes.
She said she won’t feel safe returning until she feels federal leadership has publicly stood up for the CDC and Kennedy has condemned any violence aimed at public health workers as loudly as he derided CDC for its COVID response.
Before becoming health secretary, Kennedy falsely called the COVID-19 vaccine the “deadliest vaccine ever made” and, during his recent presidential run, he wrote in a post on X that he would “clean up the cesspool of corruption at CDC.”
“We really are at a turning point of what can happen,” Rogers-Brown said. “We can start to right the ship, or we can keep going down this road and wonder if, next time, I’m going to be triaging the gunshot wound of a colleague. And what will make the difference will be the voices of our leaders that have the microphone.”
She called for Kennedy to make it clear that “public servants are not the enemy” and “CDC workers are humans.”
Over the weekend, Kennedy sent an email to staff, offering prayers and saying he realized that the shooting was “unsettling” for staffers.
Kennedy visited the CDC on Monday, surveying the damage, meeting with senior leadership and visiting the widow of DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose, who was killed Friday in the shooting. That day, he referred to the shooting as “heartbreaking” in an X post.
In an TV interview with Scripps News later that day, Kennedy said CDC workers “should not be the targets of this kind of violence from anybody” and that political violence is “always wrong.”
Asked if he would take action to quell misinformation around vaccines, Kennedy said there wasn’t enough information about the shooter’s motive and went on to criticize public health agencies.
“We have to ask, why are people not believing the public health agencies? And the answer, I think, is pretty elementary: That the public health agencies have not been honest,” Kennedy said.
Some staffers were frustrated by what they perceived to be a lack of strong response from Kennedy, who didn’t directly address staff during his visit on Monday.
“He never even sent an email to us until this past Saturday and never visited our campus until this week,” a CDC scientist who has worked at the agency for 10 years in a variety of positions told ABC News. “I don’t even know how to feel with the lack of words from the White House and RFK victim-shaming us.”
The scientist asked not to be publicly identified over fears of retaliation at work and safety concerns.
HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon told ABC News in a statement that Kennedy “has unequivocally condemned the horrific attack and remains fully committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of CDC employees.”
Nixon said Kennedy’s response was swift and decisive, citing his trip to Atlanta, and said any suggestion of a delay “is simply not supported by the facts.”
“The Secretary’s presence and outreach underscore his commitment to the CDC community and public health workforce. This is a time to stand in solidarity with our public health workforce, not a moment for the media to exploit a tragedy for political gain,” Nixon said.
While Trump hasn’t publicly spoken about the shooting, White House spokesperson Kush Desai also emphasized that the safety and security of government employees, “whether in Washington, D.C. or Atlanta, Georgia — is the topmost priority of the Administration.”
“Violence has no place in any civil society, and the White House extends our heartfelt condolences to the family of Officer David Rose and the entire CDC team,” Desai said in a statement sent to ABC News.
CDC director Dr. Susan Monarez spoke directly to CDC employees on Tuesday, giving brief remarks in a 10-minute all-staff call that was cut short by technical issues.
“You are resourceful, resilient and strong, and we will make sure you have the resources, the protection, the support you need to keep doing the work you do,” she said.
She followed up later the same day with a more direct denouncement of misinformation to the agency’s more than 10,000 employees with a note that read, in part, “the dangers of misinformation and its promulgation has now led to deadly consequences.”
“I will work to restore trust in public health to those who have lost it — through science, evidence, and clarity of purpose,” Monarez wrote.
Another CDC staff member told ABC News that the last six months of the Trump administration had already been tumultuous for the agency. She cited Kennedy’s reorganization efforts that led to the mass-firings of around 10,000 HHS employees and many entire CDC programs being cut, which Kennedy defended as “reducing bureaucratic sprawl.”
“It was an overwhelming grief to watch what was unfolding with public health and how it was going to affect people’s lives,” the CDC worker, who also asked not to be publicly identified over fears of retaliation at work and concerns over her own safety, said. “But it is very personal now.”
With nearly 20 years of experience working in communications at CDC on multiple different public health issues, including immunization and COVID-19, she said she’d never seen as much fear among her colleagues as she had this year.
“The vilification of federal workers is astounding, and people are forgetting … that we’re human beings,” she said. “We’re parents and friends and mothers and daughters. You know, we’re just like everyone else.”
She pointed to Kennedy’s history of vaccine skepticism before joining the Trump administration and actions to dissuade vaccine uptake since taking office.
“This didn’t happen overnight,” she said.
In May 2021, Kennedy filed a citizen petition asking for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to revoke its authorization of all COVID-19 vaccines, which he falsely criticized during a Louisiana House of Representatives meeting about school vaccine requirements as the “deadliest vaccine ever made.”
“After reviewing the science and consulting top experts at NIH and FDA, HHS has determined that mRNA technology poses more risk than benefits for these respiratory viruses,” Kennedy said in a video posted on X when the cut to mRNA funding was announced.
Scientists and doctors contend that mRNA vaccines have been studied for decades. Robust evidence from clinical trials and real-world data shows that COVID-19 mRNA vaccines are safe and effective, despite Kennedy’s claims, and that serious health events after COVID-19 vaccination are rare, as CDC states on its website.
ABC News’ Eric Strauss and Will McDuffie contributed to this report.
Erin is the first hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season. ABC News
(NEW YORK) — Erin has become the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, with several areas already on alert for heavy rain and strong waves and rip currents possible along the East Coast of the United States as early as next week.
Hurricane Erin is a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds up to 75 mph.
Tropical storm watches are in place for the Northern Leeward Islands of St. Martin, St. Barts, Anguilla and Barbuda, with breezy and rainy conditions possible in these areas for the next 48 hours. Erin is expected to pass near or north of the Leeward Islands on Saturday.
This weekend, Erin will move north of Puerto Rico and could potentially become a major hurricane, Category 3 or higher, by Sunday morning. The outer bands of this storm could bring 2 to 4 inches of rain to Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands on Saturday and Sunday, which could lead to isolated flash flooding, potential mudslides and gusty winds of 40 to 50 mph.
Moving to next week, Erin will continue to move northwest, staying east of the Bahamas.
The majority of meteorological modeling continues to keep Erin well off the East Coast of the U.S. by hundreds of miles, but large waves and life-threatening rip currents are still expected to reach the coast on Aug. 20 to Aug. 27.
This would not only be dangerous for anyone entering the waters, but also for property along the coast, as erosion — especially along North Carolina’s Outer Banks — could be a serious threat. The Outer Banks and other parts of North Carolina could see waves of 8 to 12 feet, with other areas of South Carolina and Virginia possibly seeing waves reaching 6 feet next week.
Despite the threat of strong waves along the East Coast, a cold front pushing off of America’s coast is expected to keep Erin out to sea and will also bring below-average temperatures to the Northeast next week.
The National Hurricane Center predicted an above-normal hurricane season for the Atlantic.
August, September and October are the most active months of the Atlantic hurricane season, which ends on Nov. 30.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Immigration Court building entrance at 26 Federal Plaza in New York. (Photo by Erik McGregor/LightRocket via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — Envelopes containing a white powder that were found at a government building in New York City housing an Immigration and Customs Enforcement office did not contain any dangerous substances, officials said Friday.
The incident occurred Thursday afternoon at 26 Federal Plaza, in Manhattan’s Foley Square, New York City Mayor Eric Adams said.
The five letters were found at about 4 p.m. in the mailroom of the ICE Enforcement and Removal Office on the ninth floor, according to the FBI.
“In the majority of my experience, most of these incidents turn out to be nothing. However, this matter is not going to be taken lightly,” said Christoper Raia, the FBI assistant director in charge of the FBI’s New York field office, who noted that “sending threatening letters of this nature, whether real or a hoax, is a crime.”
Initial testing of the powder indicates it was boric acid, which is commonly used in pesticides and other chemicals and is harmful if eaten, officials told WABC.
Personnel in the ICE ERO office found the envelopes, according to Raia, who said two people were initially exposed. Those two individuals are expected to OK, officials told New York ABC station WABC.
On Friday, Adams told radio station 1010 WINS that “no dangerous substances” were involved in the incident, but said it is “still a serious crime.”
“We are going to make sure the person responsible will be brought to justice,” Adams told 1010 WINS.
Hazmat teams were on the ground on Thursday “to ensure the safety of everyone inside and outside of the building” while awaiting the test results, the mayor said.
The building was evacuated “per standard protocol,” Raia said.
The 41-floor office building is home to ICE’s New York City field office, as well as the FBI’s New York field office and an immigration court. It has made headlines and been the site of frequent protests over ICE operations in the city amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on undocumented immigrants.
A so-called “holding facility” for detained migrants is located on the 10th floor of the building. Following allegations of unsanitary conditions there, a federal judge this week ordered the Trump administration to ensure the facility is not overcrowded and that detainees are provided with hygiene products and confidential access to lawyers. The Department of Homeland Security denied the conditions in the facility were subprime.
New York City Comptroller Brad Lander was arrested in June while observing proceedings at the building’s immigration court. He was accused of assaulting law enforcement and impeding a federal officer but has not been charged.
Kellogg’s cereal products are offered for sale at a grocery store on July 10, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — WK Kellogg Co. has announced that they will stop using artificial dyes in its breakfast cereals by the end of 2027, according to a statement from the company.
The maker of Froot Loops, Apple Jacks, Frosted Flakes and Rice Krispies, just to name a few, said that they are evolving their portfolio of cereals “to provide consumers with more of what they want and need — such as whole grains and fiber and less of what they don’t.”
“Today, the vast majority — 85 percent — of our cereal sales contain no FD&C colors and none of our products have contained Red No. 3 for years,” Kellogg said in their statement making the announcement. “We are committed to continue working with HHS and FDA to identify effective solutions to remove FD&C colors from foods.”
Kellogg pledged that they will be reformulating their cereals served in schools to not include FD&C colors by the 2026-27 school year, that they will not be launching any new products with FD&C colors beginning in January 2026 and that they plan on removing all FD&C colors from their products by the end of 2027, according to their announcement.
“We are proud that our cereals provide consumers with important nutrients such as Iron, Vitamin D and Folate,” Kellogg said. “Kellogg’s cereals have played an important role in U.S. consumers’ lives for more than a century, and we look forward to continuing that tradition.”
The change comes amid a push from Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to crack down on synthetic food additives as part of his initiative to “Make America Healthy Again.” Among those efforts are proposals to phase out artificial food dyes in favor of natural alternatives.
In June, Kraft Heinz and General Mills announced plans to remove artificial food dyes from some products within the next two years. Several other large food manufacturers — including PepsiCo, ConAgra, The Hershey Company, McCormick & Co., J.M. Smucker, Nestlé USA and more — have announced similar plans in recent months.
As of May, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved three additional color additives from natural sources that are in line with the Department of Health and Human Services’ goals, which can be used in a wide range of products from gum to breakfast cereal.
Just last month, Mars Wrigley North America announced that products across four categories of its popular treats — gum, fruity confections and chocolate candy — will be made “without Food, Drug & Cosmetic (FD&C) colors” starting in 2026.
The first of their brands to be available without without FD&C colors will include M&M’s Chocolate, Skittles Original, Extra Gum Spearmint and Starburst Original fruit chews, the company said.
ABC News’ Kelly McCarthy contributed to this report.
(WASHINGTON) — A Washington, D.C., man facing charges of assault of a federal officer after he allegedly threw a sandwich at a Customs and Border Protection agent during a confrontation this week, worked for the Department of Justice at the time, according to Attorney General Pam Bondi.
Sean Charles Dunn faces federal charges for allegedly throwing a Subway sandwich at a CBP agent who was patrolling with Metro Transit Police in northwest Washington around 11 p.m. on Sunday.
On Thursday morning, Bondi said Dunn had been fired from his job. Dunn worked as an international affairs specialist in the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs, according to a DOJ official.
“I just learned that this defendant worked at the Department of Justice — NO LONGER,” Bondi said in a social media post. “Not only is he FIRED, he has been charged with a felony.”
Bondi added, “You will NOT work in this administration while disrespecting our government and law enforcement.”
According to the criminal complaint, Dunn approached the officer while shouting “f— you! You f—— fascists! Why are you here? I don’t want you in my city!”
After several minutes of confrontation on Sunday, Dunn allegedly threw the sandwich, striking the officer in the chest, the complaint says. The alleged incident was apparently captured in a video posted to Instagram.
Dunn was apprehended after attempting to flee, authorities said, and later admitted to the incident while being processed at the police station, allegedly telling an officer, “I did it. I threw the sandwich.”
While Bondi said in her statement that individuals will “NOT work in this administration while disrespecting our government and law enforcement,” last week the department publicly stood by Jared Wise’s continued employment at DOJ. Wise was pardoned by President Donald Trump while on trial for his participation in the Jan. 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol. Wise was allegedly seen on videos calling cops “Nazis” and screaming “Kill ’em!” at officers under assault by the pro-Trump mob.
“Jared Wise is a valued member of The Department of Justice and we appreciate his contributions to our team,” a Justice Department spokesperson told ABC News in a statement on Aug. 8.
ABC News reached out to Bondi’s spokesperson for comment following claims of Dunn’s dismissal.
The incident comes amid heightened tensions over federal law enforcement presence in the district. Trump recently deployed National Guard troops in Washington, D.C., declaring a public safety emergency and putting the Metropolitan Police Department under partial federal oversight for 30 days.
District Council Member Brooke Pinto, who chairs the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety, expressed concern about the increased federal presence.
“It paints a picture of a city that is not my own and is not the experience of the vast majority of district residents and visitors,” Pinto told ABC News.
While Trump has cited rising crime as justification for federal intervention, police statistics show violent crime has actually decreased.
“Violent crime in DC reached historic 30-year lows last year, and is down another 26% so far this year,” D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb said on social media.
The president maintained his stance, saying Wednesday, “Fighting crime is a good thing. … Instead of saying ‘He’s a dictator,’ they should say, ‘We’re going to join him and make Washington safe.'”
Dunn has not yet appeared in court. ABC News has reached out to his attorney, Sabrina Shroff, for comment.
The entrance to the state-managed immigration detention center dubbed Alligator Alcatraz, located at the Dade-Collier Training and Transition Airport in the Florida Everglades on August 03, 2025 in Ochopee, Florida. oe Raedle/Getty Images
(OCHOPEE, Fla.) — For a month, Rafael Collado couldn’t tell the night from the day.
Detained in the temporary detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz,” he spent his time confined in a chain-link cage with another man, stuck in what his fiancee Sonia Bichara described as a legal purgatory — unaware of why he was detained, where he might be sent, and how long he would be stuck in the controversial Florida facility.
“They don’t see the daylight. They don’t know what time it is. He’ll call me and say, ‘What time is it? What day is it?'” said Bichara, who said she speaks with Collado daily. “You don’t know if it rains, you don’t know if it’s sunny out there, you don’t know if it’s dark — it’s like you’re dead alive.”
Collado’s experience is far from unique, according to immigration attorneys and advocates who have raised concerns about what they say are inhumane conditions at the migrant detention center. While a federal judge last week blocked further construction at the facility, the state of Florida is still permitted to house thousands of detainees at the site, which is located on a sparsely used airstrip in the Everglades.
“I have never, ever heard of any conditions coming close to those that are presently in existence and Alligator Alcatraz,” said Eric Lee, an attorney who represents a former detainee at the facility. “It’s bordering on torture, based on what I’m hearing from people.”
According to Bichara, Collado told her he spends nearly every moment of his day locked in a chain-link cage inside a large white tent, which frequently floods when it rains. Mosquitoes and other insects swarm around, temperatures fluctuate from sweltering Florida heat to bone-shaking cold from industrial air conditioners, and access to medical attention is limited, according to Bichara.
Neither the Florida Division of Emergency Management nor the Department of Homeland Security responded to a request for comment regarding the allegations.
The facility, which is funded by the federal government and run by the state of Florida, was dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz” by federal officials because it’s surrounded by alligator-infested swampland.
During a visit of the facility last month, President Donald Trump said the center could be a new standard for migrant detention facilities in the U.S.
“I mean, you don’t always have land so beautiful and so secure,” Trump said. “They have a lot of bodyguards and a lot of cops that are in the form of alligators. You don’t have to pay them so much but I wouldn’t want to run through the Everglades for long. It will keep people where they’re supposed to be. This is a very important thing.”
In a legal filing Wednesday, as part of a lawsuit filed last month against the Trump administration over detainees’ access to legal counsel, several attorneys with clients being held at the facility said they haven’t been able to have full access to their clients.
They claim the facility does not allow private calls between attorneys and clients, or have publicly available information about visitation hours, email contacts, and procedures for exchanging legal documents. Attorneys and family members told ABC News detainees are able to make some calls to family members from the detention center.
“These open and non-confidential visitation tents are very much unlike any other facility I have ever seen,” said attorney Vilerka Solange Bilbao, who submitted a declaration Wednesday as part of the lawsuit. “Typically, detention facilities provide enclosed confidential rooms for attorney-client visitation.”
In her declaration, Solange Bilbao said that her client claims that “several people were running fevers and showing COVID symptoms without being separated from the general population; that bathrooms were often out of order or overflowing; that rainwater regularly flooded the tents; and that medical requests were ignored.”
“He and others cannot tell whether it is day or night unless they ask because there is no natural light or clock,” Solange Bilbao said.
“These conditions are not only inhumane — the lack of basic care and communication access directly obstruct my ability to provide effective representation,” she said.
Several attorneys also claimed on Wednesday that people who were moved to “Alligator Alcatraz” were removed from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainee locator system, which typically provides online information about detainees’ current location.
“I’ve never seen treatment so deliberately cruel and explicit, more or less explicitly aimed at disincentivizing people from immigrating to the United States based on how they’re treated,” Lee said.
“He says it is worse than prison,” said Bichara of her fiance.
Collado would know, she says. He served a 17-year prison sentence after being convicted of drug charges in the U.S. in the 1990s, and of assaulting a fellow inmate. He’s paid the price for his crimes, Bichara said, and they planned to spend the rest of their lives together in a retirement community in Miami Gardens, Florida.
“He said, ‘I’ve been good for eight years. I don’t even have a speeding ticket. I’ve been paying my debt. You know, I’ve been doing well,'” she said.
Those plans were thrown into uncertainty last month when Collado, who came to the U.S. from Cuba, reported to a federal facility in Miramar, Florida, to complete an annual check-in due to his I-94 status, which gives legal authorization to be in the U.S. to those who entered the country with a temporary visa.
Federal officials detained him during the check-in and sent him to the recently constructed detention facility in the Everglades, according to his fiancee.
Bichara alleges that officials failed to provide Collado with his antidepressant medication during the first two weeks of his detention. He only got his medication, she said, after he unsuccessfully tried to take his own life.
Lee raised similar concerns about the medical conditions at the facility. He said his client Luis Manuel Rivas Velasquez fell sick last week and collapsed, but detention center officials allegedly ignored his pleas for medical attention.
“His cellmates had to drag him down a hallway where guards didn’t even know how to take his pulse to check whether he was still alive,” Lee said.
Both Collado and Rivas Velasquez have since been transferred out of “Alligator Alcatraz” to facilities in Texas, where their families have struggled to contact them, advocates said.
Bichara says she doesn’t know how to help her fiance at this point. Three different lawyers have advised her that challenging Collado’s detention would be costly and unlikely to succeed.
For now, she’s getting legal assistance from a nonprofit, but she worries that she might not see her partner again.
“Emotionally, I don’t know how to explain myself, because I don’t know what to say,” she said. “I don’t know what to think. I don’t know what to do.”
At a press conference on Thursday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said that since the opening of “Alligator Alcatraz,” the state has seen an increase in the number of migrants voluntarily leaving the country. DeSantis said the state will be opening a new immigration detention facility, dubbed “‘Deportation Depot,” that “will have the same services that you have at Alligator Alcatraz.”
“We’ve been securing the border, enforcing immigration laws and removing illegal aliens who are in our society now, sending them back to their home country,” DeSantis said. “We have done more on this than any other state by a country mile.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. Joe Raedle/Getty Images
(SANDERSON, Fla.) — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced on Thursday that his administration is opening a new immigration detention facility dubbed “Deportation Depot.”
The announcement of the new facility in north Florida comes one month after the state opened a detention center in the Everglades known as “Alligator Alcatraz.”
“We are authorizing and will be soon opening this new illegal immigration detention, processing and deportation facility here in North Florida,” DeSantis said at a press conference.
The new immigration detention center will be located at the Baker Correctional Institution in Sanderson, Florida. The governor said the facility, which is near Lake City Airport, will not house people indefinitely.
“We’ve been securing the border, enforcing immigration laws and removing illegal aliens who are in our society now, sending them back to their home country,” DeSantis said. “We have done more on this than any other state by a country mile.”
DeSantis said the new facility will be able to hold more than 1,300 detainees.
A federal judge last week temporarily halted any further construction on the Alligator Alcatraz facility to prevent possible harm to the sensitive Everglades ecosystem.
The state of Florida and President Donald Trump’s administration can continue to use the facility and house detainees there, but any further construction must be halted for 14 days, the order said.
