Sometimes I stumble across the most interesting news items quite by accident. This one was a tacked-on paragraph — almost a footnote — to a story about an ICE prisoner, Canadian citizen Johnny Noviello, who died in custody in Florida while awaiting deportation.

A lawful permanent resident of the U.S. since 1991, he was convicted in 2023 of drug trafficking and racketeering in Florida and sentenced to 12 months in prison. Last month, he was arrested by ICE while at the Florida Department of Corrections Probation Office — assumedly complying with the terms of his release — and charged with “removability” because of his earlier conviction.

While in custody at the Miami Bureau of Prisons Federal Detention Center, Noviello, age 49, was found unresponsive, upon which — according to ICE — medical staff at the facility “responded immediately and began administering cardiopulmonary resuscitation, automated external defibrillator shock and called 911.” He was pronounced dead within the hour; the cause of death remains under investigation. [William Vaillancourt, Daily Beast, June 26, 2025.]

I’m not yet sure, based on the limited information available, what to think of Noviello’s case. Yes, he was a convicted criminal. But he was in the country legally; he was not undocumented; he had served his sentence, even earning early release for good behavior; and he was properly reporting to the probation office when he was scooped up for deportation. So to my mind, the hypothetical “jury” is still out on this one.

But then the last three paragraphs of the article caught my eye. I quote:

“According to ICE records, at least seven other individuals have died in their custody since Jan. 20, when President Donald Trump was inaugurated.

“The Trump administration has also been detaining migrants at Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. military base in Cuba, while sending others to El Salvador’s CECOT mega-prison.

“Additionally, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced this week that the administration will use funds from the gutted Federal Emergency Management Administration [FEMA] to spend on an ‘alligator Alcatraz’ detention center on a remote Everglades airfield.” [Id.] [Bold emphasis is mine.]

*. *. *

The first two quoted paragraphs make me wonder what sort of conditions and treatment these prisoners are being subjected to, when seven have already died . . . and whether the causes of their deaths are being properly investigated and reported.

But equally important is that brief mention, highlighted above, of a projected “Alligator Alcatraz.” Just some of the questions incubating in my mind are:

— Is this facility intended to take the place of the previously-proposed restoration of the real Alcatraz off the coast of San Francisco? Has that one proven to be too expensive? Or are we to have a coast-to-coast archipelago of prison camps — our very own GULAG — like the one Vladimir Putin inherited from his predecessors and continues to utilize as housing for his political and other prisoners?

— Since the proposed renovation and expansion of the original Alcatraz (aptly nicknamed “the Rock” for its isolated island location) is estimated to take a couple of years to complete, is this new project being undertaken because it will be faster to implement? If so, what are we talking about: solid structures, or some sort of “tent city”?

— And why on a treeless airfield in the middle of steaming Florida Everglades swamp country? I don’t suppose anyone has factored in the cost of air-conditioning. What new kind of hell is envisioned for these people, most of whom have done nothing worse than come to America to build a new, better life for themselves and their families? Even the actual criminals among them deserve better than that.

— And finally, is this what DOGE had in mind when they decimated FEMA, the government agency that for nearly half a century has saved countless lives and helped victims of disasters put their lives back together? So that Trump could have enough money to destroy thousands of additional lives?

I ask you: What in the name of all that’s holy is wrong with these people??!!!

Just sayin’ . . .

Brendochka
6/27/25

UPDATE: Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs has said that “Canadian consular officials are urgently seeking more information from US officials,” adding that further details will not be provided in order to respect the family’s privacy. [Emma Tucker, CNN, June 26, 2025.]