NEW YORK — President Donald Trump has announced that he is ordering his administration to reopen and expand Alcatraz, the infamous former prison located on an island in California.
Posting on his Truth Social site Sunday evening, Trump stated, “America has suffered too long from vicious, violent, and repeat Criminal Offenders, the dregs of society, who contribute nothing but Misery and Suffering. In the past, when we were a more serious Nation, we did not hesitate to incarcerate the most dangerous criminals, keeping them isolated from those they could harm. That is how it should be.”
He added, “Therefore, today, I am directing the Bureau of Prisons, in collaboration with the Department of Justice, FBI, and Homeland Security, to reopen a significantly enlarged and reconstructed ALCATRAZ to detain America’s most ruthless and violent Offenders.” Trump also noted, “Reopening ALCATRAZ will stand as a symbol of Law, Order, and JUSTICE.”
The prison was closed in 1963, and Alcatraz Island is currently operated as a tourist site.
The order comes as Trump has been clashing with the courts as he tries to send accused gang members to a notorious prison in El Salvador, without due process. Trump has also talked about wanting to send American citizens there and to other foreign prisons.
