Washington — The Supreme Court on Wednesday left in place a block on a new Florida immigration law that imposes criminal penalties on migrants who are in the U.S. illegally and enter into the state, with the justices declining to pause a lower court decision that stopped it from taking effect while legal proceedings move forward.

Key West City Commissioners — under pressure from Florida’s attorney general — reversed a decision that was praised by residents at a previous meeting and voted to reenter into a 287(g) immigration enforcement agreement between local police and federal officials.

“That runs the gamut from making arrests, investigating crimes, and doing police work, all the way up to guarding prisoners or running courts,” says Daniel Maurer, an Army JAG until 2024 who also taught law at West Point and at the Judge Advocate General’s School in Virginia.

The first group of immigrants has arrived at a new detention center deep in the Florida Everglades that officials have dubbed “Alligator Alcatraz,” a spokesperson for Republican state Attorney General James Uthmeier told The Associated Press.

Florida is proving to be a leading ally of the Trump administration as the federal government expands its illegal immigrant deportation operation. The state, led by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL), immediately took action in the first weeks of the Trump administration to put in place laws that would crack down on illegal immigration,

Tensions flared and emotions ran high at a packed Key West City Hall Tuesday as city commissioners revisited their stance on cooperating with federal immigration enforcement under the controversial 287(g) agreement.

Marines from North Carolina are heading to Florida as part of a 700-personnel deployment requested by DHS to support ICE operations, performing non-law enforcement duties.

In Florida, where the governor has promised to lead the immigration crackdown, increased arrests mirror the national trend, especially for those with no criminal background.