In an effort to combat violent offenders and undocumented immigrants, President Donald Trump has pledged to “rebuild and open Alcatraz.”
In a post shared to Truth Social on Sunday night, Trump said “the reopening of ALCATRAZ will serve as a symbol of Law, Order, and JUSTICE.”
In order to “reopen a substantially enlarged and rebuilt” Alcatraz, Trump has instructed the Bureau of Prisons to collaborate with the Department of Justice, FBI, and Homeland Security.
In a post shared to Truth Social on Sunday night, Trump said “the reopening of ALCATRAZ will serve as a symbol of Law, Order, and JUSTICE.”
In order to “reopen a substantially enlarged and rebuilt” Alcatraz, Trump has instructed the Bureau of Prisons to collaborate with the Department of Justice, FBI, and Homeland Security.
Legendary criminal Al Capone was allegedly housed at the infamous institution, which he claimed would “house America’s most ruthless and violent Offenders.”
The order follows Trump’s numerous legal battles with the government over his attempts to transfer illegal migrants and alleged gang members to an infamous El Salvadorian prison.
Trump will be able to circumvent the court rulings that prevent him from implementing the mass deportation plan by using the maximum security prison, which was closed in 1963.
He tweeted, seemingly implying that illegal migrants will be the first to be put to prison: “We will no longer be held hostage to criminals, thugs, and judges that are afraid to do their job and allow us to remove criminals, who came into our Country illegally.”
Additionally, Trump has ordered the construction of a prison facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to house up to 30,000 of the “worst criminal aliens”, as he has described them.
He must give deportees due process, according to some courts. Trump has also hinted at the possibility of sending US citizens there and to other foreign prisons, but a revitalised Alcatraz might also address that issue in the event that legal issues surface.
“For too long, America has been plagued by vicious, violent, and repeat Criminal Offenders, the dregs of society, who will never contribute anything other than Misery and Suffering,” he wrote.
“When we were a more serious Nation, in times past, we did not hesitate to lock up the most dangerous criminals, and keep them far away from anyone they could harm.”
“That’s the way it’s supposed to be. No longer will we tolerate these Serial Offenders who spread filth, bloodshed, and mayhem on our streets.”
After 29 years of existence, the maximum security federal penitentiary known as Alcatraz, located off the coast of San Francisco, was shut down in 1963.
Despite having a number of infamous convicts, the jail gained notoriety thanks to Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage’s performance in the 1996 film The Rock.
However, the expense of upkeep and restoration was a major consideration in the decision to permanently close it.
At the time, the Bureau of Prisons estimated that just keeping the doors open would have cost between $3 million and $5 million.
“That figure did not include daily operating costs – Alcatraz was nearly three times more expensive to operate than any other Federal prison (in 1959 the daily per capita cost at Alcatraz was $10.10 compared with $3.00 at USP Atlanta),” a spokesperson said at the time.
Because Alcatraz was an island and all of the commodities had to be transported in, this was the biggest expense.
“The island had no source of fresh water, so nearly one million gallons of water had to be barged to the island each week,” the spokesperson said.
“The Federal Government found that it was more cost-effective to build a new institution than to keep Alcatraz open.”
Alcatraz’s population was gradually reduced when its closure was announced and approved by US Attorney General Robert Kennedy. Inmates were then transferred to other federal prisons.
During that period, Alcatraz housed 1,576 inmates and was well-known for its substandard circumstances.
In a statement released on Sunday, the Bureau of Prisons’ spokeswoman stated that the organisation “will comply with all Presidential Orders.”
Don Jr., Trump’s eldest son, suggested that Alcratraz be reopened in a post on X back in January, which led to speculation that he was responsible for the president’s most recent decision.
“Now this is a great idea,” he said in response to news Trump would send the worst criminals to Guantanamo Bay. “Maybe we should also reopen Alcatraz?,” he added.
The infamous 1962 escape by bank robbers Frank Morris, Clarence Anglin, and John Anglin used the use of human hair and plaster dummy heads to trick the guards.
They were never located. Although some believe they perished in the icy waters and powerful currents, their audacious escape also gave rise to wild claims that they had landed and taken up new lives.
Before escaping into the shark-infested bay on a makeshift raft, the brothers and Morris tunnelled out of cells and slipped through ventilation ducts and an open utility door.
There were 14 separate escapes involving 36 inmates before Alactraz closed its doors for good.
Twenty-three were apprehended, six were shot and died during the attempt, two drowned, and five were never located, according to accounts.
From the bare-bones cells to the busy meal hall and the bulletproof main guard’s office, historic photographs depict life at the island-bound penitentiary, popularly known as The Rock.
In one picture, a 1950s Christmas meal is sketched over a jail cook who sits motionless for the camera. Prisoners were served roast turkey, giblet gravy, candied sweet potatoes, raisin nut dressing, whipped potatoes and bread with ‘oleo’, a butter replacement, for the festive lunch.
Alcatraz became a historical landmark in 1973 after being included in the newly established Golden Gate National Recreation Area in 1972.
Over 1.5 million people visit the former prison each year.
Audio tours of the main cell block and recreation yard, as well as the opportunity to walk past the island’s gardens and abandoned buildings, sell out almost every day, often weeks in advance.
