US President Donald Trump has announced plans to reopen and significantly expand Alcatraz, the former prison located on an island off the coast of San Francisco, California. In a statement shared on his Truth Social platform Sunday evening, Trump declared his intention to transform the site into a high-security facility for housing the “most ruthless and violent offenders” in the country.
“For too long, America has been plagued by vicious, violent, and repeat criminal offenders,” Trump 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.”
He stated that he is directing the Bureau of Prisons, along with the Department of Justice, FBI, and Department of Homeland Security, to oversee the reopening and reconstruction of the prison, which was officially closed in 1963. Trump added that the expanded Alcatraz would serve as a “symbol of Law, Order, and JUSTICE.”
The announcement comes amid growing criticism of Trump’s controversial stance on crime and incarceration. He has recently clashed with courts over his push to send suspected gang members to a notorious prison in El Salvador without trial. Trump has even floated the idea of sending US citizens to foreign prisons, raising concerns among legal experts about violations of due process and constitutional rights.
Alcatraz Island, now a National Historic Landmark and popular tourist attraction managed by the National Park Service, once held some of America’s most dangerous criminals.
It remains unclear how Trump’s directive would be implemented, given the prison’s current status, historic protections, and potential legal hurdles.