A judge ruled that the state and federal governments acted illegally by not conducting an environmental review before building the center in the Florida Everglades.

U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams' injunction formalized a temporary halt she had ordered two weeks ago as witnesses continued to testify in a multiday hearing to determine whether construction should end until the ultimate resolution of the case.

The contested migrant detention center is the first of its kind in the US, but other states are interested in building similar sites of their own