In re Caro

283 F. Supp. 3d 993
CourtDistrict Court, D. Colorado
DecidedOctober 19, 2017
DocketCriminal Action No. 17–mj–01048–KMT
StatusPublished

This text of 283 F. Supp. 3d 993 (In re Caro) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Colorado primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Caro, 283 F. Supp. 3d 993 (D. Colo. 2017).

Opinion

Kathleen M. Tafoya, United States Magistrate Judge

This matter comes before the court on the Extradition Request filed by the United States on behalf of the United Mexican States ("Mexico"), seeking to extradite Respondent Gabriel Rodriguez Caro, a United States citizen, to Mexico for the aggravated kidnapping of Marlene Paola Ramos Ortega. For the reasons set forth below, the Extradition Request is GRANTED , and Respondent is CERTIFIED as extraditable.

*997APPLICABLE LAW

A request by Mexico to extradite an individual from the United States to that foreign country is governed by the provisions of the federal extradition statute, 18 U.S.C. §§ 3181 - 3196, and the Extradition Treaty Between the United States of America and the United Mexican States dated May 4, 1978, 31 U.S.T. 5059, TIAS 9656 ("Extradition Treaty"). The extradition process is initiated by Complaint for Arrest for the purposes of Extradition filed by the United States of America ("United States" or "Government"), and an arrest warrant. 18 U.S.C. § 3184. Pursuant to the Extradition Treaty, the diplomatic note and the other supporting documentation were bates labeled with pages 1-651 and timely produced to the Respondent on May 24, 2017. [Doc. No. 25 at 1.] See In re Extradition of Figueroa , Case No. 12-M-269, 2013 WL 3243096, at *2 (N.D. Ill. June 26, 2013). Article 10 of the Extradition Treaty requires the formal extradition request to include the following:

a) A statement of the facts of the case;
b) The text of the legal provisions describing the essential elements of the offense;
c) The text of the legal provisions describing the punishment for the offense;
d) The text of the legal provisions relating to the time limit on the prosecution or the execution of the punishment of the offense;
e) The facts and personal information of the person sought which will permit his identification and, where possible, information concerning his location.

[Doc. No. 25-1, 26]. In addition, when the extradition request relates to an individual who has not yet been convicted of a crime, it must also include (1) a certified copy of the warrant of arrest issued by a judge or other judicial officer of the requesting Party; and (2) evidence which, in accordance with the laws of the requested Party, would justify the apprehension and commitment for trial of the person sought if the offense had been committed there. [Id. at ¶ 3]. According to the Extradition Treaty, the documents from Mexico must be presented in English, the language of the United States. [Id. at ¶ 5].

The next phase of the extradition process is the extradition hearing, which is conducted by the federal court to consider the evidence presented by Mexico through the United States. The extradition hearing is not a criminal trial, and the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure do not apply. Fed. R. Crim. P. 1. Rather, the purpose of such hearing is to determine whether there is competent evidence to justify holding the individual to await trial, and not to determine whether the evidence is sufficient to justify a conviction. See Peters v. Egnor , 888 F.2d 713, 717 (10th Cir. 1989). Specifically, under the federal extradition statute, this court hears evidence and determines whether the evidence presented is sufficient to support a finding of probable cause that the person charged committed the extraditable offense. 18 U.S.C. § 3184 ; In re Extradition of Vargas , 978 F.Supp.2d 734, 739 (S.D. Tex. 2013). The court is not authorized under the Extradition Treaty to make a finding of guilt or innocence, and therefore, the Government is not required to present evidence sufficient to convict.

Several principles guide this court's inquiry at the extradition hearing. First, extradition treaties, unlike criminal statutes, are generally construed liberally in favor of enforcement. See Factor v. Laubenheimer , 290 U.S. 276, 293-94, 54 S.Ct. 191, 78 L.Ed. 315 (1933) ("In choosing between conflicting interpretations of a treaty obligation, a narrow and restricted construction is to be avoided as not consonant with the principles deemed controlling in the interpretation of international *998agreements. Considerations which should govern the diplomatic relations between nations, and the good faith of treaties, as well, require that their obligations should be liberally construed so as to effect the apparent intention of the parties to secure equality and reciprocity between them.")

Next, under the rule of non-inquiry, the court refrains from investigating the fairness of Mexico's justice system, and from inquiring into the procedures or treatment which await Respondent if he is returned to Mexico. See Smith v. United States , 82 F.3d 964, 965 (10th Cir. 1996) ; In re Extradition of Chan Seong-I , 346 F.Supp.2d 1149, 1157 (D.N.M. 2004). Under the general rule of non-contradiction, Respondent has no right to pose questions of credibility regarding Mexico's witnesses, but only to explain away or completely rebut probable cause for the purpose of the extradition hearing. In re Extradition Vargas , 978 F.Supp.2d at 748.

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283 F. Supp. 3d 993, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-caro-cod-2017.