Opinion ID: 1747099
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: district court's jurisdiction

Text: Defendant's motion to remand and assignments of errors nos. 6, 7 and 8 raise issues under The Extradition Treaty between the United States of America and the United Mexican States of 1978. These issues were not raised in the district court and are raised for the first time on appeal. Defendant argues that the treaty prohibits the extradition of a person who may be subject to the death penalty in the prosecuting nation. Defendant also argues that the treaty and Mexican law prohibit the extradition of Mexican nationals and that defendant is a Mexican national. Defendant further argues that United States authorities presented a forged birth certificate to Mexican police officials indicating that defendant was born in the United States whereas he was in fact born in Mexico, thereby depriving the Mexican authorities of the exercise of their discretion under the treaty not to extradite a Mexican national. Defendant's motion to remand asks that the case be remanded to the district court to take evidence on defendant's status as a Mexican national and to develop facts relating to the alleged false birth certificate. Attached to the motion is a document executed several years after defendant's birth which purports to reflect his birth in Durango, Mexico. Since no objection to jurisdiction was raised in the district court, the record on appeal is practically devoid of any evidence bearing on defendant's nationality. Defendant contends that because of violations of the treaty, the Louisiana court is without personal jurisdiction of the defendant, the conviction is null, and defendant should be repatriated to Mexico. Defendant relies particularly on Articles 8 and 9 of the treaty, which provide: Article 8: When the offense for which extradition is requested is punishable by death under the laws of the requesting Party and the laws of the requested Party do not permit such punishment for that offense, extradition may be refused unless the requesting party furnishes such assurances as the requested party considers sufficient that the death penalty shall be imposed, or, if imposed, shall not be executed. Article 9: 1. Neither Contracting Party shall be bound to deliver up its nationals, but the executive authority of the requested party shall, if not prevented by the laws of that Party, have the power to deliver them up, if, in its discretion, it be deemed proper to do so. 2. If extradition is not granted pursuant to paragraph 1 of this article, the requested party shall submit the case to its competent authorities for the purpose of prosecution, provided that Party has jurisdiction over the offense. The guiding legal principles were set forth in the recent United States Supreme Court case of United States v. Alvarez-Machain, 504 U.S. 655, 112 S.Ct. 2188, 119 L.Ed.2d 441 (1992). In Alvarez, U.S. agents caused the forcible abduction of a Mexican national from Mexico to California, where he was charged with murder. Defendant there raised similar defenses to those raised here. Protests were lodged by the Mexican government. The Supreme Court, nevertheless, found the treaty inapplicable and no bar to prosecution in the United States. The Supreme Court explained that absent a treaty, a nation is not obligated to surrender a person to another nation. The treaty between the United States and Mexico creates mutual obligations on the two nations to extradite under certain circumstances and according to certain procedures. The treaty does not prohibit a transfer of custody by other means. The treaty does not purport to specify the only way in which one country may gain custody of a national of the other country for the purposes of prosecution. The court found that the treaty did not by its terms or by implication prohibit abduction outside of the terms of the treaty or prohibit prosecution where the defendant's presence is obtained by means other than those established by the treaty. The court concluded that defendant's abduction was not in violation of the treaty and, therefore, his trial in the United States was not prohibited. In this case, the transfer of custody of the defendant was accomplished by informal, consensual cooperation between a low-level FBI office in El Paso, Texas and local police officials in Juarez, Mexico, not through the diplomatic channel as specified in Article 10 of the treaty. According to testimony, the Mexican police were presented with a warrant or detention order and a birth certificate showing that defendant was born in Durango, Colorado. Unlike in the Alvarez case, no protest under the treaty has been made by the Mexican government. Nothing in the treaty prohibits such a transfer of custody or prohibits prosecution after transfer of custody by such means. Article 8 of the treaty allows refusal by Mexico of extradition of persons who may be subjected to the death penalty, but does not prohibit such extradition. Article 9 of the treaty allows refusal by Mexico of extradition of Mexican nationals, but does not prohibit such extradition. The treaty does not by its terms or by implication afford defendant the right to freedom from prosecution in the United States or to be repatriated under the circumstances of this case. It cannot be said that the treaty was violated even if, as claimed by defendant, U.S. officials engaged in some subterfuge in the process of the informal transfer of custody. We hasten to add that the record contains no evidence, only defendant's allegation, that a false birth certificate was used. However, even if such were the case, and if defendant is a Mexican national, the treaty affords him no relief. These assignments of error are without merit and the motion to remand is denied.