Court Opinion

ID: 9384938
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-04-05 17:01:07.234669+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T17:17:57.763422
License: Public Domain

FOR PUBLICATION

     UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
          FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

ALEJANDRO TOLEDO                                  No. 22-15705
MANRIQUE,
                                                   D.C. No.
                 Petitioner-Appellant,         3:21-cv-08395-LB

    v.
                                                     ORDER
MARK KOLC, Acting United States
Marshal for the Northern District of
California,

                 Respondent-Appellee.

                       Filed April 5, 2023

Before: Michelle T. Friedland and Ryan D. Nelson, Circuit
      Judges, and Kathleen Cardone, * District Judge.

*
 The Honorable Kathleen Cardone, United States District Judge for the
Western District of Texas, sitting by designation.
2          ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC

                          SUMMARY **

                       Extradition / Stay

    The panel denied former Peruvian president Alejandro
Toledo Manrique’s motion to stay his extradition proceeding
pending resolution of his appeal from the district court’s
denial of his petition for a writ of habeas corpus challenging
the extradition order.
    Peru seeks to extradite Toledo to face criminal charges
for allegedly accepting millions of dollars in bribes during
his presidency. Peruvian prosecutors accused Toledo of
money laundering and collusion in two Prosecutor’s
Decisions, documents that summarize the ongoing
investigation, and in an Acusación Fiscal, a document
produced at the end of an investigation that lays out the
crimes allegedly committed and supporting evidence. The
Peruvian government presented initial and supplemental
extradition requests to the United States, and following the
usual procedures for extradition, a federal prosecutor filed a
criminal complaint against Toledo. A United States
magistrate judge certified the extradition to the State
Department. Toledo petitioned for a writ of habeas corpus
petition, which the district court denied, and Toledo
appealed. Given the possibility of extradition before
resolution of his appeal, Toledo sought a stay before the
district court. The district court denied the motion but
entered a temporary stay pending appeal, and Toledo moved
for such a stay before this court.

**
  This summary constitutes no part of the opinion of the court. It has
been prepared by court staff for the convenience of the reader.
          ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC            3

   The panel weighed the four factors that guide
consideration of whether to issue a stay.
   First, irreparable injury is obvious. Once extradited,
Toledo’s appeal will be moot Additionally, given his
advanced age and preexisting health conditions, Toledo—
who explained that he could be detained in Peru up to three
years pending formal charges and that the conditions in
Peruvian prisons are dire—risks contracting a fatal illness or
experiencing other serious health declines.
    Second, Toledo has not shown a likelihood of success on
the merits on any of his three arguments.
•   The parties disputed whether the accusations contained
    in the Acusación Fiscal suffice to “charge[ ]” Toledo
    “with” an extraditable offense under the United States-
    Peru Extradition Treaty. Toledo argued that the Treaty
    requires an Orden de Enjuiciamiento before extradition.
    The panel observed that nothing in the language of the
    Treaty unambiguously requires an Orden de
    Enjuiciamiento as opposed to an Acusación Fiscal, and
    that the Treaty as a whole suggests an Acusación Fiscal
    satisfies being “charged with” a crime under the Treaty.
    The panel wrote that even if “charged with” is
    ambiguous, the drafting history suggests a broader
    meaning, and this court’s rules of interpretation militate
    against reading in a requirement of particular formal
    charges where the treaty makes no such specification.
•   Toledo argued that Peru did not submit a “copy of the
    charging document” because only an Orden de
    Enjuiciamiento qualifies. The panel wrote that the
    Acusación Fiscal filed in this matter is a charging
    document for the reasons discussed above.
4         ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC

•   Toledo also challenged the existence of probable cause.
    The panel wrote that self-incriminating statements of
    accomplices are sufficient to establish probable cause in
    an extradition hearing. The panel also cited admissions
    by Toledo, and noted that this court has rejected the
    argument that inconsistencies preclude a finding of
    probable cause.
    The panel wrote that the third and fourth factors—
whether the issuance of a stay would substantially injure the
other parties and the public interest—merge when the
Government is the opposing party. The panel reaffirmed that
the public interest will be served by the United States
complying with a valid extradition application because
proper compliance promotes relations between the two
countries, and enhances efforts to establish an international
rule of law and order.
          ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC            5

                          ORDER

    Peru seeks to extradite its former president Alejandro
Toledo Manrique to face criminal charges for allegedly
accepting millions of dollars in bribes during his presidency.
Toledo moves to stay his extradition pending resolution of
this habeas appeal. Because he has not shown a sufficient
likelihood of success on his habeas petition, we deny his stay
request.
                              I
    Peruvian prosecutors accused Toledo of money
laundering and collusion. They made these accusations in
two Prosecutor’s Decisions, documents that summarize the
ongoing investigation, and in an Acusación Fiscal, a
document produced at the end of an investigation that lays
out the crimes allegedly committed and supporting evidence.
After receiving approval from the Supreme Court of Justice
of Peru, the Peruvian government presented an extradition
request to the United States in May 2018 and sent a
supplemental request in August 2020.
    Following the usual procedures for extradition, a federal
prosecutor filed a criminal complaint against Toledo.
Toledo was arrested and placed in custody and detained for
about eight months before being released on bail. A United
States magistrate judge then certified his extradition to the
State Department. Once a court certifies extradition, the
Secretary of State “ultimately decides whether to surrender
the individual to the requesting state.” Santos v. Thomas,
830 F.3d 987, 993 (9th Cir. 2016) (en banc).
    Toledo petitioned in the United States District Court for
the Northern District of California for a writ of habeas
corpus, “the only available avenue to challenge an
6         ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC

extradition order.” Vo v. Benov, 447 F.3d 1235, 1240 (9th
Cir. 2006). The district court denied the petition. Toledo
timely appealed. Two weeks before the oral argument in this
appeal, the State Department completed its review of Peru’s
request and decided to approve extradition.               The
Government intends to proceed with the extradition as soon
as legally possible. Accordingly, it has asked the extradition
court to revoke Toledo’s bail and remand him into the United
States’ custody.
    Given the possibility of extradition before a resolution of
his appeal, Toledo sought a stay before the district court.
The district court denied the motion but entered a temporary
stay for Toledo to seek a stay pending appeal from our court.
He then moved for such a stay before us. Although the
briefing on the motion to revoke bail and remand Toledo into
custody is complete, the extradition court indicated it will
not act until we rule on Toledo’s stay motion.
                              II
    Four factors guide our consideration: “(1) whether the
stay applicant has made a strong showing that he is likely to
succeed on the merits; (2) whether the applicant will be
irreparably injured absent a stay; (3) whether issuance of the
stay will substantially injure the other parties interested in
the proceeding; and (4) where the public interest lies.” Nken
v. Holder, 556 U.S. 418, 434 (2009) (quoting Hilton v.
Braunskill, 481 U.S. 770, 776 (1987)).
    A stay is “an exercise of judicial discretion,” which
should be issued “dependent upon the circumstances of the
particular case.” Id. at 433 (quoting Virginian Ry. Co. v.
United States, 272 U.S. 658, 672–73 (1926)). In assessing
these factors, we “balance the relative equities.” Leiva-
Perez v. Holder, 640 F.3d 962, 965 (9th Cir. 2011) (per
           ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC                     7

curiam). Toledo, as the movant, “bears the burden of
showing that the circumstances justify an exercise of that
discretion.” Nken, 556 U.S. at 433–34. “A stay is not a
matter of right, even if irreparable injury might otherwise
result.” Id. at 433 (quoting Virginian Ry., 272 U.S. at 672).
                                  A
    Irreparable injury is obvious: Once extradited, Toledo’s
appeal will be moot. Artukovic v. Rison, 784 F.2d 1354,
1356 (9th Cir. 1986); see also Subias v. Meese, 835 F.2d
1288, 1289 (9th Cir. 1987) (habeas jurisdiction does not
extend to foreign custodians). Additionally, Toledo has
presented evidence that extradition to Peru could put his life
at risk. Toledo has explained that he could be detained in
Peru up to three years pending formal charges and that the
conditions in Peruvian prisons are dire. Given his advanced
age and preexisting health conditions, Toledo risks
contracting a fatal illness or experiencing other serious
health declines.
                                  B
    Importantly, however, Toledo has not shown a
likelihood of success on the merits. 1 We have sometimes
described the relationship between this factor and irreparable
injury as “a sliding scale in which the required degree of
irreparable harm increases as the probability of success
decreases.” Humane Soc’y of U.S. v. Gutierrez, 523 F.3d
990, 991 (9th Cir. 2008). Even with a high degree of
irreparable injury, the movant must show “serious legal

1
  Because this order arises in the context of a stay motion, we focus on
likelihood of success, rather than actual success. But our analysis is
informed by the significant time that we had devoted to the merits when
Toledo filed this stay motion one week before argument.
8         ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC

questions” going to the merits. Lopez v. Heckler, 713 F.2d
1432, 1435–36 (9th Cir. 1983). These are questions that
“cannot be resolved one way or the other at the hearing on
the injunction” because they require “more deliberative
investigation.” Republic of the Philippines v. Marcos, 862
F.2d 1355, 1362 (9th Cir. 1988) (en banc) (citation omitted).
A serious question is more than “a merely plausible claim,”
and a court cannot “forgo legal analysis just because it has
not identified precedent that places the question beyond
debate.” Where Do We Go Berkeley v. Cal. Dep’t of Transp.,
32 F.4th 852, 863 (9th Cir. 2022).
    On a habeas petition challenging extradition, we review
only “whether the magistrate [judge] had jurisdiction,
whether the offense charged is within the treaty and . . .
whether there was any evidence warranting the finding that
there was reasonable ground to believe the accused guilty.”
Fernandez v. Phillips, 268 U.S. 311, 312 (1925); accord
Santos, 830 F.3d at 1001. Toledo argues that he was not
“charged with” an extraditable offense because the
extradition treaty requires a formal charge; the “charging
document” Peru submitted was insufficient; and no probable
cause existed.
                              1
    Article I of the United States-Peru Extradition Treaty
provides for extradition of “persons whom the authorities in
the Requesting State have charged with, found guilty of, or
sentenced for, the commission of an extraditable offense.”
Extradition Treaty (Treaty), U.S.-Peru, art. I., July 26, 2001,
S. Treaty Doc. No. 107-6, 2001 WL 1875758, at *6.
   As background, a Peruvian criminal proceeding has three
phases: (1) preliminary or investigative, (2) intermediate or
examining, and (3) trial. First, during the investigative
          ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC                9

phase, a prosecutor examines the facts and presents
allegations to a judge of the Preliminary Investigation Court.
When the investigation ends, the prosecutor must decide
whether to dismiss the case or to issue an Acusación Fiscal
and then seek a formal charge. Once a formal charge is
sought, the prosecutor cannot further investigate. Second,
during the examining phase, a judge of the Preliminary
Investigation Court holds a preliminary hearing, during
which the accused may object and present exculpatory
evidence. At the end of this hearing, if the judge believes a
formal charge is warranted, the judge issues an Orden de
Enjuiciamiento. Finally, if an Orden de Enjuiciamiento
issues, the parties proceed to a trial presided over by the
Criminal Judge or the President of the Collegiate Court.
    Peru has issued an Acusación Fiscal accusing Toledo of
crimes. The parties dispute whether the accusations
contained in the Acusación Fiscal suffice to “charge[ ]”
Toledo “with” an extraditable offense under the Treaty. The
United States claims it does. Toledo argues that the Treaty
requires an Orden de Enjuiciamiento before extradition. We
are faced with interpreting the meaning of “charged with” in
the Treaty.
    “Charged with” is not obviously limited to formal
charges in an Orden de Enjuiciamiento. As such, it may
extend to the Acusación Fiscal. Indeed, the ordinary
meaning of the verb “charge” is to generally accuse someone
of a crime. See Charge (vb.), Black’s Law Dictionary (11th
ed. 2019) (listing as the first definition of the verb form: “[t]o
accuse (a person) of an offense”). Nothing in the language
of the Treaty unambiguously requires an Orden de
Enjuiciamiento, as opposed to an Acusación Fiscal, to
trigger extradition. And looking to the Treaty as a whole
10       ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC

suggests an Acusación Fiscal satisfies being “charged with”
a crime under the Treaty.
     Article VI, which lists the documents that must
accompany extradition requests, adds helpful context.
Subsections (2) through (4) list the documentation that must
accompany various types of extradition requests.
Subsection (2) lists required documents for “[a]ll requests.”
Treaty, art. VI(2), 2001 WL 1875758, at *8. Subsection (3)
lists additional documents when extraditing “a person who
is sought for prosecution.” Id., art. VI(3), 2001 WL
1875758, at *8. Subsection (4) lists documents for “[a]
request for extradition relating to a person who has been
found guilty of, or sentenced for” an extraditable offense.
Id., art. VI(4), 2001 WL 1875758, at *8. Interpreting
“charged with” to mean “sought for prosecution” aligns the
categories of requested documents in Article VI with the
categories of extraditable persons in Article I. Because
“sought for prosecution” seems to reach more broadly and
encompass charging steps prior to the Orden de
Enjuiciamiento, “charged with” is best read as not being
limited to charges at that stage.
    Caselaw interpreting similar treaties reached a similar
conclusion. We have held that “charged with” in the United
States-Germany extradition treaty did not require the filing
of a public charge despite the German Code of Criminal
Procedure defining “a person charged” as “an accused
against whom the public charge . . . has been preferred.”
Emami v. U.S. Dist. Ct. for the N. Dist. of Cal., 834 F.2d
1444, 1448 (9th Cir. 1987). There, we cited favorably (id. at
1448) In re Assarsson (Assarsson I), which held that
“charged with” in the United States-Sweden extradition
treaty was “used in the generic sense only to indicate
‘accused.’” 635 F.2d 1237, 1242 (7th Cir. 1980); see also In
         ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC           11

re Assarsson, 687 F.2d 1157, 1160 (8th Cir. 1982); Sacirbey
v. Guccione, 589 F.3d 52, 63–65 (2d Cir. 2009) (citing
favorably Assarsson I and Emami).
    Toledo notes that the United States-Peru Treaty—unlike
the treaties in these cases—requires “a copy of the charging
document” in addition to an arrest warrant. See Treaty, art.
VI(3), 2001 WL 1875758, at *8. But this distinction makes
no difference. What loomed large in Emami and Assarsson
I was the lack of “formal charges” as a requirement. See
Emami, 834 F.2d at 1448; Assarsson I, 635 F.2d at 1243.
Here too, the Treaty does not mention formal charges or the
Orden de Enjuiciamiento anywhere. And the requirement of
“a copy of the charging document”—which specifies no
particular document—does not define the level of formality
we should read into “charged with.” Nothing in the treaty
suggests that an Acusación Fiscal does not qualify as a
charging document.
    Even if “charged with” is ambiguous, the drafting history
suggests a broader meaning as well. The Technical Analysis
for this Treaty, see In re Premises Located at 840 140th Ave.
NE, 634 F.3d 557, 569 (9th Cir. 2011) (relying on Technical
Analysis to interpret treaty), explains:

       [T]he negotiating delegations intended that
       “charged” persons include those who are
       sought for prosecution for an extraditable
       offense based on an outstanding warrant of
       arrest, regardless of whether such warrant
       was issued pursuant to an indictment,
       complaint, information, affidavit, or other
       lawful means for initiating an arrest for
       prosecution under the laws in Peru or the
       United States.
12       ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC

S. Exec. Rep. No. 107-12, at 4 (2002),
https://www.congress.gov/107/crpt/erpt12/CRPT-
107erpt12.pdf. This is strong evidence that “charged with”
refers generally to any accusation.
    Even more, our rules of interpretation militate against
reading in a requirement of particular formal charges where
the treaty makes no such specification. Treaties are
“construed more liberally than private agreements,” E.
Airlines, Inc. v. Floyd, 499 U.S. 530, 535 (1991) (citation
omitted), and “should be construed to enlarge the rights of
the parties,” Cucuzzella v. Keliikoa, 638 F.2d 105, 107 n.3
(9th Cir. 1981). The Supreme Court, moreover, has
instructed that “the meaning attributed to treaty provisions
by the Government agencies charged with their negotiation
and enforcement is entitled to great weight.” Sumitomo
Shoji Am., Inc. v. Avagliano, 457 U.S. 176, 184–85 (1982).
These rules also favor construing “charged with” to cover
the charging documents Peru has provided, as such a
construction enlarges the rights of the signatories and
respects the interpretations given by our Executive Branch
and the Peruvian government.
    Given that the Treaty’s language, particularly when
considered along with these interpretive tools, suggest that
“charged with” does not require formal charges, Toledo has
not shown a likelihood of success on this argument.
                             2
    Next, Toledo argues that Peru did not submit a “copy of
the charging document” because only an Orden de
Enjuiciamiento qualifies. See Treaty, art. VI(3), 2001 WL
1875758, at *8. But the Acusación Fiscal filed in this matter
is a charging document for the reasons discussed above.
This document of over a thousand pages identifies the crimes
         ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC           13

that Toledo is accused of and summarizes the supporting
evidence. It serves the important purpose in the Peruvian
system of signaling the end of discovery and moving the case
from the prosecutor’s office to a judge of the Preliminary
Investigation Court. See S. Exc. Rep. No. 107-12, at 4
(Technical Analysis explaining that “an indictment,
complaint, information, affidavit, or other lawful means for
initiating an arrest for prosecution” render a person
“charged” under the treaty). Toledo fails to persuade that
more is required.
                             3
    Finally, Toledo has not shown a likelihood of success in
challenging the existence of probable cause. When
reviewing a probable-cause finding in an extradition context,
we ask “whether there was any evidence warranting the
finding that there was reasonable ground to believe the
accused guilty.” Fernandez, 268 U.S. at 312. “A
‘reasonable ground’ exists where the record contains
‘competent evidence to support the conclusion that there was
probable cause to believe the petitioner guilty.’” Mainero v.
Gregg, 164 F.3d 1199, 1205 (9th Cir. 1999) (quoting
Zanazanian v. United States, 729 F.2d 624, 626 (9th Cir.
1984)), superseded by statute on other grounds, Pub. L. No.
105-277, § 2242 (1998). “Competent evidence to establish
reasonable grounds is not necessarily evidence competent to
convict.” Fernandez, 268 U.S. at 312.
    The extradition court found that the testimonies of Jorge
Henrique Simoes Barata and Josef Maiman provided
probable cause for the money laundering and collusion
charges. “Self-incriminating statements of accomplices are
sufficient to establish probable cause in an extradition
hearing.” Zanazanian, 729 F.2d at 627. Both Barata and
14        ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC

Maiman allegedly participated in the schemes, and the
extradition court carefully summarized their testimonies
about Toledo’s alleged involvement in setting up a scheme
where a construction company would pay Toledo millions in
bribes through various intermediary accounts. Toledo,
moreover, admitted that $21 million in bribe money was
transferred into accounts under his former chief-of-
security’s control, $17.5 million ended up in his mother-in-
law’s company, and $500,000 was deposited in a bank
account in his name or used to purchase real estate titled to
him. As to any inconsistencies that Toledo pointed out, we
have rejected the argument that “inconsistencies preclude a
finding of probable cause” because “weighing the evidence
is not a function we perform when we review the
magistrate’s probable cause determination.” Sainez v.
Venables, 588 F.3d 713, 718 (9th Cir. 2009).
     Toledo also argues that the extradition court erred when
it excluded certain pieces of evidence that he sought to
introduce during the probable cause hearing. But this
evidence “merely controverts the existence of probable
cause, or raises a defense” to the crimes alleged. Santos, 830
F.3d at 992 (quoting Mainero, 164 F.3d at 1207 n.7). Such
“contradictory” evidence is properly excluded when
evaluating probable cause in extradition proceedings. See
id. at 992–93.
   In sum, Toledo has not shown a likelihood of success on
any of his three arguments.
                              C
    The remaining factors—whether the issuance of a stay
would substantially injure the other parties and the public
interest—“merge when the Government is the opposing
party.” Nken, 556 U.S. at 435. We said before that “the
          ALEJANDRO TOLEDO MANRIQUE V. MARK KOLC           15

public interest will be served by the United States complying
with a valid extradition application” because “proper
compliance promotes relations between the two countries,
and enhances efforts to establish an international rule of law
and order.” Artukovic, 784 F.2d at 1356. So too here.
                             III
    Toledo has shown irreparable harm but no likelihood of
success on the merits or that the public interest favors the
stay. As such, we decline to issue a stay.
   The motion for a stay is DENIED.