Maduro has possible legal challenges – likely long shots – we will see at some point.
1) Head of State and Official Acts Immunity – provides that the current head of a foreign state may not be tried either criminally or civilly in a US court. The question = Maduro a “current head of a foreign state”.
2) Official Acts Immunity – Maduro may claim the accused illegal acts were official conduct and those cannot be prosecuted. Will the Courts accept the executive branch’s assertion that the activities are not “official” acts. The Supreme Court has yet to resolve this and have characterized it as “thorny” question.
3) Venue – Current law states that defendants from other countries must be tried “in the district in which the offender ... is arrested or first brought”. Before arriving in New York State, there was a stop in Guantanamo Bay. Maduro could argue he was not “first brought” to SDNY, therefore the case is null.
https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/inside-the-legal-battles-ahead-for-nicolas-maduro
#Maduro #Courts #Defences #Indictment #DoJ #USgov #Law #SDNY