US Extradition

When an individual is faced with the possibility extradition to the United States of America, it may be wise to work with both a lawyer abroad who can, if need be, liaise with attorneys in America. United States law is applicable in extradition matters. Therefore an American attorney who is experienced in dealing with the American system of jurisprudence and criminal procedure can be a major contributing factor in a successful case.

Extradition is the process whereby a person who is believed to have committed a crime in one country is surrendered to the authorities of another country. Extradition was originally created so that individuals could not use certain locations as a means of evading legal repercussions for actions performed in another jurisdiction. Those who are looking at the prospect of extradition proceedings would be wise to contact an attorney experienced in ,matters involving both US and international law.

In order for an individual to be placed into extradition proceedings, usually there must be some sort of an international agreement, usually a treaty, that has provisions pertaining to the extradition of persons between the two countries. Over one hundred (100) countries maintain extradition treaties with the United States of America. In many cases, these treaties spell out specific offenses which can make a person subject to extradition. For the most part, the extradition treaties that the United States has been made a party to provide that the underlying offense must be a criminal act in both the USA and the country from which extradition is requested.

In the United States of America, extradition requests are handled by the Department of Justice and the Department of State. A state or federal prosecutor trying to have a person extradited from abroad must make a request to the Justice Department’s International Affairs Office. This Office sends the request to the Office of the Legal Advisor of the Department of State. The Office of the Legal Advisor then sends the request to the American diplomats in the relevant country. These American diplomats, in turn, remit the request to the foreign government. Should the foreign government decide that they will honor the request for extradition then it will be encumbent on the foreign authorities to take the suspect into custody and hand him or her over the American officials

Reasons for Refusing Extradition Requests:

• Some countries refuse to extradite members of their own citizenry
• In death penalty cases, extradition is commonly refused by foreign nations
• Many countries refuse to extradite persons whom they believe to be persecuted for political reasons
• Some countries refuse to extradite individuals who are accused of crimes relating to the military
• There are a large number of treaties which allow for the refusal of extradition if the suspect has already been tried for the crime at issue.
• In a limited number of cases, extradition is refused based upon foreign policy

Also, many extradition treaties contain provisions and language pertaining to the "rule of specialty." The rule stipulates that an individual who has been subjected to extradition may only be prosecuted for the offense specifically noted in the extradition request. The rule was designed to protect people from being extradited pretextually. The foreign country can waive the application of this rule.

Extradition is a serious issue. Those who are overseas, but have pending criminal warrants in the USa may one day become the subject of extradition proceedings and those who are in extradition proceeding should seek legal advice as soon as possible. Extradition is a complex and often misunderstood area of the law. A competent attorney can advise clients of their rights and options with regard to US Extradition.