A Colombian kick in the teeth to U.S. Department of Justice

[rabs]

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The Supreme Court this afternoon refused to extradite "don Mario" to the United States. Don Mario is a captured paramilitary commander accused of executions of campesinos and activists in Colombia. He is wanted in the United States on drug-trafficking charges.

The court said don Mario first had to answer to his victims in Colombia before answering to Washington.


TeleSUR _ Hace: 03 horas
La Sala Penal de la Corte Suprema de Colombia negó este miércoles la extradición de Daniel Rendón Herrera, alias "Don Mario", requerido por una corte de Estados Inidos por el delito de narcotráfico.

Según la Corte, este hombre, señalado de ser el comandante de varias bandas criminales, le debe responder primero a las víctimas en Colombia antes que a Washington. El máximo tribunal notificará su decisión en las próximas horas al Gobierno Nacional.

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Guess the judges are still pissed at alvarito uribe's DAS for wiretapping them, following them, threatening them, investigating their private lives and looking into their private finances.

[protocol rv]

1. Kick in the teeth?

Somewhat melodramatic a statement. Just a legal decision.

[rabs]

2. Another kick in the teeth to Hillary, this time from alvarito uribito

alvarito today said last week's Department of State report that was critical of Colombia's continuing human rights violation was a result of "petty political maneuvering" on the part of the United States and "... in the end serves policies that would seek collusion with terrorism."


:rofl: alvarito is losing it --- "collusion with terrorism."

[EFerrari]

13. LOL! He is losing it, everywhere and fast.

[Bacchus39]

3. Colombia sometimes extradites to the US sometimes not

and if he committed crimes in Colombia he should be subject to their justice system. Colombia authorized the extradition of this guy in October

http://www.colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/6380-court-authorizes-extradition-murcia.html

I actually think people should be tried in their own countries anyway. the US can be a fall back but countries shouldn't outsource their justice system but work to improve their own justice systems. No ilusions though, it is probably judicially and politically expedient for Colombia to extradite certain individuals.

[rabs]

4. We have discussed the extraditions here in the past

Uribito made a deal with the U.S. Dept. of Justice to have paras extradited so that they would not face trial in Colombia, where they would implicate uribistas if take to trial.

In the case of Murcia, he was whisked to the U.S. because uribito's sons, Tom and Jerry, were implicated in the DMG ponzi scheme.

Now the court in effect has reversed that in don Mario's case. The Colombian judges are getting uppity, now that uribito is a pato cojo.

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Off topic update: Careful if you go into the Semana website. It looks to be infected with a virus. My anti-virus software has blocked several "high risks" from Semana's site.

[Bacchus39]

5. did you ever find that article posted on Semana??

let me know.

once they are extradited to the US though, there is no harm implicating Uribe in whatever you think that means. I imagine they are more protected in the US than in Colombia. So in the US they can say whatever bs they want. Its not like they are trustworthy witnesses. they are scum.

and the OP, that YOU posted, is an example where they are NOT extraditing a paramilitary. again, sometimes they do sometimes not, there it is.

[rabs]

7. Semana article

Semana has a section called "Confidenciales" that is similar to the "Periscope" section of Newsweek (don't know if Periscope still exists, have not read in Newsweek in years). "Confidenciales" publishes interesting behind-the-scenes political and other juicy items. The item you ask about appeared in that section and it's entire content (in Spanish) is in my OP. (I don't want to go into Semana because of the virus.)

About the extraditions, the whole point is to get them out of Colombia so that they cannot testify before Colombian courts about massacres, narco-trafficking, connections to the uribista Congress members and collaborating military officers.

[Bacchus39]

8. yet your OP is about a para NOT being extradited

so I don't follow your reasoning. do you think paras and other such criminals are going to be honest in either a Colombian or US prison system? do you believe paras are essentially very honest evil people?

ashame about the semana site, let us know when you can provide a link.

[rabs]

9. Let me put it very simply

The Colombian Supreme court today DENIED the extradition of big-league para don Mario to the U.S.

That means that don Mario will face serious charges and trial (if he is not killed first) in COLOMBIA.

That means don Mario is liable to sing like a canary to save his butt.

That means that he could implicate many uribistas, milicos, dirty politicans and dirty police.

That is why a lot of people in Colombia are probably uneasy tonight, knowing what don Marios knows.

(Hope you understand now, will not be posting more about this.)

[Judi Lynn]

10. Since Uribe appointed the last prosecutor it seems they've had a lot more ACTUAL prosecutions

of these political dangerous wealthy fools and monsters than they used to have. I'll bet Uribe's fit to be tied about that!

Clearly they want them OUT of the country, being tried on far less serious charges than having to face the mass murdering chardges.

I read that his group killed around 3,000 in the laste 18 months before he was arrested.

I surely take what you've said seriously. He is POISON for certain government and military officials. They most certainly don't want him around.

[Bacchus39]

6. another very recent case

http://www.colombiareports.com/colombia-news/news/8311-supreme-court-considers-rejection-of-more-ex-para-extradition-requests.html


what was the deal with the US Justice Department again?

[protocol rv]

11. This seems to be noise about nothing

Characterizing it as a "kick in the teeth" is an exageration.

[Judi Lynn]

12. Re: don Mario: "Colombia rejects U.S. extradition request"

Colombia rejects U.S. extradition request
Daniel Rendon Herrera, an ex-paramilitary leader and suspected drug trafficker, has been indicted by the U.S. The Colombian high court bars his extradition, citing his cooperation in domestic cases.

By Chris Kraul
March 19, 2010
Reporting from Bogota, Colombia

Colombia's Supreme Court has blocked the extradition to the United States of a notorious former paramilitary leader and alleged drug trafficker arrested last year, citing the importance of his testimony in bringing justice to victims of decades of violence in the South American country.

Daniel Rendon Herrera, known as Don Mario, has been indicted in the Southern District of New York federal court on charges of smuggling 100 tons of cocaine. But Rendon, 44, is cooperating with authorities in Colombia investigating mass killings and forced displacements of thousands of poor farmers, a factor cited by the court Wednesday in barring extradition.

Until recently, the court had raised little objection to hundreds of extraditions of drug and terrorism suspects authorized by President Alvaro Uribe since he took office in 2002.

But combined with its refusal in February to authorize the extradition of ex-paramilitary capo Edwar Cobos Tellez, the court's ruling is a reversal of policy, said Colombian human rights advocate Ivan Cepeda.

Though the extraditions, a cornerstone of Uribe's war on terrorism and drugs, have helped bring convictions in U.S. courts, they weakened many investigations of thousands of slayings in Colombia. In many cases, they also deprived victims' families of information on the whereabouts of the bodies of loved ones, Cepeda and others say.

Captured last April after a nine-month manhunt, Rendon was a feared paramilitary leader who declined to participate in Uribe's 2003 demobilization offer to militia leaders and 31,000 fighters. Instead, he continued to traffic in cocaine, forming his own band called the Urabenos, officials said.

In the months before his capture, scores of paid assassins under Rendon's control killed an estimated 3,000 people in a bloody struggle for power focused on the drug trafficking routes in Colombia's northwest, the National Police commander, Gen. Oscar Naranjo, told reporters.

More:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/la-fg-colombia-extradite19-2010mar19,0,6295097.story