Nicolás Maduro’s first U.S. court hearing began a legal process that prosecutors and a judge said could keep him in custody for years, according to proceedings described by The Associated Press on Monday, Jan. 6.
Maduro, the deposed Venezuela leader, and his wife, Cilia Flores, were arraigned in New York on drug trafficking charges days after U.S. forces seized them from their Caracas home in what the report described as a middle-of-the-night raid. Both pleaded not guilty.
The case is overseen by federal Judge Alvin Hellerstein. The report said Maduro used the hearing to proclaim he is still Venezuela’s president, and he called the U.S. operation a kidnapping, while also declaring himself a prisoner of war. The Trump administration has defended the raid as a “surgical law enforcement operation” to apprehend Maduro in a criminal case U.S. prosecutors first brought six years ago.
Because Maduro and Flores are held in New York City, they remain about 2,100 miles (3,400 kilometers) away from Caracas, where Venezuela is managing the fallout, the AP report said. Their next scheduled court appearance is March 17.
A key question in the coming weeks will be bail. The report said neither defendant asked for bail on Monday, but their lawyers suggested they might seek it later. Judge Hellerstein told the lawyers he would welcome bail requests “whenever, and as often you think it appropriate,” while noting that does not necessarily mean he would grant release.
Prosecutors could argue that releasing the defendants would create a flight risk, the report said, particularly because the charges carry the possibility of life sentences. Maduro is accused of narco-terrorism conspiracy, while both he and Flores are accused of a conspiracy to import cocaine into the U.S. and of possessing machine guns.
The AP report said judges rarely grant bail in such cases. It cited past examples in which bail was not granted after U.S. drug trafficking accusations against Manuel Noriega in 1989 and notes that defense lawyers in other high-profile drug cases also did not seek bail.
The hearing also focused on medical care in custody. Flores’ lawyer, Mark Donnelly, told the judge she sustained “significant injuries” during her capture and needs “an X-ray and medical evaluation” because she may have a fracture or severe bruising on her ribs. Flores appeared in court with bandages on her forehead and over her temple and eyelid.
Maduro’s lawyer, Barry Pollack, told Hellerstein that Maduro has “health and medical issues that will require attention” while detained, without specifying the issues. Hellerstein told both sides to work with prosecutors to ensure Flores and Maduro receive the proper care, the report said.
The report described the Metropolitan Detention Center as having a medical unit with examination rooms and a dental suite, and it also said the jail has been accused of botching treatment, including missed cancer diagnoses. The judge’s instruction centered on coordinating with prosecutors for medical attention while the case proceeds.
The AP report also said the defendants raised the prospect of a consular visit. It described that non-citizens charged with crimes in the U.S. are legally entitled to such a visit, and said Maduro, speaking in Spanish through an interpreter, told the judge he and Flores would like that access. The report said it was unclear what the visit would involve and how it would work after Maduro ordered the closure of Venezuela’s embassy and consulates in the U.S. in early 2019.
The AP report added that the visit could matter in part because Maduro and Flores have been under U.S. sanctions for years, making it illegal for Americans to take money from them without a Treasury license, and that legal bills may depend on making arrangements consistent with those restrictions. Hellerstein also instructed prosecutors to work with the defendants’ lawyers to assure they “can represent their clients zealously and fully,” the report said.
As the legal process continues, the defense is also building its legal strategy. The report said that on Tuesday Maduro expanded his legal team by adding Bruce Fein, described as a constitutional and international law specialist who served as assistant deputy U.S. attorney general under President Ronald Reagan.
Pollack told the judge that the defense would bring “substantial” challenges to the validity of Maduro’s indictment and said there were complicated legal issues. In court, Pollack asserted that “Mr. Maduro is the head of a sovereign state and is entitled to the privileges and immunities that go with that office,” and he also referenced “issues about the legality of his military abduction.”
The report said the sovereign-immunity argument is similar to one made by Manuel Noriega’s lawyers after the U.S. military captured Noriega in 1989, though the report said Noriega’s argument ultimately failed. It also said Maduro claims to have won three popular elections, while the U.S. has not recognized him as Venezuela’s legitimate leader for years.
The AP report concluded by saying it is possible the legal battle over the legality of the U.S. prosecution will stretch on and eventually reach appeals courts.