The United States adjusted sanctions to allow Venezuela to pay former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s legal fees during his drug trafficking case in New York.
The U.S. caved to the demand after Maduro’s defense lawyer, Barry Pollack, argued his client’s rights were being violated, so the case should be dismissed. U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, an appointee of then-President Bill Clinton, said at a March 26 hearing that he didn’t intend to dismiss the case, but was critical of the government for blocking Caracas from paying the legal fees, Reuters reported.
Prosecutor Kyle Wirshba previously insisted that the sanctions blocking the legal payments were based on national security concerns and that the court had no say over the matter, as foreign policy is the realm of the executive branch rather than the judiciary. Hellerstein wasn’t convinced.
“The defendant is here, Flores is here. They present no further national security threat,” he said, referring to Maduro and his wife. “The right that’s implicated, paramount over other rights, is the right to constitutional counsel.”
Hellerstein also pointed out the improvement in relations between the U.S. and Venezuela since Maduro’s capture. The U.S. recently lifted sanctions on Interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez and successfully pressured the International Monetary Fund to resume dealings with the country.
IMF RESUMES RELATIONS WITH VENEZUELAN AUTHORITIES FOR FIRST TIME SINCE 2019
With Maduro now able to pay his lawyers, the case will proceed as planned. The former dictator and his wife are being charged with narco-terrorism and drug and weapons charges.
The couple was captured from the heart of Caracas by Delta Force commandos in an early morning raid on Jan. 3.