"By blocking funds, the US administration was interfering with Mr. Maduro's ability to retain counsel and, therefore, his right under the Sixth Amendment to counsel of his choice, Maduro's defence lawyer Barry Pollack said in a filing to a Manhattan federal judge. Interference in Maduro's right to counsel under the Sixth Amendment to the US Constitution requires dismissal of the charges."
"In his filing to the court, Pollack said that the US Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, which administers sanctions against Venezuela, had granted permission on January 9 for Maduro's legal fees to be paid by the Venezuelan government. Less than three hours later, though, the Trump administration revoked the authorisation without explanation."
"Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, have been jailed in New York without bail since they were seized from their Venezuelan home on January 3 in a bloody nighttime raid by US military forces. US prosecutors allege that Maduro abused his power in office to help drug traffickers and that his wife was a co-conspirator in those crimes."
Nicolas Maduro, detained in New York on drug trafficking charges, claims the US government violated his constitutional right to legal counsel by blocking Venezuelan government funds designated for his defense fees and those of his wife, Cilia Flores. Maduro's attorney Barry Pollack filed a motion arguing this interference requires dismissal of charges. The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control initially granted permission on January 9 for Venezuelan authorities to pay Maduro's legal fees, but the Trump administration revoked this authorization within three hours without explanation. Notably, the license permitting payment for Flores's legal representation remained intact. Both Maduro and Flores, seized from Venezuela on January 3, maintain their innocence against allegations of abusing power to assist drug traffickers.
#sixth-amendment-rights #legal-defense-funding #us-venezuela-relations #drug-trafficking-charges #constitutional-law
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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