Introduction
In the last century international extradition has become a significant part of our criminal justice system here in the United States. With the increasing ease of transportation around the world, felons are able to flee the country and hide from the law overseas. Because of that our government has to find a way to get them back so they can be accounted for their actions. That is where extradition comes into play. Extradition treaties have been placed between countries so that if a felon flees to said country, if requested they will hand over the felon. With these treaties the U.S. government is able to retrieve these criminals much easier. While it is easier, requesting extradition is still a long and hard process, and not all countries have a treaty with the United States. Laws and methods have been made to try to help speed up this process, but then other issues come into light. The morality of international extradition is questioned when the government is able to repeatedly make requests where the felon is not able to appeal those requests. So while extradition helps out and speeds up the process of convicting fleeing felons, the methods that are used are not always seen at moral.
Every time it was mentioned to someone that this paper was going to be writing on international extradition the response was always the same; “What the heck is that?”. The general public does not know what extradition is, even though its always happening in the news. The public knows the fugitives that are being extradited, they read about what is going on in the news but they are unaware of the process.
Extraditing a Fugitive
International extradition is a vital part of the criminal justice system. As Johnston (2011) states...
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There are both provincial and universal benefits to gaining an international perspective on the various legal systems. First, by recognizing that our American legal system is not the only way possible, we become more aware and more critical of that system. When learning of the different processes in socialist and civil legal systems, it puts our own legal system into a new perspective. Not only do we gain this new insight, but an international perspective can foster ideas to improve our system. There is always the possibility that a criminal justice approach used in one country could be successfully implemented in another. On a universal level, an international perspective is vital. Crimes are no longer confined to individual territories. Transnational crimes are a rising concern. By understanding the various legal processes of other nations, we are better equipped to handle such situations (Reichel,
In addition, there is no way to enforce the treaty in states, even if they have ratified it. Which makes it hard to make any progress on reducing the use of torture, fortunately, there may be some headway in the future in the form of the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture. The Optional protocol would allow monitored visits to states to ensure that no cases of torture were occurring. The purpose of this paper is to research the Convention Against Torture and how why states decide to accept the convention. We will also look at the enforceability of the Convention Against Torture and what the future for it may possibly
The definition of Extradition is the act of one jurisdiction of handing over or delivering an individual who has been accused of committing crimes in another jurisdiction. Usually, two jurisdictions have to have an extradition treaty or deal for them to honour the extradition of an individual. However, there are many grounds of refusal and challenges that extradition is subject to. The grounds of refusal are based on nationality, political offenders, the Principle of Non Bid In Idem, and the death penalty.
Wanting to understand and be involved with putting the right criminal behind bars has always been a passion. Getting a better understanding of the criminal justice system explained how innocent can be convicted. During, this learning process it has been obvious that there are new and lethal forms of criminality, which can range from international terrorism to transnational syndicates.
However, all hope is not lost and there have been advances towards the prosecution of human trafficking cases. In 2000, the United States passed the “Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000” (hereinafter referred to as TVPA) which was drafted with the purpose of offering protection to people who are in the country illegally and may be victims of human trafficking. In order to be granted relief under “TVPA”, victims must prove that they were trafficked and submit to prosecution of hi...
Yet, little attention and virtually no systematic research has been devoted to understanding the causes, structure, extent, and effects of serious cross-border misconduct (Passas, 1998). The risks it poses may be grossly exaggerated (Naylor, 1995; Lee, 1999). The draconian measures being contemplated and implemented in different countries, therefore, are essentially an exercise in shooting in the dark. Chances are good that the target will be missed and substantial "collateral damage" may be caused by ill-conceived policies in this "war" on crime. This risk is particularly high in countries in transition toward a market democracy. It would be much wiser, thus, to carefully study the problem before taking ineffective and possibly damaging actions.
The statement "It is better that 10 guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer" summarises and highlights the mistakes and injustices in the criminal justice system. In a just society, the innocent would never be charged, nor convicted, and the guilty would always be caught and punished. Unfortunately, it seems this would be impossible to achieve due to the society in which we live. Therefore, miscarriages of justice occur in the criminal justice system more frequently than is publicised or known to the public at large. They are routine and would have to be considered as a serious problem in our society. The law is what most people respect and abide by, if society cannot trust the law that governs them, then there will be serious consequences including the possible breakdown of that society. In order to have a fair and just society, miscarriages of justice must not only become exceptional but ideally cease to occur altogether.
The criminal justice system in the United States is an important structure that can primarily be divided into three central divisions Law Enforcement, Courts, and Corrections each one operates separate from the others and yet coincide with the others as well. The criminal justice system is a global phenomenon, not solely bound within the borders of the United States, not a one shoe fits all; each country has created a form of criminal justice system suited to that country’s needs while allowing for cultural, economic, and historical aspects to influence the system’s development and operations. The law enforcement facet of the criminal justice system in any country very significant due to the fact the law enforcement area is responsible for the flow of people into the criminal justice system. Countries around the world have individual and unique approaches on the law enforcement aspect of the criminal justice system and when comparing any country, take Israel for example, to the United States attention to the structure, goals, requirements and personnel, equipment and statistics are necessary.
“Since September 11, the Bush Administration has refused to release the names and whereabouts of hundreds of persons detained as "special interest" immigration detainees, various persons detained as material witnesses, and thousands of persons detained without trial as alleged security threats here, at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and elsewhere”(Paust 1352). Because of the staggering amount of suspected terrorists detained without trial since 9/11, some people have started to question President Bush’s right to detain these people indefinitely. These questions have led to open debate on what rights these people get, and if these people deserve the right to a trial. The controversy over how the United States should treat terrorists that have been captured
According to the United Nations Department of Public Information (2002), at a very simple level transnational criminal groups traffic in human beings, parti...
Souryal, Sam S. (2007). Ethics in Criminal Justice. In Search of the Truth. Matthew Bender & Company, Inc., a member of the LexisNexis Group Newark, NJ
To begin with, the relevant principle of jurisdiction should be examined in order to assess the validity of the extradition request. According to Glahn and Taulbee (2013), “principle of jurisdiction refers to the allocation of legal competence to regulate certain categories of persons, events, and things within a state and among various levels and institutions of government.” (p. 233). The definition implies that there should be an effective link connecting the state claiming jurisdiction and the event that took place. Currently, there are five principles of jurisdiction recognized by the international practice: territory, nationality or active personality, protective personality, passive personality, and universality (Glahn and Taulbee, p. 235). ...
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