What is the deal with extradition hearings? I have never heard of anyone at anytime winning one.
The guy wanted in Kobbe Bryant killing is held in Maryland but wanted in Texas. Is there any way in Heck he will not be turned over to the Lone Star State?
I presume the entire idea is an artifact from an earlier time.
Or not.
Article IV, section 2 of the Constitution reads:
"A person charged in any state with treason, felony, or other crime, who shall flee from justice, and be found in another state, shall on demand of the executive authority of the state from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the state having jurisdiction of the crime. "
I think that’s pretty darn clear.
Well that explains everything. (to someone smarter than me it does anyway.)
Huh?
Well, it simply means that the executive (governor) of a state that has charged a person with a crime can demand extradition from the state in which he is captured. It doesn’t answer your question about the purpose of the actual extradition hearings, which I would WAG are a formality for the extraditing state to say “We have X. State Y has charged him with Z. We’re giving him to state Y unless you have a ridiculously good reason why not.”
Also, if there are many states and/or the Feds after him, they may need to have the hearing to decide who gets him.
As I understand it, it isn’t always a foregone conclusion to extradite. There are exceptional cases in which the governor will refuse to give up a prisoner. The only case I’m familiar with is that of Robert Burns, of “I am a fugitive from a Georgia Chain Gang” fame. Burns had been promised a pardon if he returned to Georgia and paid for his own manhunt. He returned, and the minute his check cleared, he was thrown back on the chain gang, plus extra time for his escape. Following a second escape, he returned to New Jersey and was eventually recaptured. But during a hearing before the governor, testimony was presented about the previous deal Georgia had refused to honor. The governor of NJ refused to extradite him to Georgia, which made the Georgian officials extremely upset, especially since by this time a movie had been made based on his life showing the deplorable living conditions of prisoners there. After a new governor was elected in NJ, Georgia reapplied for extradition but failed again. You can read about the story here:
http://www.trouparchives.org/burns.html
So it does happen, but I would guess it’s pretty unusual.