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Lawyers for ousted Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro have asked a U.S. federal judge to dismiss his criminal case, arguing that head-of-state immunity protects him from the indictment.
The motion was filed Wednesday in Manhattan federal court by Maduro’s lawyer Barry Pollack, who argued that international law protects foreign heads of state from criminal prosecution in U.S. courts.
“No American court has ever presided over the criminal trial of a foreign leader” recognized by his own country as its sitting head of state when charges were brought, Pollack said in court papers.
The defense argued that the conduct underlying the indictment involved Maduro’s official duties as Venezuela’s president.
It also maintained that Maduro remained the de facto head of state when the charges were filed, despite Washington’s decision not to recognize him as president in 2019.
U.S. authorities indicted Maduro in 2020 on drug trafficking and narco-terrorism charges, accusing him and other Venezuelan officials of conspiring to traffic cocaine into the U.S. and using state institutions to facilitate drug trafficking.
Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, were captured by U.S. forces in Caracas in January and taken to New York.
Both are being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn and have pleaded not guilty to charges including drug trafficking, money laundering and corruption.
The immunity argument faces legal hurdles, as U.S. courts have previously rejected similar claims by foreign leaders, including former Panamanian ruler Manuel Noriega, who was prosecuted after being captured by U.S. forces in 1989.
U.S. prosecutors are expected to respond to Maduro’s motion by Oct. 2, while Judge Alvin Hellerstein has scheduled oral arguments for Nov. 17.
Maduro’s lawyers have also said they plan to challenge the legality of his capture and transfer to the U.S.
Wednesday’s motion does not address that issue, which the defense could raise later as the case moves forward.
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