NEW YORK — The judge overseeing the criminal prosecution of Nicolás Maduro on Thursday suggested the government of Venezuela should be allowed to pay the deposed leader’s legal fees despite U.S. sanctions.
At a hearing in Manhattan federal court, U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein suggested he will compel prosecutors to revisit the issue with the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, which has denied a license to Venezuela that would allow the country to circumvent sanctions to pay for the legal defense of Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores.
Maduro and Flores are charged with drug trafficking, among other offenses. They have pleaded not guilty.
On Thursday, during their first appearance in federal court since their arraignment in January, they appeared in tan prison garb. Flores wore her blonde hair in a ponytail. Maduro, his ankles shackled, smiled and shook hands with his lawyers when he entered. He took notes throughout the proceeding.
Hellerstein didn’t rule on the legal fees, but he floated that if the Treasury Department continued to deny the license, the only remedy would be for him to dismiss the case. But he acknowledged he won’t take that step. “I’m not going to dismiss the case,” he said flatly, drawing laughter from the courtroom.
“The question is whether a specific license ought to be available here because the right to defend is paramount,” Hellerstein said. When prosecutor Kyle Wirshba said the government interest in denying the license was tied to national security and foreign policy concerns, Hellerstein replied: “I see no abiding interest in national security in the right to defend oneself.”
Maduro and Flores have said in court filings that they can’t afford to pay for their own defense, and while prosecutors argued they could enlist federal defenders or court-appointed lawyers, Hellerstein said the case is so unique and complex that it would overwhelm their resources.
“A case like Maduro and its investigative requirements would sap the ability” of such lawyers to do any other work, Hellerstein, a Clinton appointee, said.
Though the debate over the license issue consumed the majority of Thursday’s hearing, Flores’ lawyer also raised concern over a health condition she is facing while in federal detention: a heart condition known as mitral valve prolapse. Her lawyer, Mark Donnelly, said she “urgently” requires an echocardiogram.
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