Beyond The Horizon

The El Chapo Files: The DOJ Memorandum Of Law In Support Of Pre Trial Detention (Part 2) (7/14/24)

The United States government's memorandum supporting the pre-trial detention of Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán focused on several key points highlighting the necessity of keeping him in custody without bail.Key Points from the Memorandum:

Drug Trafficking: El Chapo led the Sinaloa Cartel, a major criminal organization responsible for transporting tens of thousands of kilograms of narcotics into the United States. The cartel used sophisticated methods, including submarines, airplanes, trains with secret compartments, and underground tunnels to smuggle drugs such as cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana. Evidence presented included recordings of Guzmán discussing drug trafficking and seizures of substantial quantities of drugs linked to the cartel .
Violence: The cartel maintained its power through extreme violence. Guzmán was directly involved in acts of violence, including ordering and participating in kidnappings, torture, and murders. Testimonies included accounts of brutal killings and torture carried out on Guzmán's orders, demonstrating the cartel's reliance on violence to control its territory and eliminate rivals
Sophisticated Communications: Guzmán employed an encrypted communication network to avoid detection by law enforcement. This network was set up by an IT engineer who was paid a million dollars to ensure secure communications with associates in various countries, allowing the cartel to operate efficiently and securely
Corruption: The cartel's operations were facilitated by a vast network of corrupt officials, including law enforcement, military, and politicians. These officials were bribed to protect the cartel's activities, warn about law enforcement operations, and turn a blind eye to drug trafficking and other illegal activities .
Money Laundering: Guzmán's drug trafficking operations generated billions in illicit proceeds. The memorandum detailed how the cartel laundered money through various means, including bulk cash smuggling and the use of shell companies. These activities underscored the extensive and organized nature of Guzmán's criminal enterprise .
Weapons: The cartel had access to a significant arsenal, including AK-47s, grenades, and a rocket-propelled grenade launcher. Guzmán himself possessed a personalized collection of weapons, highlighting the militaristic aspect of the cartel's operations .

The memorandum argued that Guzmán posed an exceptional flight risk and a danger to the community, justifying the need for his pre-trial detention without bail. His history of violence, the extensive resources at his disposal, and his ability to evade capture for years supported the government's stance that no conditions of release could reasonably assure his appearance in court or the safety of the community.

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to contact me:

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source:

Detention Memo (justice.gov)

Duration:: 14m
Broadcast on:: 14 Jul 2024
Audio Format:: mp3

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At Moss Adams, that question inspires us to help people and their businesses strategically define and claim their future. As one of America's leading accounting, consulting and wealth management firms, our collaborative approach creates solutions for your unique business needs. We leverage industry focus insights with the collective technical resources of our firm to elevate your performance. Uncover opportunity and move upward at Moss Adams.com. In this episode, we're picking up where we left off with the United States government's memorandum of law in support of El Chapo's pre-trial detention. Guzman also set out to diversify the type of drug sold in the United States by the Cinelloa cartel. While Guzman started in the drug trade distributing marijuana and heroin in the 2000s, this led to the introduction of methamphetamine into the flow of drugs heading north to the United States. As a result, Guzman established sources of supply of the precursor chemicals for the production of methamphetamine in Africa and Asia, including in China and in India. Guzman ensured the success of his international operation as well as those of others in a lower cartel members by further solidifying his power within Mexico. A cornerstone of his strategy was the corruption of officials at every level of local, municipal, state, national and foreign government, who were paid cash bribes to ensure that he and the Cinelloa cartel were free to bring in tonnage quantities of cocaine from South America and move it freely to the United States. The payments guaranteed that drug shipments would be safely received within Mexico and escorted by law enforcement as the shipments were transported through Mexico to towns at the United States-Mexico border. These payments also ensured that Cinelloa cartel members were protected from arrest and that territorial disputes were resolved in favor of the cartel. For example, as much as $1 million in cash bribes were paid to law enforcement to ensure the safe passage of a single drug shipment through Mexico. Another essential aspect of Guzman's method of control was brutal force and intimidation. Guzman wielded violence to punish disloyalty and enforce discipline among cartel members. As discussed above, Guzman and the Cinelloa cartel had a veritable army, ready to go to war with competitors and anyone Guzman deemed to be a traitor. Some of these armed guards were tasked with Guzman's personal protection. In addition to his cadre of armed guards, Guzman himself was known for carrying gold plated AK-47 and a gold and diamond encrusted 45mm handgun. Guzman also employed Sicarios or assassins who carried out thousands of acts of violence, including murders, assaults, kidnappings, torture, and assassination at his direction to promote and enhance his prestige, reputation, and position within the Cinelloa cartel and to protect the Cinelloa cartel against its rivals. Sicarios were deployed to silence potential witnesses and retaliate against anyone who provided assistance to law enforcement authorities against Cinelloa's interests. With Guzman's vast expansion of the Cinelloa cartel's fear of influence, armed conflicts with competitors, and internal disputes within the cartel began to dominate the Mexican landscape. The causes of these wars can be traced, in part, to Guzman's provocations. In the early 2000s, Guzman and the Cinelloa cartel and their allies engaged in open warfare with the Gulf cartel and Las Zetas. At the time, Las Zetas was the armed faction of the Gulf cartel and notorious for being comprised of former members of the Mexican military Special Forces. This eruption of violence gained international attention for its gruesome impact on Mexico, especially the public displays of beheaded victims. In 2007, Guzman sent his Sicarios to perpetrate a war with cartel leader Vicente Carillo Fuentes, which was fought on the streets of war as Mexico. The Sicarios kidnapped and tortured their victims, often prior to brutally murdering them and subsequently boasted of their exploits through gruesome videos that they posted on the internet. In 2008, the Beltran Leyva Organization, which was once a strong ally and partner of the Cinelloa cartel, fractured that alliance engaging in an armed conflict against the Cinelloa cartel that is still being felt in Mexico to this day. These violent conflicts often spilled over into the United States, endangering members of the law enforcement working at the border and families living in nearby towns. As Guzman's infamy increased, the manhunt forum reached new intensity. In early 2014, Mexican Special Forces tracked Guzman down to a house in Cooliacan, but they were thwarted in their attempt to capture him when Guzman fled through a concealed escape hatch underneath a bathtub and into an elaborate maze that Guzman had constructed within the city sewer system. On February 22, 2014, after months of a national manhunt, Guzman was finally arrested at an apartment complex in Mazalon, Cinelloa, Mexico. At the time of his capture, Guzman had control of most of the Western Hemisphere's cocaine transportation and distribution network from South America to as far north as Canada. After his 2014 arrest, Guzman was incarcerated in a Mexican maximum-security prison. Guzman, however, escaped on July 11, 2015, after more than a year of well-orchestrated planning, his workers dug a tunnel from a seemingly abandoned home which was located over a mile away from the prison directly into the shower in his prison cell. Guzman can be seen in a well-publicized video calmly descending a ladder into the tunnel where a motorcycle was waiting. This escape exemplified the power of Guzman's drug empire and his control over government officials even while he was incarcerated. After Guzman's second prison escape, intense efforts ensued to recapture him. On January 8, 2016, Guzman was captured and lost mochis in Aloa, Mexico. The Mexican military had raided an apartment only to find that Guzman had once again used a hidden escape route out of the building. A gun battle ensued between Guzman's bodyguards and the Mexican law enforcement authorities which resulted in several deaths. Guzman was pursued through the city's sewer system until he was forced to the surface, where he was detained by Mexican federal police. Guzman has since been held under extraordinary security measures at a maximum-security prison. Guzman's exploits made him cult-like celebrity to those from his home state of Sinaloa. He was viewed as a modern-day Robin Hood, popular with the downtrodden and extolled in popular songs. There was civil unrest and popular protest in the streets of Mexico condemning Mexican authorities for their valiant efforts in his capture. Guzman's worldwide fame has resulted in his appearance in Forbes magazine' 'Most Powerful and Wealthy Persons' lists. These last few decades have shown that Guzman's influence knows no bounds. Since his 2016 capture, Guzman vigorously fought his extradition to the United States up until the moment that his extradition was ordered on January 19, 2017, and he was put on a plane to the United States. 3. Legal Standard Under the Bell Reform Act, U.S. Code 18, Section 3142, in cases where a defendant is charged with an offense for which a maximum term of imprisonment of 10 years or more is prescribed in the Controlled Substances Act, a court must presume, subject to rebuttal by the person that no condition or combination of conditions will reasonably assure the appearance of the person as required and the safety of the community. If the court finds probable cause to believe that the person committed such offenses, U.S. Code 18, Section 3142, E3 and A. A similar presumption arises when the court finds probable cause that the person committed an offense under Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 924(c). Section 3142, E3 and B, regardless of whether the presumption applies, such probable cause may be established by an indictment such as there is no need for an independent judicial probable cause determination, U.S. vs. Contreras, 776, F.2D, 51, 54, 55, Second Circuit, 1985. If a presumption of detention is applicable, the defendant bears the burden of rebutting that presumption by coming forward with evidence that he does not pose a danger to the community or risk of flight. In any event, the government must ultimately persuade the court by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant is a flight risk. We all have somewhere we're trying to get to. As the largest energy producer in Colorado, Chevron is helping meet rising demand and we're working to do it responsibly. Our next-gen, tankless facilities reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of our operations by more than 90 percent compared to our older designs. And to provide Colorado with energy that's affordable, reliable, and ever-cleaner. So everyone can get to where they want to be. You've arrived. That's energy in progress. Visit chevron.com/tankless. Detention based on danger to the community must be supported by clear and convincing evidence. CEUS Code, Section 3142F. The Bell Reform Act lists four factors to be considered in the detention analysis whether for risk of flight or dangerousness; one, the nature and circumstances of the offense charged; two, history and characteristics of the defendant; three, the seriousness of the danger posed by the defendant's release; and four, the evidence of the defendant's guilt. At a detention hearing, the government may proceed by a prof. Ferrante66F.3D at 541, US vs. Martier 782, F.2D 1141, and 1145, Second Circuit 1986. As the Second Circuit has explained, in the pre-trial context, few detention hearings involve live testimony or cross-examination, most proceed on proffers. See Lefontaine 210F.3D at 131. This is because Bell hearings are typically informal affairs, not substitutes for trial or discovery. United States vs. Acevedo Ramos 755F.2D 203, 206 for a circuit, 1985. Justice Breyer quoted approvingly in Mafontaine 210F.3D at 131. Indeed, Section 3142F2B expressly states that federal rules of evidence do not apply at Bell hearings, thus courts often based detention decisions on hearsay evidence. The concept of dangerousness encompasses not only the effect of a defendant's release on the safety of identifiable individuals such as victims and witnesses, but also harms a society caused by continued narcotics trafficking. United States vs. Leon 766F.2D 7781, Second Circuit 1985. Language referring to safety of the community refers to the danger that the defendant might engage in criminal activity to the detriment of the community. The committee intends that the concern about safety be given a broader construction than merely danger of harm involving physical violence. Similarly, courts in this district have denied dangerous defendants bail in recognition of the Second Circuit's dim view of alternatives to confinement. In keeping with this congressional purpose, pretrial detention is warranted where defendants charge with violent crimes or leaders or high-ranking members of a criminal organization whose activities routinely include violence and threats of violence. See United States vs. Colombo, 777F.2D 9699, Second Circuit 1985. United States vs. Boulamo, 944, FSUPP 1160, 1166, SDNY 1966, stating that leader of a criminal enterprise with the ability to order members of the enterprise to engage in violence may be a danger to the community, even if he did not engage in the violence himself. In United States vs. Colombo, in ordering the detention of two leaders of the Genovese organized crime family, the court observed that the activities of a criminal organization such as the Genovese family do not cease with the arrest of its principal and their release on even the most stringent of bail conditions. The illegal businesses in place for many years require constant attention and protection or they will fail. Under these circumstances, this court recognizes a strong incentive on the part of its leadership to continue business as usual. When business as usual involves threats, beatings, and murder, the present danger such people pose in the community is self-evident. Similarly in Colombo, the captain of a crew in the Colombo organized crime family was ordered detained because the operation of the organization posed a risk to the public and a danger to the community. By its consistent pattern of orchestrating a series of violent criminal operations. 777F.2D at 99 C. Ferranti, 66, F.3D at 543, United States vs. Def. 7F.S.U.P.P.2D 390-395 SDNY 1998 Given defendant's position of leadership in a notorious and violent criminal organization, his ability to plan, order, and supervise criminal activity is of paramount importance. Defending is a danger, at least as much, for what he might direct or assist others in doing as for what he might do himself. Alright, we're going to wrap up right here and in the next episode we're going to pick up with four. Guzman should be detained pending trial. All of the information that goes with this episode can be found in the description box.