Extradition Definition, Laws & Examples

Table of Contents

● What is Extradition?
● Extradition Treaty
● Extradition Between Countries
● Examples of Extradition
● Lesson Summary

What is Extradition?
Extradition is defined as the formal process involving one state surrendering a
person to a different state for prosecution for crimes they committed in the
requesting country. Extradition constitutes an extradition treaty, two countries, and
most importantly, a fugitive. The extradition clause requires countries to have
bilateral or multilateral treaties, although not all countries require these treaties to
extradite. Nevertheless, the main purpose of extradition is to ascertain that
prosecution of people who have committed atrocious crimes happens.
 Extradition Treaty
Extradition treaty describes the transfer of an accused person from one state or
country to another country seeking the person to stand trial. When an extradition
treaty comes into effect, an extradition warrant is issued to arrest the fugitive and
transport them to the country demanding them.

Treaties that have been signed these recent years have a dual criminality approach,
which lists all the crimes that can be extraditable and punishable between the two
countries. However, previous extradition treaties would only list the offenses to
which they would agree to extradite a person. In addition, most extraditions only
allow for crimes that attract a sentence of more than one year.

Treaties also provide occasions when extradition may be denied. Generally, most
authorities do not extradite individuals for any military or political offenses, except
when there is a case of terrorism or violence. Other states do not extradite accused
people to places where capital punishment is probable unless the demanding state
or country promises not to impose such as punishment.
U.S. Extradition
Extradition from the United States
This extradition process starts with the foreign government asking the United
States State Department through treaty paperwork. The information involves:

● The person they want

● The offenses charged
● The documents used to charge them
● Their arrest warrants
● The evidence they have against the defendant

When these foreign authorities feel the person is a flight risk, they may ask for a
provisional arrest and detention before they get the necessary material. The
secretary of state then decides to forward this request to the Department of Justice,
who will review the compliance with treaty regulations, get an arrest warrant, take the
fugitive to custody, and then appear before a judge. First, the court decides whether
there is probable cause for the offense stipulated in the treaty. Where there is
probable cause, the matter goes back to the secretary of state, who decides whether
to extradite or not.

Extradition to the United States

A federal or state prosecutor meets with the relevant agency to decide whether the
crime is worth the cost of extradition. The prosecutor will then prepare an application
to send to the Department of Justice to determine the sufficiency. Upon approval, the
State Department will send a request to the U.S. embassy, which will forward the
request to the country's authorities in question. After that, depending on the country
involved, the process may vary. Finally, when the request is approved, the U.S.
Marshals Service escorts the fugitive back to the United States.

Rules of Extradition in the United States

The extradition process is outlined in the constitution. According to the Federal Code
of Laws at 18 U.S. Code Chapter 209, some rules are necessary for extradition law
to apply;

● The extradition documents need to be in order and contain all essential details
● The accused person needs to be charged with a crime in the demanding country or state.
 ● The person named in the extradition request has to be the person charged with the crime
● The petitioner should be from the requesting country or state

Extradition Between Countries

The extradition countries are those with work primarily between themselves, using
extradition treaties. If the United States wants to extradite, they file a complaint with
a U.S. court and provide charges and treaty requirements. Then, the warrant is
issued to the Secretary of State to contact the foreign government where the fugitive
is residing for the international extradition process to begin.

Some countries do not extradite. Some countries that do not have an extradition
treaty with the United States include China, Russia, Bahrain, Namibia, and North
Korea. Nevertheless, these countries still have the power to negotiate the extradition
of a fugitive with other countries. In such cases, however, the country where the
accused is residing may choose to reject the request. A famous case is Edward
Snowden of the United States, who took refuge in Russia after being charged with
theft and espionage. Considering the two countries have no extradition treaty,
Snowden escaped prosecution.

Examples of Extradition
Famous Hollywood director Roman Polanski has been on the run from the United
States since he was charged with child trafficking cases back in the 1970s. Polanski
was arrested in Switzerland in 2009, but the Swiss justice ministry rejected a request
by the United States to extradite him. Their reason for refusing to extradite the
fugitive was that the legal records supplied did not meet the required standards and
that Polanski had traveled to Switzerland in good faith. As a result, the convicted
child predator has avoided sentencing in the United States by avoiding both the U.S.
and all countries with extradition treaties with the United States.

Former Liberian President Charles Taylor has been a man on the run most of his
adult life. His first stance with extradition was in 1984 when he fled his home country
Liberia to the United States after being accused of embezzling more than $900,000
in government funds. The Liberian government placed an extradition request to the
United States, and Taylor was consequently detained in a Boston Prison as the
United States considered the extradition request. However, he escaped prison a
year later.
Lesson Summary
Extradition is a formal process describing a request by one government to
surrender a particular person who has taken refuge in a different country for them to
be prosecuted for crimes they committed in the requesting country. The extradition
process has its basis in the constitution of any country that participates in the
process. Extradition treaties are rules and regulations that govern the operation of
extradition between any two countries. In the United States, these rules and
regulations are stipulated in The Federal Code of Laws at 18 U.S. Code, Chapter
209. Additionally, rather than extradition between the United States and other
countries, states within the United States can practice extradition among themselves.