Step Against Binational Crime

With little fanfare, the presidents of the United States and Mexico have made a novel commitment to the battle against criminals who operate on both sides of the border. They have agreed to modify the 1978 bilateral extradition treaty to allow criminals to be imprisoned longer.

The diplomatic agreement, signed last month, reinforces the notion that a coordinated approach in matters of international law is the best way to fight drug trafficking and other binational crimes. If ratified by the congresses of both countries the agreement could keep criminals in prison for two consecutive sentences, one in each country.

The new protocol does not modify the provision in the extradition treaty that precludes sending a criminal back to the United States in cases where the death penalty could be applied.

What it does is speed up the process of extraditing criminals in the following fashion: U.S. authorities ask Mexico to extradite a criminal jailed in Mexico who has also been accused of committing crimes in the United States. Mexico sends the convicted criminal temporarily to the United States to facilitate a timely trial here. Timeliness is key, allowing U.S. prosecutors to present trial evidence, including the testimony of witnesses, while it is still fresh.

If the criminal is convicted in an American court, he is returned to Mexico to finish the sentence he was serving and then sent again to do his prison time here. There is no issue of double jeopardy because the accused is not tried twice for the same crime. The new protocol, however, if implemented will subject criminals to another turn of the screw, keeping them incarcerated longer.

Cooperation is the best weapon for Washington and Mexico City in the fight against international crime. Ratification of the protocol is expected in Mexico’s Senate. The U.S. Senate should follow suit on this significant crime-fighting tool.