MEXICO CITY - Mexico is adopting U.S.-style public trials and a presumption of innocence.
President Felipe Calderon has signed a sweeping judicial reform that replaces closed-door proceedings in which judges rely on written evidence.
The constitutional amendment signed Tuesday will have prosecutors and defense lawyers arguing their cases in court.
Mexico's Congress dropped a proposal to allow warrantless searches after human rights groups protested.
Instead the law creates a new class of judges who can rule more quickly on warrant requests.
The law also allows prosecutors to hold organized crime suspects without charge for up to 80 daysIflyfish - 6-17-2008 at 09:44 AM
Huge! Amazing, never thought I would see this in my life time.
This turns the Nepolianic code on it's head. The Nepolianic code presumes guilt rather than innocence. It is the cornerstone of US justice along with
habious corpus, the law that requires the presentation of evidence.
This code has been in effect in Mexico since the 1500s, incredible, just incredible! We all should celebrate this remarkable event!
Viva Mexico, Viva Mexico, Viva Mexico.
It will take a long time for this to filter through the system, but coupled with the increased military activity like that seen in the north of Baja
could turn this situation around. Still lots of shell casings to be found before this is over.
IflyfishWoooosh - 6-18-2008 at 09:48 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by Iflyfish
Huge! Amazing, never thought I would see this in my life time.
Iflyfish
Depends on how many years you have left. They are shooting for 2016 to implement this. That's two election cycles away. IMHO it will happen about
the same time as real estate reform- never.
[Edited on 6-18-2008 by Woooosh]DENNIS - 6-18-2008 at 12:26 PM
Are law schools in Mexico even ready for this?CaboRon - 6-18-2008 at 12:43 PM
And also the thousands of Mexican attorneys who have never given an oral argument (only written arguments are accepted by the current court).
And the judges who have never faced the scrutiny of a public hearing (all hearings are done in secret now, and defendant is not present and
does not have the rilght to face his accuser).
A lot of lawmakers are going to be going out with the wash.
Caboron
[Edited on 6-19-2008 by CaboRon]fulano - 6-18-2008 at 09:32 PM
This a 20-minute documentary by a Chileno, Roberto Hernadez, on the Mexican justice system and then has a comparison to the Chilean system which has
oral arguments. Sorry, it's in Spanish, but it's very interesting...and sad when you understand what happened to people who were sent to jail for 6-7
years after being accused of stealing $20.
Oral arguments are usually done at the appellate level, are they not?
It isn't all that uncommon for the "arguments", at least in the U.S., to be made in the briefs and the oratorical skill that the lawyers have to hold
small sway. Same would probably hold true for the US equivalent of a bench trial in the lower courts. In a lower court, where a motion is being
argued, isn't it a general rule that briefs are submitted citing precedent?
Not having a clue about the rules of evidence in Mexico, I would think it would be fascinating to the legal eagles among us to watch this evolve.
Not sure I see how the "lawmakers are thrown out with the wash" in this move.DENNIS - 6-19-2008 at 06:23 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by oldlady
Not having a clue about the rules of evidence in Mexico, I would think it would be fascinating to the legal eagles among us to watch this evolve.
Well, It's still Mexico and you can bet it'll end up just as nebulous as everything else.CaboRon - 6-19-2008 at 06:30 AM
Quote:
Originally posted by oldlady
Not sure I see how the "lawmakers are thrown out with the wash" in this move.
Oldlady,
In my garbled English I was referring to what happens to many when an industry changes.
And, I would like to hear some comments from practicing attorneys about this; in addition to briefs to support their arguments I think the
power of the spoken word can indeed sway juriors and judges. "If the glove don't fit, you must acquit" comes to mind as what became a mantra in one
famous trial.
In this case lawyers who have spent their entire carrers writing their cases suddenly having to present oral skills .
The analogy which comes to mind is when sound came to film .... many actors were out of business because they did not have voices which
recorded well.
Just my humble opinion,
And I would like to hear from some actual practicing trial attorneys,
CaboRonELINVESTIG8R - 6-19-2008 at 07:13 AM
There will definitely be a learning curve but it is headed in the right direction. I am so happy to hear that it is finally being done. I hope they
also properly fund their Public Defender system (Defensoria de Oficio) for the people who cannot afford a Criminal Defense Attorney. They also need to
hire experienced Public Defender Investigators who can do a proper re-investigation of facts. Too many times innocent people are sent to prison based
on false facts that were not uncovered because no one investigated on behalf of the defendant before trial.Woooosh - 6-19-2008 at 10:24 AM
When and if this change comes- the well-connected (eg, narcos) and other rich criminals will have the brightest and best lawyers and will walk away
unscathed- just like in the USA.Cypress - 6-19-2008 at 11:29 AM
Woooosh, Amen to that. The OJ trial always comes to mind.
The OJ trial always comes to mind.