Noriega Fights For
Return to Panama
When former dictator
Manuel Antonio Noriega
was convicted in 1992
for turning Panama into
a narcotics hub, U.S.
prison authorities
wanted to send him to a
maximum security
facility in Illinois.
Not so fast, Noriega's
attorneys argued in
federal court in Miami.
They sought - and
obtained -
prisoner-of-war status
for the ex-general under
the Geneva Convention,
so he could be sent to a
low-security prison in
the Miami area.
Now, with Noriega's
release set for Sept. 9
and the French
government seeking his
extradition on
drug-related charges,
his lawyers are using
his POW designation to
try to persuade a
federal judge to halt
his extradition and to
repatriate him to his
homeland.
The judge - William
Hoeveler - is the same
one who granted Noriega
prisoner-of-war status
15 years ago. His
declaration remains a
first in the federal
courts nationwide.
"Strict adherence to
provisions of the Geneva
Convention are not just
in Gen. Noriega's
interests, they are also
in the interests of our
men and women in uniform
all over the world,"
Noriega's lawyer, Frank
Rubino, said after
filing a habeas corpus
petition that aims to
stop the extradition
Monday.
Said co-counsel Jon May:
"You cannot deprive a
prisoner of war his
rights under the Geneva
Convention. It cannot be
any clearer than that."
Both said France should
be required to seek
Noriega's extradition
from Panama, not the
United States.
The Justice Department,
which is handling the
French request, declined
to comment.
Last week, the U.S.
attorney's office sought
to extradite Noriega to
France to serve 10 years
in prison in connection
with his conviction in
absentia for money
laundering, said
prosecutor Michael "Pat"
Sullivan. Despite his
conviction there in
1999, the extradition
request allows Noriega a
new trial.
Noriega, who has been
behind bars on
international
drug-trafficking and
money-laundering charges
since his surrender to
U.S. troops in early
1990, is eligible for
parole after more than
17 years in prison.
But he is accused of
other drug-related
crimes in France. French
authorities said Noriega
funneled about 15
million francs, about
$3.15 million, to a bank
account in France
between 1988 and 1989.
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