Jailed Ex-Marine Tahmooressi Scheduled for Court on July 9

Third attorney, Fernando Benitez, will cover hearing

TIJUANA.- Former Marine Andrew Tahmooressi has a new court date set for July 9, 2014. This will be the first time his new attorney, Fernando Benitez, will be able to present evidence in the case and argument on his client's behalf.

Fox News Interview with Attorney Fernando Benitez
Fox News Interview with Attorney Fernando Benitez

In a television interview last week, Attorney Benitez claimed that he will be presenting his client's rendition of how he "accidentally" arrived in Mexico, specifically detailing the minutes leading up to his arrival at the port of entry on March 31, 2014 in order to disprove malicious intent on his client's behalf.

According to Tahmooressi's attorney, the legal process could take six months. In the meantime, his attorney has warned Andrew Tahmooressi and his mother, Jill Tahmooressi, that political pressure will not work, and that even a call from the U.S. President will not change the way the case is handled in Mexico. "This is a democratic nation, you will not find an executive calling up a judge and ordering the release of a suspect...there's not a phone call in the world that will change this."

In the interview, Fernando Benitez rejected the assertion by media outlets that in Mexico you are "guilty until proven innocent" but that it might seem that way because "weapons/firearms offenses here sometimes are not afforded bail and that is the case with Andrew" and that it will be "upon the state to prove that he is guilty." The attorney also stated that there were possible defense strategies that could have been used during the administrative investigation window 48 hours after his arrest, but that he doesn't know why this wasn't done, "and now we are already past that".

Benitez went on to state that "within those forty-eight hours you have a right to counsel, which was afforded to Andrew...being a foreign national he is also afforded the right to consular assistance, which was provided to him immediately...he was afforded the right to a translator of choice, he appointed a translator…[within those 48 hours] evidence can be submitted to try to convince the investigator that there is no need to indict, I don't know why this was not done."

While he shied away from stating that he might have handled things differently than his client's two previous attorneys, he said that he tends to have a more aggressive strategy and will be handling it his way moving forward.

borderzonie@gmail.com

@borderzonie

Comments

  • Facebook

  • SanDiegoRed

 
 
  • New

  • Best

    Recent News more

    Subir
    Advertising