Extradition from Liberia to the United States—Denied

Wilma Bailey and Melee Kermue will not be extradited to the United States any time soon.^[1] Yesterday we mentioned that their last argument against extradition was a claim that the extradition treaty between the United States and Liberia was no longer in effect. Judge Zotaa seemed to agree, ruling that the Treaty expired in 1944, five years after it came into force. According to Judge Zotaa, “all contracts and treaties have a definite period for termination,” and he said there was no evidence “that after the five years duration of the Treaty, any of the contracting parties gave notice to renew said document.”^[2]

This is, with all due respect, a misreading of Article XIII of the treaty which says that the treaty remains in force for five years, “and in case neither of the High Contracting Parties shall have given notice one year before the expiration of that period of its intention to terminate the Treaty, it shall continue in force until the expiration of one year from the date on which such notice of termination shall be given by either of the High Contracting Parties.”^[3]

Judge Zotaa also based his decision on the much more defensible ground that Article VIII of the treaty states that “neither of the High Contracting Parties shall be bound to deliver up its own citizens, except in cases where such citizenship has been obtained after the perpetration of the crime for which extradition is sought.^[4] This was a possibility we mentioned back on December 8, 2005.

The Liberian government took exception to Judge Zotaa’s ruling and has appealed to that country’s Supreme Court.^[5]

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[1] Court Denies US Government Request to Extradite Liberians, Liberian Observer, Jan. 13, 2005.
[2] Id.
[3] Extradition Treaty, Nov. 1, 1937, U.S.-Liber., art. XIII, 9 Bevans 589 (emphasis added).
[4] Id. art. VIII. See also Liberian Observer, supra note 1.
[5] Liberian Observer, supra note 1.