Marine Accused of Murder Faces Extradition to the U.S.

A member of the House Armed Services Committee has called for the Department of Defense to review what he believes is a botched investigation of a case involving a corporal accused of the murder and rape of a pregnant Marine.^[1]

Authorities have alleged that Cpl. Cesar Laurean, killed fellow Marine Maria Lauterbach in mid-December of 2007. Laurean is currently awaiting extradition back to the United States after his arrest in Mexico. He has been charged with murder.^[2]

Rep. Michael Turner contends that "As additional details of the rape investigation have become public, it is now clear that the Marine Corps should have done more to protect Maria and her unborn child."^[3]

Turner also points out that from the first time Lauterbach reported the rape it took seven days for the Naval Criminal Investigative Service to interview Laurean about the allegations. In addition, he states that a DNA sample was not sought from Laurean during the course of the rape investigation.^[4]

Furthermore, the congressmen contends that the Marine Corps has acknowledged the lapse of a military protective order due to an administrative oversight and that Lauterbach was not advised to pursue a civilian protection order when she moved off base.^[5]

Turner has also said that Lauterbach was not offered a transfer to another base after reporting that she had been raped while on duty. Moreover, he states that the Marine Corps described Laurean as a "stellar" Marine four days following the discovery of Lauterbach's body in Laurean’s backyard.^[6]

There were also periods of as much as three weeks during which the discovery of key pieces of information regarding Lauterbach's disappearance went unreported to base officials, Turner said.^[7]

The Marines stand by their January statement which described the actions taken from the time Lauterbach made the allegations until her death was reported.^[8]

According to Lt. Col. Curtis Hill, "The command took the appropriate and diligent steps to facilitate a criminal investigation into Lauterbach's allegations and to keep her separated from the accused by distance and an order to the accused to remain away from her."^[9]

Laurean and Lauterbach served on the same logistics unit.^[10]

Extradition from Mexico to the United States is governed by the 1980 extradition treaty.^[11] This often-utilized treaty is of the hybrid variety; it contains both a laundry list of extraditable offenses and a dual criminality standard.^[12]Under Article 2, extraditable offenses under the treaty must be both: listed under the Appendix (the “laundry-list”), and punishable in accordance with the laws of both Contracting Parties by deprivation of liberty the maximum of which shall not be less than one year (“dual criminality”).[13]
Federal criminal defense attorney Douglas McNabb, has written extensively on the subject of international extradition. Some of his work on the subject may be found here.

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[1] The Associated Press, Congressman Calls for Review of Slain Marine's Rape Claims, The Associated Press, April 24, 2008 (available at www.ap.org).
[2] Id.
[3] Id.
[4] Id.
[5] Id.
[6] Id.
[7] Id.
[8] Id.
[9] Id.
[10] Id.
[11] Treaty of Extradition between the United States of America and the United Mexican States (Mexico), U.S.-Mex., Jan. 25, 1980, 1978 U.S.T. LEXIS 317.
[12] Id. at Art. 2.
[13]Id.