By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Maxwell Book
BBC-Guardian UK - Honduras - ESPN NY Mag
SDNY COURT, May 10, 1st Person -- The day had come for former Honduras President Juan Orlando Hernandez to be arraigned, to plead not guilty and learn when his trial might be. Not all judges in the Southern District set a trial date at the arraigment. But Judge Castel moves fast, in most cases. And he knew these Honduras cases well.
In the morning I saw the crowds building up outside the courthouse. I went up to the 11th floor, where Judge Castel's courtroom is. An hour before the arraignment, the hallway was full. A Court Security Officer told me, You can be in the jury box. But don't wait until the last minute. I wouldn't.
I went up to the 26th floor and spoke with some of the Honduran New Yorkers there. I looked out window down at the still-growing crowd on Worth Street. I thought people might be disappointed, that the proceeding might be over in five minutes.
Courtroom 11D was full. I recognized some people and not others. Judge Castel's clerk told everyone to keep their masks on for COVID, and not to stand up with the judge came in. Still many people began standing up.
Juan Orlando Hernandez was brought in from the cell block door by three U.S. Marshals. He looked out at the people in the gallery and tapped his chest. Like, from my heart to yours.
His upbeat manner was contradicted by the argument made by his lawyer, Colon. He said JOH had been in solidary confinement; money could even be put into his commissary account to buy extra food. When they took JOH to the jail's basketball court, they left him without a ball. Oh, the inhumanity.
Judge Castel set a return date, September 28, and even a trial date: January 17, 2023. The Assistant US Attorney said his Office might be making a filing under the Classified Information Procedures Act. If so, I realized having covering CIPA filings in cases about North Korea and China, JOH's trial could be pushed deeper into 2023.
Out on Worth Street Colon said more, that he planned to subpoena as witnesses Trump and Biden and El Chapo. I thought, Why not UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who had backed up JOH's second term by sending a four person panel to smooth over the water.
When I started asking for the panel's report, I was thrown out of the UN, and was still banned, none of my written questions asked. Guterres should be on trial too.
That would be one of my projects, and what the people on the sidewalk told me after the arraignment. Watch this site.
Spanish, and bonus, on Patreon here.
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