| Honduras Narco
Trial Murky Docket As Feb 12
Slips to Feb 20 But No Public
Filings So This
by
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book
Substack
SDNY
COURTHOUSE,
Feb 11 – The trial of Juan
Orlando Hernandez, former
president of Honduras, was set
to start on February 12, 2024,
with opening arguments after
Judge P. Kevin Castel picked
the jury.
He usually did
that quickly, so Kurt Wheelock
expected to be hearing the
prosecutors and JOH's now
sickly (according to his
filings) lead lawyer arguing
by the afternoon.
But then last
minute problems were raised,
at first openly into the
docket and then in filings and
an order not put there over
the weekend.
JOH's new second lawyer
had asked for an extra 90
days, then at least a week, as
a third Classified
Information-cleared lawyer was
brought it.
The
prosecutors had responded that
in light of new information
they had just provided and the
need to go over it with the
defense, the opening arguments
should be two days after the
jury was picked: so,
Wednesday, February 14.
Kurt
had other sources, that the
two sides had already agreed
to kick it to February 20.
But despite
checking and re-checking the
docket, that joint letter, and
Judge Castel's order, did not
show up in the docket, even as
the NFL Super Bowl was
played.
That didn't
stop JOH's wife from
announcing February 20 on X,
and Kurt getting questions
about it. He never burned his
sources as at first he stayed
quiet. But he knew several
people who were traveling to
New York for the trial.
Why hadn't
the prosecutors thought about
them, when deciding to not
even file their consent to a
delay to February 20?
More on X for Subscribers
here and Substack here
***
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