Assange’s former lawyer and 92-year-old judge: the key figures in Maduro’s trial in the US

BBC montage shows Nicolás Maduro (below, center) along with figures who will participate in his trial in New York Getty Images via BBC Former Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, are expected to appear before the American justice system for the second time after their capture in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas, on January 3, when they were taken to the United States for trial. ✅ Follow the g1 international news channel on WhatsApp Maduro’s second hearing is scheduled for this Thursday, March 26th. At his first court appearance in Manhattan on January 5, Maduro pleaded not guilty to all four charges. They included participation in a conspiracy with groups considered terrorists, conspiracy to traffic cocaine into the United States, and the possession and use of illegal weapons (basically machine guns) to carry out the alleged conspiracy. Drawing shows Nicolás Maduro during a court hearing. American forces captured Flores alongside her husband. She also pleaded not guilty. Upon arriving in New York, the couple was taken to the headquarters of the DEA (the United States drug enforcement agency) and is being held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Map of New York with the location of Nicolás Maduro’s trial and the prison where he is being held BBC After Maduro’s deposition, Caracas and Washington reestablished diplomatic relations in March, after a seven-year hiatus. The White House formally recognized Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez (Maduro’s former vice president), as the country’s “sole leader.” Analysts say that these processes could take several months before trial, according to the American press. But who are the key figures in the legal battle involving Maduro and his wife? Maduro was captured in Caracas and taken to trial in the United States Reuters The judge When Nicolás Maduro first appeared in court, he stood before judge Alvin Hellerstein, who asked him to confirm his identity so that the process could begin. “Sir, I am Nicolás Maduro. I am president of the Republic of Venezuela and I have been kidnapped since January 3,” he declared calmly, in Spanish, waiting for the interpreter to translate his words. “I was captured in my home, in Caracas, Venezuela.” The 92-year-old judge quickly interrupted him, saying there would be “a time and place to detail all of this.” Hellerstein has overseen several important cases and has been handling the case against Maduro since his indictment and drug trafficking charges in 2020. In the same case, another defendant — Venezuela’s former intelligence chief, Hugo Armando Carvajal — has already pleaded guilty. A graduate of Columbia University Law School in the United States, Hellerstein worked as a lawyer in the US Army before entering private practice. He was appointed to the Southern District of New York in 1998 by then-President Bill Clinton (1993-2001). Hellerstein presided over civil cases related to the September 11, 2001, attacks, blocked attempts by the Trump administration to deport alleged Venezuelan gang members without a court hearing, and rejected President Trump’s request to transfer his bribery lawsuit to federal court. Hellerstein also judged a dispute between heiress and TV star Paris Hilton and an Italian lingerie company. Hilton asked for US$1.5 million (about R$7.8 million) for unpaid royalties and the company blamed her for delays in approval. More recently, the judge sentenced Charlie Javice, founder of a technology startup, to more than seven years in prison for fraud against the investment bank JP Morgan Chase and sentenced Bill Hwang, founder of the failed hedge fund Archegos, to 18 years in prison in another fraud case. The judge also ordered the release of US government photographs documenting the torture of detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan. Citing sources, the American news portal Politico described Hellerstein as an “old school” judge who often adopts unusual techniques, including calling prosecutors directly. At Maduro’s second hearing this Thursday (26), Hellerstein is expected to consider whether Maduro should be allowed to use Venezuelan government funds in his defense against American drug trafficking charges. In February, the United States Treasury Department revoked an exception to American financial sanctions against Venezuela that allowed the country’s government to finance its defense. Judge Alvin Hellerstein has handled several famous cases Getty Images via BBC Maduro’s defense team hired famous American lawyer Barry Pollack to act in his defense. Pollack is known for defending WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and securing his release from UK prison in 2024. He is a partner at the Manhattan-based Wall Street law firm Harris St. Laurent & Wechsler. He is also a professor at the Georgetown University Law Center in the United States and a member of the American College of State Attorneys. Pollack has been described as a “detailed, thoughtful lawyer” who “lives, breathes and dreams about trials,” according to legal research and analytical publication Chambers USA. He negotiated Assange’s deal, ending a decade-long legal battle. Assange pleaded guilty to an American espionage charge and was sentenced to the years he spent in detention and confinement in the United Kingdom. Pollack has also obtained acquittals and helped reverse wrongful convictions. They include Martin Tankleff, who spent 17 years in prison after being wrongly accused of murdering his parents, and Michael Krautz, a former Enron accountant who faced criminal fraud charges after the energy giant’s collapse. At Maduro’s first hearing, the American press reported that Pollack questioned the legality of his capture by American forces. He argued that Maduro has the right to immunity, as head of a sovereign state. Maduro’s wife, Cilia Flores, was represented separately by lawyer Mark Donnelly, from Houston, in the US state of Texas. He is a former Justice Department prosecutor and his experience focuses on white-collar crimes, according to his office’s website. Donnelly stated that Flores had suffered “significant injuries” during the military operation that led to his capture and called for a full medical examination. The indictment The indictment is being handled by the Federal Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. The Prosecutor’s Office is headed by federal prosecutor Jay Clayton, who signed the indictment against Maduro and his wife. In November, United States Attorney General Pam Bondi appointed Clayton to lead an investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s (1953-2019) ties to senior members of the Democratic Party and major financial institutions. One of the main lawyers in Maduro’s case is Amanda Houle, head of the prosecutor’s office’s criminal division. She recently returned to the organization, after working in the private sector. Between 2015 and 2023, Houle worked in the Southern District of New York in several senior positions, including heading the Narcotics Unit. During Maduro’s January 5 arraignment hearing, Deputy Federal Prosecutor Kyle Wirshba spoke on behalf of the government. Wirshba is a member of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s national and international narcotics security unit. He has a history of handling important cases related to international drug trafficking. He has participated in the action against Maduro since the Venezuelan leader’s initial indictment in 2020. Before that, he played an important role in the case against former Venezuelan general Cliver Alcalá Cordones, who was an ally of Maduro and pleaded guilty to providing material support to the Colombian FARC guerrillas. Wirshba also prosecuted the Venezuelan gang Trem de Aragua and its alleged leader, Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, indicted as a defendant alongside Maduro in this case. He is one of the prosecutors in the action against Mexican Jesús Méndez-Vargas, cartel leader extradited to the United States last year. And he also participated in the prosecution team that obtained the conviction of former Honduran president Juan Orlando Hernández (2014-2022).

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