US extradition request discharged after remote plea and sentence hearing: possible legal first

In a possible legal first, the extradition of a man wanted by the United States to stand trial for drug trafficking offences has been discharged after he was permitted to enter a plea and be sentenced in an Ohio court remotely by video-link from the UK.

Represented by Malcolm Hawkes, the requested person was accused of being part of a US-based drug trafficking gang which sold and distributed synthetic ‘magic mushrooms’ across the US, the UK, Europe and elsewhere over a number of years. The man allegedly received and re-shipped the drugs that were sent to him from his co-conspirators the US.

In this federal prosecution, the US authorities took the view that the synthetic substance is not especially harmful and that the conduct was not so serious. This is despite ‘magic mushrooms’ being classified as a controlled drug of Class A in the UK.

The US authorities agreed that the 8 months the requested person had spent in custody in the UK while contesting extradition was more than, or at least equal to any sentence he would receive were he to be extradited and convicted in the United States. The man entered a guilty plea by video-link and was sentenced the same day to ‘time served’, thereby ending the case.

Of note, the US government was initially reluctant to set a precedent for the remote disposal of an accusation extradition request. However, that position was overtaken by the case of Anne Sacoolas, whose extradition was sought by the UK from the US for causing the death of a motorcyclist; represented by Ben Cooper KC, she pleaded guilty and was sentenced at the Old Bailey by video-link from the US. This development undermined any suggestion that the same could not be done the other way round in this case.

In USA v DB, Malcolm was instructed by Francesca Cociani of Hodge Jones and Allen Solicitors.