(NewsNation) — Attorneys for deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro are expected to argue he is shielded by head-of-state immunity, but once in court, he will move through the legal process like any other defendant.
Maduro pleaded not guilty in a New York court Monday, telling a federal judge in Spanish that he was “captured.”
“I’m innocent. I am not guilty. I am a decent man, the president of my country,” he said.
U.S. forces extracted Maduro and his wife from Venezuela to face charges including narcoterrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation and weapons offenses involving machine guns and destructive devices.
The circumstances are unusual, but legal experts say the case still has a path forward.
It’s “unprecedented” to seize a foreign leader in another country and bring him to the U.S., but the Supreme Court has said how a defendant gets here does not necessarily bar prosecution, retired U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin told NewsNation’s “Morning in America.”
Scheindlin said Maduro’s lawyers are likely to argue he is entitled to head-of-state immunity, while prosecutors are expected to counter that he was not a legitimate president, setting up a significant legal fight a judge will have to resolve.
Ahead of Monday’s hearing, President Donald Trump said the case against the former leader is “infallible,” though he acknowledged the trial could be a “slog.”
What will Maduro’s defense strategy be in a U.S court?
Maduro’s attorneys are expected to attack the legality of his arrest, arguing he is barred from prosecution under sovereign head-of-state immunity, former U.S. Attorney John Fishwick told NewsNation’s “Morning in America.”
“The defense is going to say Maduro is the head of state of another country and that the U.S. is interfering with another nation’s sovereignty,” he said.
Foreign leaders are generally shielded from U.S. criminal charges under doctrines such as head-of-state and foreign official immunity. But Fishwick noted that protection may not apply if the U.S. does not recognize the individual as a legitimate leader, as is the case for Maduro.
U.S. officials have said Washington does not view Maduro as Venezuela’s lawful head of state, particularly after his widely disputed 2024 reelection.
“The DOJ is going to say, ‘You are a big-time drug dealer and encourage violence around the world, we’re bringing you to justice, we’ve done this before, and we’re going to do it again,” Fishwick said, pointing to the U.S. prosecution of former Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega.
While the government will argue it has the authority to put Maduro on trial, Fishwick cautioned the legal fight could stretch on for years through appeals.
Venezuela’s interim president, Delcy Rodríguez, initially demanded Maduro’s return but later softened her stance, calling on social media for cooperation with President Trump and “respectful relations” with Washington.
Sovereign immunity defense used before
Former dictator Noriega unsuccessfully mounted the same defense after U.S. forces captured him in Panama during a 1990 military invasion.
In his first trial, Noriega’s lawyers argued that his arrest as a result of a U.S. invasion was so “shocking to the conscience” that it rendered the government’s case an illegal violation of his due process rights.
After a seven-month trial, a federal judge sentenced Noriega to 40 years in prison on drug trafficking and racketeering charges. Noriega later won prisoner-of-war status, and after two decades in U.S. custody was sent to France and then Panama, where he died in 2017.
In ordering Noriega’s removal, the White House cited a 1989 legal opinion by then–Assistant Attorney General Bill Barr asserting that international law does not prohibit U.S. “forcible abductions” abroad to enforce domestic laws.
There will be much legal back and forth on the nuances between the two cases, Scheindlin noted.
“This is not an extradition case, which was the case in Noriega, so this is different. This is unprecedented,” he said.
What is the legal process for the head of a foreign nation?
Heads of state accused of crimes, including Maduro, are entitled to the same legal rights and process as any other defendant.
The case will begin with an arraignment, but given the risk of flight, bail is highly unlikely, Scheindlin noted.
After that, the judge will set dates for his next appearance, so that the process can really start “where he can raise whatever defenses he intends to raise, and make any motions he intends to make.”
U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, a 92-year-old who has overseen major cases involving Trump, the 9/11 attacks and the Sudanese genocide, will preside over what could be his most consequential case yet.
Hellerstein has already sentenced or is set to sentence several of Maduro’s co-defendants, including former Venezuelan military and intelligence officials.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.