NEW YORK — A U.S. judge pressed the Biden administration Thursday about its basis for barring Venezuela’s government from paying former President Nicolás Maduro’s legal fees in the drug trafficking case that has him jailed in New York.
Maduro and his wife and co-defendant, Cilia Flores, watched the hearing in beige jail uniforms as their lawyers argued the U.S. is violating the former leader’s constitutional rights by blocking Venezuelan government money for the couple’s defense. The U.S. has kept the funds blocked because of sanctions on Venezuela.
Judge Alvin Hellerstein questioned whether the government’s argument still applies now that U.S.-Venezuela relations have changed since Maduro’s capture by U.S. military forces in January. Washington and Caracas have reestablished diplomatic ties, the U.S. eased some sanctions on Venezuela’s oil industry, and a U.S. chargé d’affaires has been posted to Caracas.
“We have changed the situation in Venezuela,” Hellerstein said, adding that the “paramount goal and need and constitutional right is the right to defense.” He did not issue a ruling or give a timeline for one.
Maduro and Flores made their first court appearance since a January arraignment where Maduro pleaded not guilty and called himself “the constitutional president of my country.” Flores has also pleaded not guilty. A 25-page indictment accuses them and others of collaborating with drug cartels and members of the military to ship thousands of tons of cocaine into the U.S., and of ordering kidnappings, beatings and murders of people tied to the trafficking. If convicted, they face life in prison.
Both remain jailed in Brooklyn and have not sought bail. Hellerstein has not set a trial date.
Outside the Manhattan courthouse, rival groups of demonstrators chanted, blew horns and beat drums. Critics held signs reading “Maduro rot in prison,” while supporters on the other side of a barrier waved “Free President Maduro” placards. In Caracas, hundreds including ruling party supporters, state employees and militia members gathered to pray for Maduro and Flores and denounce the operation that removed him on Jan. 3. A retiree at the plaza called the capture a “kidnapping” that violated international legal principles and urged a U.S. trial that could free Maduro.
Despite public displays of support — murals and billboards in Caracas demand their return — Maduro has been sidelined politically. Acting President Delcy Rodríguez has replaced senior officials, including Maduro’s defense minister and attorney general, reorganized agencies, appointed ambassadors and rolled back elements of the movement Maduro led for more than two decades.
In court, Hellerstein cut off Flores’ attorney, Mark Donnelly, when he referred to her as “the first lady,” saying, “There are no titles to be used in this court.” As the hearing ended, Maduro flashed a two-finger “V” sign, a symbol that has appeared on murals with the slogan “Nosotros Venceremos” (“We Shall Overcome”), said “Hasta mañana,” shook hands with his lawyer Barry Pollack and was escorted out.
Funding for defense was a central issue. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kyle Wirshba said the sanctions—imposed long before the indictment—were aimed at Maduro’s government for alleged repression and plundering of Venezuelan wealth. Allowing government funds to be used in a case arising from that conduct, Wirshba argued, would “undermine the sanctions.” The U.S. has said Maduro and Flores may use personal funds to pay lawyers; the defense says they lack such funds.
Pollack told the judge that appointing public defenders would deplete resources intended for people who cannot afford counsel and that it makes no sense to bar a ready source of payment from Venezuela’s government when it offers to fund the defense. He asked Hellerstein to dismiss the case, but the judge said he would not take such a “serious step” while another remedy — seeking Treasury Department permission for the funds — remains. Hellerstein left open the possibility of revisiting dismissal if Treasury refuses.
President Donald Trump, speaking at a Cabinet meeting Thursday, called Maduro a “major purveyor of drugs coming into our country” and said Maduro would receive “a fair trial.”
Meanwhile, everyday life for many Venezuelans remains dire. Public-sector employees often earn roughly $160 per month, the average private-sector wage is about $237, and last year Venezuela’s annual inflation rate reportedly soared to 475%, straining access to food and essentials for many residents.