7 News Belize

Dean Bruce, 6 Years Later, Still Fighting Extradition
posted (June 17, 2019)
He's been fighting his extradition to the US for almost 6 years now, and today, Belizean Deon Bruce went to the Court of Appeal to make another major attempt to stop the proceedings against him.

As we told you, the US Government wants him extradited to face trial for the murder of Aron Carter and attempted murder against Aaron Rodgers. They say that on July 28th, 2010, he allegedly opened fire on both on both men. The incident happened in Chicago, Illinois, when Bruce and Carter allegedly got into a disagreement, which ended when Bruce pulled a firearm from the trunk of his vehicle, and fired at Carter and Rodgers. Rodgers escaped with his life, but Carter passed away from gunshot injuries.

His extradition was ordered by former Chief Magistrate Ann Marie Smith back in 2013, and since then, he's been attempting to reverse it. His attorneys have made 2 attempts at the Supreme Court to get the extradition order overturned. The first attempt was by way of a judicial review application which was rejected by Justice Courtney Abel. And then, he and his legal team went back before Justice Michelle Arana for a habeas corpus application, which was also refused.

His attorney, Anthony Sylvestre, went before a panel of Appeal Court judges this afternoon. Sylvestre and the attorneys representing the Attorney General's Ministry argued extensively over which was the more appropriate method that Bruce's legal team should have taken to get the extradition proceedings discontinued against him.

That part of the hearing became very technical, but it appears at this time, that a major issue on which this appeal could pivot is the committal warrant that the former Chief Magistrate Smith signed it, when she ordered that Bruce should be extradited. Bruce's attorneys are disputing it, on the grounds that it is defective. They say that it does not properly state what Bruce is being held in prison for, and from their perspective, the state has been detaining Bruce unlawfully for several years now.

The Court of Appeal has reserved judgement to a date to be announced.

The Attorney General's ministry was represented by Assistant Solicitor General Samantha Matute-Tucker, and Crown Counsel Briana Williams.

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