Establishing a presumption of innocence in Mexico

On June 17, 2008, President Felipe Calderón signed legislation designed to establish oral trials and create a presumption of innocence for criminal defendants. This legislation is probably one of the most significant developments in Mexican jurisprudence since the implementation of the Napoleonic Code.

Until now, guilt or innocence consisted of a series of fact-gathering hearings. The record of the proceeding was not available to the public. The trial was accomplished behind closed doors by a judge relying on written evidence. Prosecutors and defense lawyers will now argue their cases in court, and judges must explain their decisions to defendants.

“This is perhaps the most important reform to the criminal system that Mexicans have had in a long time,” Calderón said after signing the amendment. Mexico now faces the long process of implementing the changes, which must be in place by 2016, according to the law that is expected to go into effect tomorrow.

That includes training thousands of lawyers and judges across the country on the logistics of holding a trial. Even courthouses must be modified to make room for Mexicans who will be able to attend trials for the first time.

All trials will be open unless a judge decides a case must be closed because of national security reasons or to protect a witness or a minor.

Such a reform had been in the works for more than a decade, but the two previous presidents had been unable to get it through Congress.

Prosecutors can now hold organized crime suspects without charge for up to 80 days, and properties seized by law enforcement will automatically belong to the state unless the accused proves they were acquired through legal means. Before, criminals could fight in court for their properties to be returned even if they were illicit.

Miguel Sarre, a law professor at the Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico, who applauds most aspects of the law, called the 80-day period “a very dangerous tool.” Under the measure, defendants could be held without probable cause, Sarre said.

This article was edited from a San Diego Union Tribune article at URL: http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080618/news_1n18mexico.html