Latest news with #SilviaDelgado
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
She defended drug lord El Chapo - now, she's running for office
As drivers sit in traffic near the Bridge of the Americas connecting Mexico with the USA, Silvia Delgado weaves between the cars handing out leaflets. "I'm standing for penal judge," she says brightly. "Vote for number 12 on the ballot papers!" Most happily wind down their windows and accept a flyer from her. But in Sunday's rather unique election – the first of two votes by which Mexicans will choose the country's entire judiciary by direct ballot – Silvia Delgado is not an ordinary candidate. Conspicuously absent from the short biography on her pamphlets is the name of her best-known client: she was the defence lawyer for the notorious drug lord, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmán. Her critics say her past defending the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel should disqualify her from standing as a judge. She gives that idea short shrift. "Why should it? For doing my job?" she retorts, her heckles immediately raised at any suggestion of a conflict of interest. "For defending people's individual guarantees? For mounting an adequate technical defence for a human being? Why should that make me illegitimate?" she asks. Silvia Delgado has not been convicted of any crime, is not facing any charges and is not under investigation – whether over her links to El Chapo or anything else. But a leading human rights and transparency organisation in Mexico called Defensorxs has included her in a list of 19 "high risk candidates" in the election. As well as Ms Delgado, the list includes a candidate with a drug trafficking conviction and another facing accusations of orchestrating violence against journalists. The director of Defensorxs, Miguel Alfonso Meza, believes the so-called "high risk candidates" are a danger to the legitimacy of Mexico's justice system: "Someone that has already worked with a cartel, it is very difficult that they get out, even if it was only as a lawyer. It's not even about whether she's a good person or a bad person," says Mr Meza, referring to Silvia Delgado. "The Sinaloa Cartel is not only 'El Chapo' Guzman. It is a company that has criminal and economic interests which are being resolved in the justice system. The cartel could pressure her to show loyalty because she has already been their employee." Silvia Delgado visibly stiffens at the mention of Defensorxs and Miguel Alfonso Meza. "It's completely stupid," she bristles, claiming she has challenged them to "dig into her past as much as they like". She also dismisses their main accusation that she was paid with drug money and could be compromised if she is elected judge. "How can you prove that? I received a payment which was the same as any normal monthly payment which was paid to me by lawyers, members of his legal team. I'm not his daughter or his sister or anything. I'm a professional." Ms Delgado is competing for one of more than 7,500 judicial position up for grabs – from local magistrates to all nine Supreme Court justices. While it was under discussion, the judicial reform prompted widespread protests by law students and a strike by workers in the legal system. Its critics maintain that electing every judge in Mexico amounts to the politicisation of the country's justice system. "Of course, it's a political attack [on the judiciary]," says Miguel Alfonso Meza. "Former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador didn't like to have constraints from the judicial power. When the pressure became too great and the constraints too tight, the only solution they found was to remove all the judges in the country," he adds. This reform was passed before President Claudia Sheinbaum was sworn in, but she is a firm supporter of it and polls suggest it has broad approval among the electorate too. Supporters point out that the United States, Switzerland and Bolivia elect many of their judges. But Mexico will become the first country in the world to elect all of them. Markets remain unconvinced with investors fearful of the prospect of the ruling party controlling the presidency, the legislative branch and the judiciary. Miguel Alfonso Meza believes that problems will arise from "the agreements and negotiations judges have to make with political actors… in order to get the support they need to win the elections". One of the 64 candidates seeking a seat on the Supreme Court is Olivia Aguirre Bonilla. Also from Ciudad Juárez, her legal background is in human rights law and as an activist against gender-based violence in the notoriously dangerous border city. Like all the candidates, Ms Aguirre Bonilla has had to pay for her campaign out of her own pocket – candidates are banned from accepting public or private funding and forbidden from purchasing advertising spots. As such, she's primarily used social media to push out her 6-point plan from clamping down on exorbitant salaries to opening the Supreme Court hearings to the public. While she acknowledges the criticisms over the potential politicisation of Mexico's justice system, Aguirre Bonilla believes the vote is an opportunity for meaningful change of a collapsed, corrupted and nepotistic judiciary. "I think all the citizens in Mexico are politicised, and we're all part of public life," she says. "The difference here is that our 'untouchable' legal system – and it was untouchable because it was controlled by the elites, by privilege – for the first time in history will be voted in. It will be democratised through the popular vote." Many people in the judiciary were there through influence and familial connections, Aguirre Bonilla argues, and it lacks the legitimacy of the executive and legislative branches. "This vote will grant the justice system true independence as it's not chosen by the President of the Republic but elected by the people of Mexico to represent them." So far, the arguments over constitutionality and legitimacy, over the process and the candidates have been bitter and fierce. Now all eyes turn to the polling stations, particularly on the turnout and abstention rates as indicators of Mexicans' backing for the reform. As for Silvia Delgado, the woman who defended Mexico's most wanted drug lord, she just hopes the people of Ciudad Juárez will respect her work enough to allow her to sit in judgement of other criminals who are brought before her. 'Severe blow' to Sinaloa cartel as security chief of El Chapo's son arrested Murder, drugs and football on the Mexican border Five musicians murdered in suspected Mexican cartel killing
BBC News
3 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Mexico judicial reform: Candidate who defended El Chapo runs for office
As drivers sit in traffic near the Bridge of the Americas connecting Mexico with the USA, Silvia Delgado weaves between the cars handing out leaflets."I'm standing for penal judge," she says brightly. "Vote for number 12 on the ballot papers!"Most happily wind down their windows and accept a flyer from her. But in Sunday's rather unique election – the first of two votes by which Mexicans will choose the country's entire judiciary by direct ballot – Silvia Delgado is not an ordinary absent from the short biography on her pamphlets is the name of her best-known client: she was the defence lawyer for the notorious drug lord, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmá critics say her past defending the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel should disqualify her from standing as a judge. She gives that idea short shrift."Why should it? For doing my job?" she retorts, her heckles immediately raised at any suggestion of a conflict of interest."For defending people's individual guarantees? For mounting an adequate technical defence for a human being? Why should that make me illegitimate?" she asks. Silvia Delgado has not been convicted of any crime, is not facing any charges and is not under investigation – whether over her links to El Chapo or anything a leading human rights and transparency organisation in Mexico called Defensorxs has included her in a list of 19 "high risk candidates" in the election. As well as Ms Delgado, the list includes a candidate with a drug trafficking conviction and another facing accusations of orchestrating violence against director of Defensorxs, Miguel Alfonso Meza, believes the so-called "high risk candidates" are a danger to the legitimacy of Mexico's justice system:"Someone that has already worked with a cartel, it is very difficult that they get out, even if it was only as a lawyer. It's not even about whether she's a good person or a bad person," says Mr Meza, referring to Silvia Delgado."The Sinaloa Cartel is not only 'El Chapo' Guzman. It is a company that has criminal and economic interests which are being resolved in the justice system. The cartel could pressure her to show loyalty because she has already been their employee."Silvia Delgado visibly stiffens at the mention of Defensorxs and Miguel Alfonso Meza."It's completely stupid," she bristles, claiming she has challenged them to "dig into her past as much as they like". She also dismisses their main accusation that she was paid with drug money and could be compromised if she is elected judge."How can you prove that? I received a payment which was the same as any normal monthly payment which was paid to me by lawyers, members of his legal team. I'm not his daughter or his sister or anything. I'm a professional." Ms Delgado is competing for one of more than 7,500 judicial position up for grabs – from local magistrates to all nine Supreme Court it was under discussion, the judicial reform prompted widespread protests by law students and a strike by workers in the legal system. Its critics maintain that electing every judge in Mexico amounts to the politicisation of the country's justice system."Of course, it's a political attack [on the judiciary]," says Miguel Alfonso Meza."Former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador didn't like to have constraints from the judicial power. When the pressure became too great and the constraints too tight, the only solution they found was to remove all the judges in the country," he reform was passed before President Claudia Sheinbaum was sworn in, but she is a firm supporter of it and polls suggest it has broad approval among the electorate point out that the United States, Switzerland and Bolivia elect many of their judges. But Mexico will become the first country in the world to elect all of them. Markets remain unconvinced with investors fearful of the prospect of the ruling party controlling the presidency, the legislative branch and the Alfonso Meza believes that problems will arise from "the agreements and negotiations judges have to make with political actors… in order to get the support they need to win the elections". One of the 64 candidates seeking a seat on the Supreme Court is Olivia Aguirre Bonilla. Also from Ciudad Juárez, her legal background is in human rights law and as an activist against gender-based violence in the notoriously dangerous border all the candidates, Ms Aguirre Bonilla has had to pay for her campaign out of her own pocket – candidates are banned from accepting public or private funding and forbidden from purchasing advertising spots. As such, she's primarily used social media to push out her 6-point plan from clamping down on exorbitant salaries to opening the Supreme Court hearings to the she acknowledges the criticisms over the potential politicisation of Mexico's justice system, Aguirre Bonilla believes the vote is an opportunity for meaningful change of a collapsed, corrupted and nepotistic judiciary."I think all the citizens in Mexico are politicised, and we're all part of public life," she says."The difference here is that our 'untouchable' legal system – and it was untouchable because it was controlled by the elites, by privilege – for the first time in history will be voted in. It will be democratised through the popular vote."Many people in the judiciary were there through influence and familial connections, Aguirre Bonilla argues, and it lacks the legitimacy of the executive and legislative branches."This vote will grant the justice system true independence as it's not chosen by the President of the Republic but elected by the people of Mexico to represent them." So far, the arguments over constitutionality and legitimacy, over the process and the candidates have been bitter and all eyes turn to the polling stations, particularly on the turnout and abstention rates as indicators of Mexicans' backing for the for Silvia Delgado, the woman who defended Mexico's most wanted drug lord, she just hopes the people of Ciudad Juárez will respect her work enough to allow her to sit in judgement of other criminals who are brought before her.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Chapo's ex-lawyer among Mexico's 'high-risk' aspiring judges
In a crime-plagued Mexican border city, lawyer Silvia Delgado urges passersby to vote for her as a judge, despite her past work for one of the world's most notorious drug lords. Her candidacy is one of the most controversial in elections beginning on Sunday that will make Mexico the world's only country to choose all of its judges and magistrates by popular vote. But Delgado is not the only contender whose suitability to dispense justice has been called into question. Other hopefuls include a man who was imprisoned in the United States for drug crimes, even though those taking part are supposed to have no criminal record. Candidates must have a law degree, experience in legal affairs and what is termed "a good reputation." But that did not prevent a former prosecutor accused of threatening two journalists who were later murdered from getting his name on the ballot. Delgado, 51, was a member of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's legal team in Ciudad Juarez, where the Sinaloa cartel co-founder was detained before being extradited to the United States in 2017. "I've defended many people," she told AFP in an interview, saying that having assisted Guzman in his hearings did not make her a criminal. "Every person has the right to counsel," she said, talking up her experience to voters. "You're going to have an impartial and knowledgeable judge," she told a street vendor near a border crossing between Ciudad Juarez and El Paso, Texas. - 'The most imperfect' - Delgado is one of around 20 candidates identified by rights group Defensorxs as "high-risk" for reasons including allegations of cartel links, corruption and sexual abuse. Defensorxs describes Delgado as someone who "defends alleged drug traffickers." It is a sensitive issue in Mexico, where criminal violence has claimed more than 480,000 lives since 2006 and left around 120,000 people missing. A violent split in the Sinaloa cartel -- one of several Mexican drug trafficking groups that have been designated terrorist organizations by US President Donald Trump -- has resulted in 1,200 deaths since September. Also on the Defensorxs list is Leopoldo Chavez, an aspiring federal judge in the northern state of Durango. He was imprisoned for almost six years in the United States between 2015 and 2021 for methamphetamine trafficking. "I've never sold myself to you as the perfect candidate," he said in a video posted on social media. "I'm the most imperfect, but the one who most wants to get this done. Fernando Escamilla, who is standing to be a judge in the northern state of Nuevo Leon, was a lawyer for Miguel Angel Trevino, a former leaders of Los Zetas, a cartel known for its brutality. - '0.01 percent' - In the western state of Michoacan, candidate Francisco Herrera is accused by the press of having threatened journalists Roberto Toledo and Armando Linares, who were murdered in 2022. He denies any involvement. In neighboring Jalisco state, Job Daniel Wong is a minister of the Mexican mega-church La Luz Del Mundo, whose leader Naason Joaquin Garcia was convicted in the United States of sexual abusing minors. President Claudia Sheinbaum has downplayed the importance of the controversial candidacies, saying "it's 0.01 percent" of all those standing. Her ruling party promoted the elections, which it says are needed to combat corruption and impunity. Critics say criminal groups who regularly use violence, threats and bribery will seek to increase their influence over the courts by meddling in the vote. The ruling party's Senate leader, Gerardo Fernandez Norona, has said that lawyers who represented drug traffickers "should not participate." The electoral authority will only assess the validity of their candidacies after the elections. Defensorxs director Miguel Alfonso Meza blames the situation on the haste with which the constitutional reform was passed and the lack of rigor in vetting candidacies. "It's impressive that to be a municipal traffic officer you have to take an exam, but to be a criminal judge who resolves cases involving a cartel, all you have to do is send your resume," he said. yug/axm/dr/bgs
Int'l Business Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Int'l Business Times
Chapo's Ex-lawyer Among Mexico's 'High-risk' Aspiring Judges
In a crime-plagued Mexican border city, lawyer Silvia Delgado urges passersby to vote for her as a judge, despite her past work for one of the world's most notorious drug lords. Her candidacy is one of the most controversial in elections beginning on Sunday that will make Mexico the world's only country to choose all of its judges and magistrates by popular vote. But Delgado is not the only contender whose suitability to dispense justice has been called into question. Other hopefuls include a man who was imprisoned in the United States for drug crimes, even though those taking part are supposed to have no criminal record. Candidates must have a law degree, experience in legal affairs and what is termed "a good reputation." But that did not prevent a former prosecutor accused of threatening two journalists who were later murdered from getting his name on the ballot. Delgado, 51, was a member of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's legal team in Ciudad Juarez, where the Sinaloa cartel co-founder was detained before being extradited to the United States in 2017. "I've defended many people," she told AFP in an interview, saying that having assisted Guzman in his hearings did not make her a criminal. "Every person has the right to counsel," she said, talking up her experience to voters. "You're going to have an impartial and knowledgeable judge," she told a street vendor near a border crossing between Ciudad Juarez and El Paso, Texas. Delgado is one of around 20 candidates identified by rights group Defensorxs as "high-risk" for reasons including allegations of cartel links, corruption and sexual abuse. Defensorxs describes Delgado as someone who "defends alleged drug traffickers." It is a sensitive issue in Mexico, where criminal violence has claimed more than 480,000 lives since 2006 and left around 120,000 people missing. A violent split in the Sinaloa cartel -- one of several Mexican drug trafficking groups that have been designated terrorist organizations by US President Donald Trump -- has resulted in 1,200 deaths since September. Also on the Defensorxs list is Leopoldo Chavez, an aspiring federal judge in the northern state of Durango. He was imprisoned for almost six years in the United States between 2015 and 2021 for methamphetamine trafficking. "I've never sold myself to you as the perfect candidate," he said in a video posted on social media. "I'm the most imperfect, but the one who most wants to get this done. Fernando Escamilla, who is standing to be a judge in the northern state of Nuevo Leon, was a lawyer for Miguel Angel Trevino, a former leaders of Los Zetas, a cartel known for its brutality. In the western state of Michoacan, candidate Francisco Herrera is accused by the press of having threatened journalists Roberto Toledo and Armando Linares, who were murdered in 2022. He denies any involvement. In neighboring Jalisco state, Job Daniel Wong is a minister of the Mexican mega-church La Luz Del Mundo, whose leader Naason Joaquin Garcia was convicted in the United States of sexual abusing minors. President Claudia Sheinbaum has downplayed the importance of the controversial candidacies, saying "it's 0.01 percent" of all those standing. Her ruling party promoted the elections, which it says are needed to combat corruption and impunity. Critics say criminal groups who regularly use violence, threats and bribery will seek to increase their influence over the courts by meddling in the vote. The ruling party's Senate leader, Gerardo Fernandez Norona, has said that lawyers who represented drug traffickers "should not participate." The electoral authority will only assess the validity of their candidacies after the elections. Defensorxs director Miguel Alfonso Meza blames the situation on the haste with which the constitutional reform was passed and the lack of rigor in vetting candidacies. "It's impressive that to be a municipal traffic officer you have to take an exam, but to be a criminal judge who resolves cases involving a cartel, all you have to do is send your resume," he said. Silvia Delgado is considered a "high-risk" candidate by rights group Defensorxs due to her past work for convicted drug trafficker Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman AFP
Straits Times
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Straits Times
El Chapo's former lawyer and an ex-drug smuggler on the ballot to be judges in Mexico
Silvia Delgado, former defense attorney for Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquin \"El Chapo\" Guzman in 2016 and current candidate for criminal judge, distributes campaign materials ahead of Mexico's first judicial elections, to be held on June 1, in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, May 12, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez Silvia Delgado, former defense attorney for Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquin \"El Chapo\" Guzman in 2016 and current candidate for criminal judge, distributes campaign materials ahead of Mexico's first judicial elections, to be held on June 1, in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, May 12, 2025. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez El Chapo's former lawyer and an ex-drug smuggler on the ballot to be judges in Mexico CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico - When residents in the state of Durango vote in Mexico's first judicial elections next weekend, Leopoldo Chavez will be on the ballot for federal judge - despite the nearly six years he served in a U.S. prison. Chavez was convicted on drug offenses: for smuggling over 4 kilograms of methamphetamines in 2015. Durango is part of Mexico's Golden Triangle, a cartel-controlled region growing marijuana and opium poppies. "I've never sold myself as the perfect candidate," Chavez said in a video he shared on Facebook. He said he had nothing to hide and had served his time. He declined to comment to Reuters. In the nearby Pacific coast state of Jalisco, Francisco Hernandez is running to be a criminal magistrate even though the last time he served as a judge he was dismissed by the Federal Judiciary Council after an investigation into allegations of sexual abuse and corruption. He told Reuters the accusations were "slander and defamation." "Let the people judge me," he said. And in Nuevo Leon, Fernando Escamilla is hoping to become a federal criminal judge and says the legal work he did advising lawyers for members of the ultra-violent Los Zetas cartel should not be held against him. His knowledge of extradition law, on which he advised the capos, made him an asset, he told Reuters in an interview. "Does being an advisor on international or extradition law give you a bad public reputation? I don't think so, since that's the only thing that demonstrates that you have the ability and knowledge to handle these types of situations," Escamilla said. Ahead of the elections on June 1, civil organizations, judge associations and some Mexican lawmakers are raising serious concerns about a vote that critics warn could jeopardize the country's rule of law. The controversial judicial overhaul was proposed by leftist former President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and supported by his protege, President Claudia Sheinbaum. Both said it would root out corruption in Mexico's flawed judiciary and allow the people to decide who should be a judge. Around 5,000 candidates are vying for more than 840 federal positions, including all Supreme Court justices. But with the vote just over a week away, Mexican rights group Defensorxs says it has identified about 20 people vying for positions that have criminal indiscretions, corruption allegations against them or past links to cartels, including a defense lawyer who represented drug kingpin Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman. An analysis by the Judicial Electoral Observatory (OEJ), made up of non-profit organizations, has also flagged more than 130 candidates with a high probability of winning in the absence of opposing candidates, and criticized problems in the design of complicated ballots that feature hundreds of names and may confuse voters. The reform, passed in September 2024, was criticized by then U.S. ambassador Ken Salazar, who served during the administration of President Joe Biden, as a threat to Mexican democracy. Critics say the reform, one of the most broad-ranging to be attempted in recent years by any country in the Western Hemisphere, risks removing checks and balances on the ruling Morena party and allowing organized crime groups greater influence over the judicial system. The reform reduces the number of Supreme Court judges to nine from 11, cuts the length of their terms to 12 years, abolishes a minimum age requirement of 35, and halves necessary legal practice to five years. It also scraps some benefits for judicial workers and creates a five-person disciplinary tribunal, which critics argue is insufficient to oversee a 50,000-member judiciary. Defensorxs president Miguel Meza said that the candidates his organization had flagged revealed grave flaws in the government vetting system, which was meant to verify eligibility criteria including: Mexican citizenship by birth, a bachelor's degree in law, "good reputation," and a record clean of serious crime. Meza said his organization has been making its way through the list of candidates and had identified other problematic names that they had yet to publish. Meza said aspiring judges were apparently not screened for foreign convictions or who they had legally represented. He put much of the problem down to rushing the election. "Everything we're seeing is the result of trying to fast-track this reform," Meza said. Sheinbaum's office and Mexico's federal judiciary did not respond to a request for comment on the reform or the vetting. Both the ruling coalition and the electoral authority have tried to distance themselves from questions about eligibility, saying it is too late to do anything before the election. Victorious candidates proven to be ineligible will have to be removed after the vote, election authorities said. A Mexican association of magistrates and judges, JUFED, said the list of controversial candidates confirms its view that the reform is a threat to judicial independence in Mexico. "What's happening with the election is dangerous," said JUFED national director Juana Fuentes. "There is a serious risk that criminal interests or groups, or people representing them, could become involved." Most of Mexico's sitting Supreme Court justices announced they would not participate in the elections and instead will resign. Candidates cannot use campaign materials that link them to a political party, participate in events organized by political parties or accept donations of any kind. PROFESSIONAL DUTY Perhaps the candidate who has garnered the most headlines is Silvia Delgado, who represented the notorious El Chapo, former chief of the Sinaloa Cartel, in 2016. She visited him weekly in prison to share updates before he was extradited to the United States and eventually sentenced to life in prison. Now, she hopes to become a criminal court judge in Chihuahua. On a recent afternoon in the border town of Ciudad Juarez, Delgado braved the sweltering heat to hand out flyers and chat to voters outside a local school. A single mom, who raised four children and put herself through law school, Delgado strikes a charismatic figure, in a black skirt suit and chunky heels. "I'm not corrupt," she said, "they can't burn you for having represented someone." "The best legacy I can give, as a human being and for my children and grandchildren, is to have been a person of integrity, who always defended people." She said she considers her work representing El Chapo, which included filing a petition that he be provided a blanket in prison, to be in line with her professional duties. Delgado is upfront about the reason she took on the job. It was, she says, a big step up for her as a lawyer; and one she'd take again. "I was interested because it was a career opportunity... Working on the case of such a famous figure." She said she had not had any contact with El Chapo's lawyers since the case, though she did agree to help his wife, a U.S.-Mexican dual national, take her children to the United States. She kept her harshest words for activist Meza, describing him as "irresponsible" and running a "Robin Hood group" bent on "directly attacking me." Meza said Defensorxs was not interested in "attacking" any candidate, but exposing the risks associated with them. "Our goal is to inform the public about these risks so they can take them into account when exercising their right to vote." "It seems clear to us that this risk exists in Silvia Delgado's case," he added. He did not identify other concerns apart from her legal work for El Chapo. MEDIA WAR Senate leader Gerardo Fernandez Norona, a powerful member of the ruling party, told Reuters the focus on the eligibility of certain candidates was a "racist, classist" media war aimed at discrediting the elections. "It's not important. It's not relevant," Norona said, adding that people found ineligible could be withdrawn after the vote. The INE electoral authority has made it clear that names cannot be removed ahead of the vote. Claudia Zavala, an electoral advisor at INE, said the body should have been included earlier in the vetting process, which was conducted by committee members selected by Congress, the judicial power and the executive branch of government. "It seems that splitting that function around other authorities was not ideal," she said. Now, all that can be done by INE is a post-election review of any formal complaints about candidates in order to prove a person is ineligible to hold office, Zavala said. If a winner does not meet the requirements, the role would go to the second-placed finisher. However, any investigation into a candidate's eligibility must be completed by June 15, Zavala said, when election results are finalized and positions confirmed. "The evidence must be very clear," she said. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
