Extradition in America: Of Uniform Acts and Governmental Discretion

Abstract

This Article discusses extradition in America. The original authority for interstate extradition is the United States Constitution, which has been effectuated by Congress through federal statute. However, the Uniform Criminal Extradition Act (U.C.E.A.) permits extradition under circumstances and through procedures not articulated in the federal statute. The most recent development in the extradition process is the adoption by the Commissioners on Uniform State Laws of the Uniform Extradition and Rendition Act (U.E.R.A.), designed to replace the U.C.E.A. This Article examines: (1) the current extradition process under the Uniform Criminal Extradition Act (U.C.E.A.), with particular emphasis on the use of discretion and the cognizable issues for judicial resolution prior to transfer of the alleged fugitive; and (2) the fundamental changes of the new U.E.R.A., which is intended to streamline the current extradition process and provide much more detail than the U.C.E.A.

Keywords: Uniform Criminal Extradition Act, U.C.E.A., Uniform Extradition and Rendition Act, U.E.R.A.

JEL Classification: K14