Too old? 92-year-old judge takes on Maduro case

Alvin Hellerstein, the US judge overseeing the case against deposed Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro, is a no-nonsense 92-year-old with a long list of high-profile cases on his CV.

However, as one of the oldest US federal judges – born in 1933 – some question whether he is best suited to preside over what could be a lengthy trial for Maduro on drug trafficking charges.

“The issue of age cannot be ignored,” Shira Scheindlin, a former federal judge in New York, told AFP.

Nevertheless, she praised Hellerstein as a “intelligent and savvy” operator in the courtroom.

His long career includes overseeing civil cases arising from Al-Qaeda’s 11 September 2001 attacks on New York and Washington, often rejecting settlements he considered unfair to claimants.

Hellerstein has also clashed with Donald Trump, rejecting a request by the US president to move his New York hush money case to federal court.

Last year, he also blocked the Trump administration from deporting alleged Venezuelan gang members without a court hearing.

“Hellerstein possesses a well-earned reputation for seeking justice in every case and for being independent and fair-minded,” said law professor Carl Tobias of the University of Richmond.

In a notable 2015 ruling, Hellerstein ordered the US government to release a large collection of photographs showing abuse of detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He also presided over a trial last year in which a jury found French banking giant BNP Paribas had helped support the regime of former Sudanese ruler Omar al-Bashir, awarding $20.75 million in damages to three Sudanese plaintiffs.

Hellerstein has been handling the wide-ranging drug trafficking case linked to Maduro for over a decade, which has already led to the conviction of Venezuela’s former intelligence chief, Hugo Armando Carvajal.

Maduro’s dramatic arrest in January following a US raid on his compound in Venezuela has drawn renewed public attention to the case – and to the ageing judge presiding over it.

According to The New York Times, Hellerstein was reportedly seen falling asleep during a trial last year and had to be roused by colleagues.

His attentiveness will be closely monitored in the Maduro case, as clashes between the defence and prosecution have already threatened to prolong proceedings.

“This case may not go to trial for at least a year and possibly two years. By that time, he would be either 93 or 94,” said Scheindlin.

“I have no doubt that he would be fit to try the case tomorrow. But the case will not be tried tomorrow,” she added.

A graduate of Columbia University Law School, he served as a lawyer in the US Army from 1957 to 1960 before entering private practice.

He was nominated by former president Bill Clinton in 1998 to serve as a district court judge for the Southern District of New York. 

Maduro’s next scheduled court appearance is on Thursday, when he is due before the judge alongside his wife, who has also pleaded not guilty.