Federal Appellate Jurisdiction-International Extradition-Review of Extradition Proceedings

The Consul General of Venezuela filed a complaint in a federal district court, pursuant to treaty and statute, seeking the extradition of former President Perez Jimenez for the crimes of murder and embezzlement. While the required extradition hearings were pending, Venezuela sought to use the civil deposition and subpoena procedure8 to compel several New York banks to produce records of deposits and to give depositions concerning the accounts of Jimenez and his alleged confederates. Jimenez moved for a protective order’ to prevent Venezuela from obtaining and using these records as evidence against him in the extradition hearings. On appeal from the denial of this motion, held, appeal dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. The courts of appeals have no jurisdiction of appeals from the decisions of a district judge sitting in an extradition proceeding under authority of a statute conferring this power upon “any justice or judge of the United States,” since the district judge is not then acting in his capacity as a “district court of the United States.” Jimenez v. Aristeguieta, 290 F.2d 106 (5th Cir. 1961).