The imprisonment in Mexico of Canadian citizen Brenda Martin for her supposed involvement in a money-laundering scheme highlights an important difference between Canada's and Mexico's legal systems: in Mexico (which follows the Napoleonic Code) you are "guilty until proven innocent," while in Canada you are "innocent until proven guilty." Hence Ms. Martin is considered a criminal in Mexico, and she has been sitting in jail for two years without a trial. The Mexican judge in the case claims that she signed a confession. However, Martin, who understands little Spanish, says that she was never provided with a proper translator and didn't know what she might have unwittingly signed.
The lesson to be learned from her experience with the Mexican justice system is that if you are arrested in Mexico, never sign anything unless it has been looked over by a trustworthy Spanish-speaking lawyer. The best thing, of course, is to not get into trouble in the first place. The Canadian Foreign Affairs website has a good summary of the Mexican criminal law system.
The lesson to be learned from her experience with the Mexican justice system is that if you are arrested in Mexico, never sign anything unless it has been looked over by a trustworthy Spanish-speaking lawyer. The best thing, of course, is to not get into trouble in the first place. The Canadian Foreign Affairs website has a good summary of the Mexican criminal law system.
1 comment:
Right you are about staying out of trouble in Mexico. The lesson to be learned is indeed to follow the laws of the land. Brenda lived in a drunken haze in Puerto Vallarta for several years, paying taxes to neither the Canadian government or the Mexican government, flaunting the law the entire time. She had no work permit to be earning any of the monies she collected in Mexico, so how could she possibly convince the justice system that she was "just a cook". It didn't fly. I hope she gets her life on track with some alcohol councelling now that Canada has bailed her out. I also hope she realizes how lucky she got off. Her former co-worker (the American lady from Portland) that Brenda "fingered" is doing her full time. Ironic.
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