Van Duc Vo, A/K/A Vo Van Duc, Nguyen Tran Van and Trang Van Nguyen v. Michael L. Benov, Warden

Van Due Vo, a naturalized U.S. citizen fighting extradition to Thailand, appeals an order of the district court denying his petition for a writ of habeas corpus filed pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241 . Vo asserts that the crime with which he was charged was a political offense and thus not a valid basis for extradition under the terms of the extradition treaty between the United States and Thailand. He also contends that the extradition court violated his due process rights by failing to make a finding whether he had been “proceeded against” under the terms of the treaty and by not denying his extradition on that ground. Because we find that the crime with which Vo was charged is not protected by the political offense exception and that Vo’s arguments as to the “proceeded against” clause of the treaty do not present a claim that is cognizable on this appeal, we affirm the district court.

I. Background

A. The Extradition Process

An extradition court — -in this case the magistrate judge — exercises very limited authority in the overall process of extradition. As we have explained, “[ejxtradition is a matter of foreign policy entirely within the discretion of the executive branch,…