The "Dual Criminality" Rule Explained
I was watching a documentary about a guy fighting extradition because the "crime" he committed in the US wasn't actually a crime in the country he was living in. I think they called it "double criminality" or something? Is that still a thing, or have modern treaties closed that loophole? For example, if someone is accused of something related to cryptocurrency or certain types of tax planning that are legal in one place but "illegal" in another, can they still be extradited? It seems so unfair to be punished for something that isn't even a crime where you currently reside.
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It's called "Dual Criminality," and yes, it is still a fundamental principle of extradition law! Basically, the conduct must be a crime in both the country asking for you and the country holding you. However, prosecutors are very clever—they often "repackage" the charges to make them look like fraud or money laundering, which are crimes everywhere. It’s a huge chess game. If you’re caught in this, the goal is to have your lawyers dismantle the charges and show the judge that the underlying actions don't actually meet the local legal definition of a crime. For a deep dive into how these defenses are built, check out extraditionlawyers.net They are experts at analyzing the fine print of treaties to find these types of jurisdictional inconsistencies. It’s all about the technicalities!