[Senate Treaty Document 105-13]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



105th Congress                                              Treaty Doc.

                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                     105-13
_______________________________________________________________________


 
                    EXTRADITION TREATY WITH FRANCE

                               __________

                                MESSAGE

                                  from

                   THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES

                              transmitting

  EXTRADITION TREATY BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND FRANCE, 
                   SIGNED AT PARIS ON APRIL 23, 1996





 July 9, 1997.--Treaty was read the first time and, together with the 
accompanying papers, referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations and 
            ordered to be printed for the use of the Senate


                         LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

                              ----------                              

                                     The White House, July 9, 1997.
To the Senate of the United States:
    With a view to receiving the advice and consent of the 
Senate to ratification, I transmit herewith the Extradition 
Treaty between the United States of America and France, signed 
at Paris on April 23, 1996.
    In addition, I transmit, for the information of the Senate, 
the report of the Department of State with respect to the 
Treaty. As the report explains, the Treaty will not require 
implementing legislation.
    This Treaty will, upon entry into force, enhance 
cooperation between the law enforcement communities of both 
countries. It will thereby make a significant contribution to 
international law enforcement efforts.
    The provisions in this Treaty, which includes an Agreed 
Minute, follow generally the form and content of extradition 
treaties recently concluded by the United States.
    I recommend that the Senate give early and favorable 
consideration to the Treaty and give its advice and consent to 
ratification.

                                                William J. Clinton.


                          LETTER OF SUBMITTAL

                              ----------                              

                                       Department of State,
                                         Washington, June 13, 1997.
    The President: I have the honor to submit to you the 
Extradition Treaty between the United States of America and 
France (``the Treaty''), signed at Paris on April 23, 1996. I 
recommend that the treaty, which includes an Agreed Minute, be 
transmitted to the Senate for its advice and consent to 
ratification.
    In many respects, the Treaty follows closely the form and 
content of extradition treaties recently concluded by the 
United States. Some of the Treaty's provisions, however, differ 
from those found in most of our other modern extradition 
treaties for reasons discussed in the Technical Analysis 
produced by the United States negotiating delegation. The 
treaty represents part of a concerted effort by the Department 
of State and the Department of Justice to develop modern 
extradition relationships to enhance the United States ability 
to prosecute serious offenders including, especially, narcotics 
traffickers and terrorists.
    The Treaty marks a significant step in bilateral 
cooperation between the United States and France. Upon entry 
into force, it will replace the Treaty of Extradition between 
the United States of America and the Republic of France signed 
at Paris on January 6, 1909, and entered into force on July 27, 
1911, and the Supplementary Extradition Convention signed at 
Paris on February 12, 1970, with exchanges of letters of June 2 
and 11, 1970, and entered into force on April 3, 1971. That 
treaty has become outmoded, and the new Treaty will provide 
significant improvements. The Treaty can be implemented without 
legislation.
    Article 1 obligates each Contracting State to extradite to 
the other, pursuant to the provisions of the Treaty, any person 
whom the competent authorities in the Requesting State have 
charged with or convicted of an extraditable offense.
    Article 2(1) defines extraditable offenses as acts punished 
under the laws of both States by deprivation of liberty for a 
maximum of at least one year, or by a more severe penalty. Use 
of such a ``dual criminality'' clause rather than a list of 
offenses covered by the Treaty obviates the need to renegotiate 
or supplement the Treaty as additional offenses become 
punishable under the laws of both Contracting States.
    Article 2(2) defines an extraditable offense to include 
also an attempt or a conspiracy to commit, orparticipation in 
the commission of, an extraditable offense.
    Additional flexibility is provided by Article 2(3), which 
provides that an offense shall be considered an extraditable 
offense: (1) whether or not the laws in the Contracting States 
place the offense within the same category of offenses or 
describe the offense by the same terminology; or (2) whether or 
not the offense is one for which United States federal law 
requires the showing of such matters as interstate 
transportation or use of the mails or of other facilities 
affecting interstate or foreign commerce, such matters being 
merely for the purpose of establishing jurisdiction in a United 
States federal court.
    With regard to an offense committed outside the territory 
of the Requesting State, Article 2(4) provides that extradition 
shall be granted when the laws of the Requested State authorize 
the prosecution or provide for the punishment of that offense 
in similar circumstances. The United States recognizes the 
extraterritorial application of many of its criminal statutes 
and frequently makes requests for fugitives whose criminal 
activity occurred in foreign countries with the intent, actual 
or implied, of affecting the United States.
    If an extradition request concerns distinct acts, each 
punishable by deprivation of liberty in both States but not all 
of which meet the requirements of Article 2(1) and 2(2), 
Article 2(5) nevertheless requires extradition for all of the 
acts.
    Article 2(6) provides that extradition shall be granted 
pursuant to the terms of Article 2(1) and 2(2) in matters 
concerning tax, customs duty, and foreign exchange offenses.
    Article 3(1) declares that neither State has an obligation 
to extradite its own nationals, but the executive authority of 
the United States shall have the discretion to do so. The 
nationality of the person sought shall be the nationality of 
the person at the time the offense was committed.
    Article 3(2) requires a State that refuses an extradition 
request solely on the basis of the nationality of the person 
sought to submit the case to its authorities for prosecution, 
if so requested by the Requesting State.
    As is customary in extradition treaties, Article 4 
incorporates a political offense exception to the obligation to 
extradite. Article 4(1) states that France shall not grant 
extradition for an offense considered by France to be a 
political offense, an offense connected with a political 
offense, or an offense inspired by political motives. Article 
4(1) also states that the United States shall not grant 
extradition for an offense considered by the United States to 
be a political offense.
    Article 4(2) specifies six categories of offenses that 
shall not be considered to be political offenses:
          (a) a murder or other willful crime against the 
        person of a Head of State of one of the Contracting 
        States, or of a member of the Head of State's family, 
        or any attempt or conspiracy to commit, or 
        participation in, any of the foregoing offenses;
          (b) an offense for which both Contracting Parties are 
        obliged pursuant to a multilateral agreement to 
        extradite the requested person or to submit the case to 
        their competent authorities for decision as to 
        prosecution;
          (c) a serious offense involving an attack against the 
        life, physical integrity or liberty of internationally 
        protected persons, including diplomatic agents;
          (d) an offense involving kidnapping, the taking of a 
        hostage or any other form of unlawful detention;
          (e) an offense involving the use of a bomb, grenade, 
        rocket, automatic firearm or letter or parcel bomb if 
        this use endangers persons; or
          (f) an attempt or conspiracy to commit, or 
        participation in, any of the offenses listed in 
        paragraphs 2(b), 2(c), 2(d) or 2(e) above.
    Article 4(3) creates a regime similar to that of the 
European Convention on Terrorism, in that the Requested State 
may deny extradition for any of the offenses mentioned in 
paragraphs 2(b)-2(f) above, in accordance with the provisions 
of Article 4(1). However, in evaluating the character of an 
offense, the Requested State is required to consider its 
particularly serious nature, if applicable, including that it 
created a collective danger to life, physical integrity or 
liberty of persons, that it affected persons not connected to 
the motives behind it, or that cruel or treacherous means were 
used in the commission of the offense.
    Article 4(4) provides that extradition shall not be granted 
if the executive authority in the case of the United States or 
the competent authorities in the case of France have 
substantial grounds for believing that the request was for the 
purpose of prosecuting or punishing a person on account of that 
person's race, religion, nationality or political opinions.
    Article 5 permits the parties to deny extradition for an 
offense that is exclusively a military offense (for example, 
desertion).
    Article 6 permits denial of an extradition request when 
surrender of the person might entail exceptionally serious 
consequences related to age or health.
    Article 7(1) permits denial of an extradition request for 
an offense punishable by death in the Requesting State but not 
in the Requested State, unless the Requesting State provides 
the assurance that the death penalty will not be imposed or, if 
imposed, will not be carried out. Article 7(2) declares that 
the death penalty, if imposed by the courts of the Requesting 
State, shall not be carried out in instances when a Requesting 
State has provided an assurance in accordance with Article 
7(1).
    Article 8 bars extradition when the person sought has been 
convicted or acquitted in the Requested State for the same 
offense, but does not bar extradition if the competent 
authorities in the Requested State have declined to prosecute 
or have decided to discontinue criminal proceedings against the 
person sought.
    Article 9 states that extradition shall be denied if 
prosecution or execution of the penalty would be barred by the 
lapse of time under the laws of the Requested State, but 
requires that acts in the Requesting State that would interrupt 
or suspend the prescriptive period are to be taken into account 
by the Requested State to the extent possible under its laws.
    Article 10 establishes the procedures and describes the 
documents that are required to support an extradition request. 
The Article requires that all requests for extradition be 
submitted through the diplomatic channel. Article 10(3)(c) 
provides that a request for the extradition of a person sought 
for prosecution be supported by a duly authenticated copy of 
the warrant or order of arrest and, for requests by the United 
States, the charging document, or for requests by France, the 
original or a duly authenticated copy of the warrant or order 
of arrest and such information as would justify the committal 
for trial of the person if the offense had been committed in 
the United States.
    Article 11 establishes the procedures under which documents 
submitted pursuant to the provisions of this Treaty shall be 
received and admitted into evidence in each State.
    Article 12 requires all documents submitted by the 
Requesting State to be translated into the language of the 
Requested State.
    Article 13 sets forth procedures for the provisional arrest 
and detention of a person sought pending presentation of the 
formal request for extradition. A request for provisional 
arrest may be submitted directly between the U.S. Department of 
Justice and the Ministry of Justice of the French Republic by 
means of the facilities of the International Criminal Police 
Organization (INTERPOL) or through the diplomatic channel. 
Article 13(4) provides that if the Requested State's executive 
authority has not received the request for extradition and 
supporting documentationwithin sixty days after the provisional 
arrest, the person may be discharged from custody. Article 13(5) 
provides explicitly that discharge from custody pursuant to Article 
13(4) does not prejudice subsequent rearrest and extradition upon later 
delivery of the extradition request and supporting documents.
    Article 14 sets forth procedures by which the Requested 
State may seek additional information in support of an 
extradition request to fulfill the requirements of the Treaty 
and provides for release from custody of a person under arrest 
for purposes of extradition if the additional information is 
not sufficient or not received within the time specified.
    Article 15 specifies the procedures governing surrender and 
return of persons sought. It requires the Requested State to 
provide prompt notice to the Requesting State through the 
diplomatic channel regarding its extradition decision. If the 
request is denied in whole or in part, Article 15(2) requires 
the Requesting State to provide information regarding the 
reasons therefor. If extradition is granted, the authorities of 
the Contracting States shall agree on the date and place for 
surrender of the person sought. If the person is not removed 
from the territory of the United States within the time 
prescribed by its law or within 30 days from the surrender date 
set in accordance with Article 15(3) in the case of France, 
that person may be discharged from custody and the Requested 
State may subsequently refuse extradition for the same offense.
    Article 16 concerns temporary and deferred surrender. If a 
person whose extradition is sought is being prosecuted or is 
serving a sentence in the Requested State, that State may 
temporarily surrender the person to the Requesting State solely 
for the purpose of prosecution. Alternatively, the Requested 
State may postpone the extradition proceedings until its 
prosecution has been concluded and the sentence has been 
served.
    Article 17 sets forth a non-exclusive list of factors to be 
considered by the Requested State in determining to which State 
to surrender a person sought by more than one State.
    Article 18 provides for the seizure and surrender to the 
Requesting State of property connected with the offense for 
which extradition is granted, to the extent permitted under the 
law of the Requested State. Such property may be surrendered 
even when extradition cannot be effected due to the death, 
disappearance, or escape of the person sought. Surrender of 
property may be deferred if it is needed as evidence in the 
Requested State and may be conditioned upon satisfactory 
assurances that it will be returned to the Requested State as 
soon as practicable. Article 18(3) imposes anobligation to 
respect the rights of third parties in affected property.
    Article 19 sets forth the rule of speciality. It provides, 
subject to specific exceptions, that a person extradited under 
the Treaty may not be detained, tried, convicted, punished, or 
subjected to any restriction of his freedom for an offense 
other than that for which extradition has been granted, unless 
the Requested State has given it consent or the extradited 
person leaves the Requesting State after extradition and 
voluntarily returns to it or fails to leave the Requesting 
State within thirty days of being free to do so. Article 19(2) 
addresses situations where the denomination of an offense for 
which a person has been extradited is altered during the 
proceedings in the Requested State.
    Article 20 provides that the Requesting State may not 
extradite a person to a third State for an offense committed 
prior to the original surrender unless the Requested State 
consents or the person did not leave the territory of the 
Requesting State within thirty days when given an opportunity 
to do so, or returned after having left it.
    Article 21 governs the transit through the territory of one 
Contracting State of a person being surrendered to the other 
State by a third State.
    Article 22 contains provisions on representation and 
expenses. The Requested State is required to advise and assist 
the Requesting State in accordance with the Agreed Minute on 
Representation that forms an integral part of the Treaty and is 
discussed in detail in the Technical Analysis.
    Under Article 22(2), the Requesting State is required to 
bear the expenses related to the translation of documents and 
the transportation of the person surrendered. Article 22(3) 
clarifies that neither State shall make any pecuniary claim 
against the other State arising out of the arrest, detention, 
examination, or surrender of persons sought under the Treaty.
    Article 23 states that the United States Department of 
Justice and the Ministry of Justice of the French Republic may 
consult with each other directly or through the facilities of 
INTERPOL in connection with the processing of individual cases 
and in furtherance of maintaining and improving Treaty 
implementation procedures.
    Article 24(1), like the parallel provision in almost all 
recent United States extradition treaties, states that the 
Treaty shall apply to offenses committed before as well as 
after the date the Treaty enters into force. Upon entry into 
force of the Treaty,Article 24(2) provides that the current 
Treaty of Extradition between the United States and France signed 
January 6, 1909 and the Supplementary Convention signed February 12, 
1970, with exchanges of letters signed June 2 and 11, 1970, shall cease 
to have effect, except for any proceedings in which extradition 
documents have already been submitted to the courts of the Requested 
State at the time the Treaty enters into force.
    Article 25 provides that each Contracting State shall 
notify the other of the completion of the constitutional 
procedures required for ratification of the Treaty, and the 
Treaty shall enter into force on the first day of the second 
month following the date of receipt of the last notification.
    Under Article 26, either Contracting State may terminate 
the Treaty at any time upon written notice to the other 
Contracting State, with termination effective six months after 
the date of receipt of such notice.
    As noted above, a Technical Analysis explaining in detail 
the provisions of the Treaty is being prepared by the United 
States negotiating delegation and will be submitted separately 
to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.
    The Department of Justice joins the Department of State in 
favoring approval of this Treaty, including the Agreed Minute, 
by the Senate at an early date.
    Respectfully submitted,
                                                Madeleine Albright.




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