😍 2022-09-06 10:00:00 – Paris/France.
A magnificent Netflix documentary, based on Jorge Volpi's award-winning work "A Criminal Novel", has brought back to Mexican public opinion the case of Florence Break et Israel Vallarta.
The premiere of the five-episode series could not have been more timely, as we find ourselves in a moment of very important political discussions regarding the model of security and justice that the country needs, with questions as relevant than the militarization of National Guard or the misuse of precautionary measures such as preventive detention.
In the documentary, as described by Volpi in his book and as told with great knowledge of the Emmanuel Steels case in his book “The Theater of Deceit. Break Vallarta: story of a montage", we witness without being discouraged the elaboration of a formidable television montage in which there is not only a "representation foreign to reality" (as described in the montage by the first chamber of the Supreme Court), but also a live act of torture, which could be seen through the two main television channels in the country without any host or production manager finding indecent the ill treatment of which we could all have been witnesses to Israel Vallarta.
According to the documentary, only Laura Barranco, of Televisa, seems to have suggested that the broadcast be interrupted in the news program hosted by Carlos Loret de Mola. But that did not happen, to the detriment of the public, the detainees and of course to the shame of the authorities who fabricated an alleged ransom more bogus than a three peso coin.
But the testimonies collected in the series of Netflix of Presidents Nicolás Sarkozy of France and Felipe Calderón of Mexico. It hurts to remember how the egos of two political "roosters", both "short fuse" as they say in Mexico, brought the relationship between the two countries to the lowest point in a century and a half. No one wanted to give in and provocations abounded on both sides. The result was bad for both leaders and for both nations.
Equally impressive is the testimony of the minister Arthur Zaldivar, now president of the Supreme Court and ten years ago the author of the first draft which proposed the release of Cassez (which was finally approved when the minister endorsed it Olga Sánchez Cordero). Zaldívar tells on camera that at that time they entered his house looking for information that could compromise him and that his vehicle was stopped while he was driving with his family by individuals who were pointing guns long on them for several minutes. This is totally unacceptable intimidation in any rule of law.
Another testimony that appears in the documentary and that leaves a bittersweet feeling is that of Eduardo Margolis Sobol a sort of protector of Mexico City's Jewish community, which implies that he had extensive management of federal police commands during the six-year terms of Vicente Fox and Felipe Calderón. He seems to be the real power behind the throne. There is an assumption that the whole affair begins with a business dispute between Florence Cassez's brother and Margolis. Indeed, Cassez spoke to him on the phone from France, once he was already free, in a friendly, even affectionate tone. She herself regrets the content of the call, towards the end of the documentary. Perhaps a disapproving call or a request for explanations would have been more logical and understandable. Everyone chooses the words with which they address others and the way to resolve their own doubts.
In the end, the story ended well for Cassez, in that he was able to regain his freedom, but Cassez's fate is still uncertain. Vallarta, who is still imprisoned and has not even been convicted in the first instance (which is not necessarily attributable to the authorities who carried out the respective legal proceedings against him, but perhaps to a faulty defense strategy). Several official voices claim in the documentary that there are additional charges against Vallarta to those brought against Cassez, which is why the precedent that allowed the release of the French citizen cannot be applied.
In any case, it is highly recommended to see the documentary, which is well told and contains a very agile narration of the case. It is a powerful reminder of all that we must avoid, now and always, in the prosecution and administration of criminal justice.
constitutional lawyer.
@MiguelCarbonell
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