Martinellis ping-pong detention

MIAMI’s ATTORNEY GENERAL  and the US Marshal’s Service   have asked Federal Judge Edwin Torres to deny the transfer of ex-president  Ricardo Martinelli to the Federal Corrections Institute, south of the City of Miami, as it is specifically designed for “convicted prisoners.”

Martinelli, who has been held since June 12 in the Federal Detention Center, adjacent to the

Southern District of Florida Court, requested the change  because, according to his lawyers, he did not have the facilities to prepare his  defense for his extradition hearing, on Aug. 23

The change was authorized by Judge Torres on August 9  and it  is unknown if it was already

executed. However, on Friday, August 11, prosecutor Adam Fels introduced a motion asking the judge not to specify the transfer. According to Fels, the Corps of Marshals and the Center Of Federal Detentions have warned that the Institute where they intended to send Martinelli is exclusively for criminal convicts and lawyers are allowed visits only on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 8:30 am to 3:00 pm and the appointment must be coordinated at least 72 hours in advance.

At the Federal Detention Center, where Martinelli was originally detained, lawyers can visit their clients every day, between 7:00 am and 9:00 pm.

In addition, it is an administrative facility, which usually houses those detainees who have not been convicted of a crime and are under the orders of the prosecution, as is the case of Martinelli, warned Fels.

The Federal Corrections Institute is considered a minimum security prison and has ample gardens unlike the Federal Detention Center, a building located in downtown Miami, adjacent to several federal buildings.