Durbin Meets with French Ambassador to Urge Immediate Extradition of Hans Peterson

Press Release

Durbin Meets with French Ambassador to Urge Immediate Extradition of Hans Peterson

U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today met with the newly appointed French Ambassador, Pierre Vimont, and the French Chargé d'Affaires, François Rivasseau, to urge France to reconsider its decision not to extradite Hans Peterson, an American citizen who reportedly confessed to the 2006 murder of Dr. David Cornbleet in Chicago.

"Dr. Cornbleet's family, the people of Illinois, and the United States criminal justice system deserve to see Hans Peterson face trial in the United States," said Durbin. "The French government must exercise the discretion it has under our extradition treaty. Senator Obama and I will do everything in our power to prevent Peterson from using French law to escape justice in the US."

Earlier this month, Peterson turned himself in to French authorities in St. Martin and reportedly confessed to the brutal murder of Dr. Cornbleet, a Chicago dermatologist. Peterson is currently in French custody in Guadeloupe. According to reports, Peterson, whose mother is French, fled to French territory after allegedly committing the murder in an effort to avoid criminal prosecution in the United States. The U.S. Department of Justice Office of International Affairs has issued a formal request to the Government of France for Peterson's extradition.

On August 23, France announced its decision not to extradite Peterson. While the extradition treaty between the United States and France says that there is "no obligation upon the requested state to grant the extradition of a person who is a national of the requested state," this treaty does not preclude France from exercising its discretion to extradite one of its nationals to the U.S.

Last week, Durbin and Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) sent a letter to the French Foreign Minister, Bernard Kouchner, urging France to reconsider its decision. On August 20, Durbin and Obama sent a letter to Chargé d'Affaires François Rivasseau at the French Embassy in Washington, DC, urging the Government of France to agree to the United States' request for Peterson's extradition to face criminal prosecution for Dr. Cornbleet's murder. The Illinois Senators also sent a letter to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, requesting that she immediately urge her French counterparts to examine the extradition request and to advise the U.S. Embassy in Paris of the importance of this case.

Source