Legal Community Outraged by Suspected Hit on Mexican Judge and Wife
Federal Judge Uriel Villegas Ortiz handled high-profile cases and repeatedly rejected bids for release from custody.
June 17, 2020 at 01:25 PM
3 minute read
The original version of this story was published on Law.com International
A federal judge in Mexico who handled cases against high-ranking members of criminal gangs has been shot dead along with his wife at their home in the western state of Colima, sparking outrage in the country's legal community.
Though Mexico is plagued by growing drug-related violence and organized crime, the killing of a federal judge is unusual. Colima on the Pacific coast has become one of Mexico's deadliest because of its strategic location as a crossroads for the international drug trade dominated in the area by the Sinaloa cartel and splinter groups.
Supreme Court Chief Arturo Zaldívar interrupted a virtual court session Tuesday to announce the double-murder of Judge Uriel Villegas Ortiz and Verónica Barajas. The videotaped session shows concern spread across the faces of participants as Zaldívar laments the "terrible news" and asks for greater protection of judges.
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