MEXICO’S ‘LAW ON THE RIGHTS OF OLDER PERSONS’

Mexicans above the age of 60 who are facing debilitating health issues are allowed special privileges in their criminal proceedings, including trial from their homes

Mexico has a unique law bestowing special privileges on criminal defendants who are over 60 with health problems. Those privileges include the right to house arrest and trial from home. But privileges under the Law on the Rights of Older Persons are usually reserved only for the wealthy and powerful. Case in point: Elba Esther Gorgillo.

Elba Esther Gordillo once headed the National Education Workers’ Union, Mexico’s teacher union. According to Borderland Beat, as head of the union “Esther Gordillo was once considered the most powerful woman in Mexico, known for buying political support with stolen union money.”

Two years ago Gordillo was busted and charged with tax fraud, money laundering and organized crime. She is accused of stealing around $200 million from her union, using the stolen funds for taking “luxurious spending sprees and giving lavish gifts to regional union leaders to buy their support. She was also known for supporting the election of various past presidents, including Enrique Peña Nieto, by obligating union members to vote for them,” according to Borderland Beat.

Gordillo will turn 70 on February 6. On Tuesday a federal judge ruled that the tax cheat and thief qualifies for the privileges under the Law on the Rights of Older Persons. According to Reforma, “The judge, in an agreement, has recognized [her] as an elderly person with diseases, according to the Law on the Rights of Older Persons,” said Marco Antonio del Toro, Gordillo's defense attorney. “There is jurisprudence of the Supreme Court that says that an older adult may be eligible for house arrest when a condition of disease is given, as is the case.”

This case is an example of the corruption that is rampant throughout Mexico. Gordillo will be tried at home and if convicted, she will probably serve her time under house arrest in a luxurious home paid for with stolen union funds. Now if 80-year-old Jose Gonzales, a street vendor suffering from Parkinson’s disease gets busted for tax fraud, what do you think his chances are that he will be tried from the shack he calls home? I’ll tell you what those chances are – slim to none.