But on both sides of the border, authorities are preparing for Guzmán to be shipped north to face trial in a US court, which many suspect will be in Brooklyn, New York.
The US District Court for the Eastern District of New York, based in downtown Brooklyn, is one of seven US District Courts with indictments pending against Guzmán. (The US attorney in Miami recently joined the Brooklyn court’s case as a special counsel.)
The Mexican government has already approved extradition requests from courts in Southern California and West Texas, but where Guzmán faces trial (and he may face proceedings in multiple District Courts) will be decided by the US Department of Justice.
“The Department of Justice then has to essentially coordinate among and choose which cases … they deem to have the strongest claims and evidence,” professor David Shirk, of the University of San Diego, told Business Insider earlier this year.
The DOJ then “sends that information to the US State Department, which is the official mechanism for delivering the extradition file to the Mexican government,” Shirk added.
Despite the extradition requests that have already been approved, the District Court in Brooklyn is generally considered to have the strongest chance of eventually getting Guzmán. The court has a long history of trying violent, well-known defendants, including terrorists and mob bosses.
Loretta Lynch, the current US attorney general and person who may decide Guzmán’s destination, previously served as US attorney in Brooklyn and may steer the kingpin to her former stomping grounds.
Assuming Guzmán ends up in Brooklyn, though, a new trial will not be his only concern.