Judge Questions U.S. Block on Venezuela Funding Maduro's Legal Defense

Outside Manhattan federal court on Thursday morning, police separated dozens of Maduro opponents from dozens of pro-Maduro demonstrators holding "Free President Maduro" signs. Inside, the constitutional argument was sharper.

Nicolás Maduro, 63, and his wife Cilia Flores, 69, appeared in jail uniforms before U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein, asking him to dismiss charges on grounds that their inability to rely on Venezuelan public funds is interfering with their Sixth Amendment right to choose their own lawyer. Maduro faces four charges: narco-terrorism conspiracy, cocaine importation conspiracy, possession of machine-guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine-guns and destructive devices.

Attorney Barry Pollack, who previously represented WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, told the court that his client has a right to "not just competent counsel, but counsel of his choice" and access to untainted funds for that purpose. Pollack said last month he would have to withdraw because the U.S. government won't allow the Venezuelan government to pay his legal fees, and that the Maduros do not have any money. Forcing a public defender onto the case, Pollack argued, would drain legal resources meant for people who genuinely cannot afford an attorney, which makes no sense "in a case where you have someone other than the U.S. taxpayer standing ready, willing and able to fund that defense."

Judge Hellerstein repeatedly signaled skepticism of the government's position. Prosecutor Kyle Wirshba cast the funding block as a matter of the U.S. government's ability to use sanctions to advance national security and foreign policy interests, but Hellerstein pressed him on why that argument holds now that U.S. and Venezuelan relations have warmed, noting: "We are doing business with Venezuela." The judge went further, stating from the bench that "the defendant is here, Flores is here, they present no further national security threat. I don't see it."

Wirshba responded that "simply because there are relations with another government" doesn't mean Washington can't maintain its sanctions, adding: "If the purpose of the sanctions is because the defendants are plundering the wealth of Venezuela, it would undermine the sanctions to allow them access the same funds now to pay for their defense."

At the center of the funding dispute is a specific action by the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control. Pollack said OFAC granted and then revoked a license permitting the Venezuelan government to pay his legal fees, noting that both the Maduros and the Venezuelan government are sanctioned, meaning anyone seeking payment needs to obtain a license to avoid violating U.S. sanctions laws. Pollack alleged OFAC approved the payment on January 9 but rescinded the authorization without explanation less than three hours later. Prosecutors called the initial license an "administrative error," stating they are still permitting the Maduros to access their personal funds in Venezuela to cover legal expenses.

In court filings, Pollack warned that "any trial that proceeds under these circumstances will be constitutionally defective and cannot result in a verdict that will withstand later challenge."

Hellerstein pointed to the changed geopolitical landscape since Maduro's capture. Relations between Caracas and Washington have improved since Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro's former vice president, became interim president after his capture. Washington has eased economic sanctions on Venezuela's oil industry and dispatched a chargé d'affaires to Caracas.

Hellerstein declared in court: "I'm not going to dismiss the case." He said he will rule at a later date on the funding issue and will also set another hearing date. He left the door open for Pollack to renew the dismissal request if Treasury does not relent on blocking the Venezuelan government's payments.

The narcoterrorism statute has rarely been tested at trial, and two of three trial convictions have been overturned over issues stemming from witness credibility, according to a Reuters analysis of court records. Maduro and Flores were captured during a U.S. military operation on January 3, 2026, and arraigned two days later at the federal courthouse in Manhattan, where they pleaded not guilty. Neither has sought release on bail. No trial date has been set.