Nicolás Maduro made another pre-trial court appearance in New York on Thursday. He currently faces narco-terrorism charges.
Protesters, both for and against Maduro, gathered outside the courthouse. I’d like to point out that those who are protesting against Maduro are there authentically, while those who are in favor have uniform professional signs that say “Free President Maduro.” Some are saying they were paid by Code Pink, but I haven’t been able to confirm that.
Watch this video to the end to see what I’m talking about (the people singing are real Venezuelans singing their national anthem at the paid actors):
I’m guessing the “supporters” didn’t gather organically. https://t.co/tWnVJGKvDd
— SarahDownSouth (@SarahDownSouth) March 26, 2026
Here’s another video of the professional protesters:
No tienen dinero para pagar abogados, pero sí para pagar a 30 comunistas: pic.twitter.com/VG7JpSLUSY
— Emmanuel Rincón (@EmmaRincon) March 26, 2026
The anti-Maduro folks, who are carrying homemade signs that say things like “Maduro rot in prison,” are far more creative:
🇻🇪🇺🇸 ¡ÚLTIMA HORA!
Manifestantes anti-Maduro se han concentrado con fuerza frente al tribunal federal de Nueva York para contrarrestar a los simpatizantes comunistas que aún defienden al dictador.
Nicolás Maduro, el exdictador venezolano, está a punto de comparecer ante la… https://t.co/RLUKjvXBrf pic.twitter.com/LNYbqUaxc2
— Jhonf Fonseca (@Jhonffonseca) March 26, 2026
They also confronted the paid pro-Maduro folks — who are not Venezuelan — and told them they have no idea what goes on in their country under Maduro’s tyranny.
Spot the difference between the pro-Maduro rally on the left and the anti-Maduro rally on the right lol pic.twitter.com/4JkPfQcyzd
— Germania Rodriguez Poleo (@iamGermania) March 26, 2026
Anyway, this is Maduro’s first appearance in court since January, and sadly, no cameras were allowed in the courtroom. As expected, his attorney, Barry Pollack, asked the judge to allow the Venezuelan government to pay his legal fees. The gist of the issue is that Venezuelan law requires the state to cover these expenses for heads of state, but United States sanctions are preventing that from happening without a license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). OFAC briefly granted the license on January 9 but revoked it without explanation.
Maduro claims he lacks the personal funds to pay for a private attorney, and Pollack claims the situation interferes with his Sixth Amendment rights to have the counsel of his choosing.
According to the Associated Press, Pollack made a “complex legal argument” for the Venezuelan government to pay the legal fees. The judge asked a lot of questions, while Maduro, who was wearing headphones to translate from English to Spanish, took notes. He argued that if Maduro gets “public defenders, that would sap legal resources that are meant for people who can’t afford their own attorneys.”
Pollack said it doesn’t make sense in “a case where you have someone other than the U.S. taxpayer standing ready, willing and able to fund that defense.”
Prosecutor Kyle Wirshba said that Maduro should have to pay for his attorneys out of pocket. According to the AP, “Judge Alvin Hellerstein pressed him on why that argument holds now that U.S. and Venezuelan relations have warmed somewhat. ‘We are doing business with Venezuela,’ he noted.”
Wirshba said that relations with another government don’t have anything to do with maintaining sanctions. “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 [to] the same funds now to pay for their defense,” he said.
The judge asked if Maduro can afford it, and Wirshba said he’s still looking into it but said that court-appointed lawyers and public defenders have handled some wild cases. The judge replied, “this is a case that is beyond the normal and could hamper their ability to do their normal work.”
During the discussion between Wirshba and the judge, Pollack suggested that throwing out the case is the best way to remedy the situation. Thankfully, the judge said, “I’m not going to dismiss the case.”
Hellerstein determined that he won’t make a decision on the matter yet. He also opted not to set the next court date because so much is still up in the air.
According to the AP, “Maduro shook hands with his lawyer and translator and waved to [Ceila] Flores’ lawyer as he was led out by officers with the U.S. Marshals Service. As he left the defense table, he told his lawyer, ‘Hasta mañana,’ which is Spanish for, ‘See you tomorrow.'”
While Maduro was in court, Donald Trump was holding a Cabinet meeting, and the topic of Venezuela came up several times. The president said that Maduro will receive a fair trial and suggested there may be more trials coming.
“[Maduro is a] very dangerous man who’s killed a lot of people, forced people into our country,” Trump said. “Incredible, he emptied his prisons in Venezuela, emptied his prisons into our country, and I hope that charge will be brought at some point, ’cause that was a big charge that hasn’t been brought yet.”
He also called him a “major purveyor of drugs coming into our country.”
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