‘El Chapo’ has changed mind, wants to plead guilty, lawyer says

Associated Press

MEXICO CITY

Drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman is willing to plead guilty to any charges in the United States if U.S. authorities promise him a short sentence in a medium-security prison, one of his lawyers said Wednesday.

Guzman wants to accelerate the extradition process so he can escape harsh conditions in a Mexican maximum-security prison, where guards will not let his client sleep, lawyer Jose Refugio Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez said that he and Guzman’s family are reviewing options for a U.S. defense attorney.

“We have talked about a proposal ... to plead guilty to the charges in the United States without questioning their veracity,” said Rodriguez, who heads Guzman’s legal team.

But talk of a possible deal is very premature and shows a lack of understanding of the U.S. judicial process, said David Weinstein, a former federal prosecutor who oversaw the narcotics division at the U.S. attorney’s office in Miami.