An International Legal Loophole for a Fugitive
Sheriff McGraw discovers that a man indicted for grand larceny cannot be extradited from British Columbia due to the limited scope of the existing treaty.
The story, cleaned up
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The other day Sheriff McGraw received word that A. G. Garrison, the man who made his escape from the officers here a week or so ago, while being held on an indictment for grand larceny, committed in New Mexico, was in Victoria. He at once looked up the law, in order to see if the man could be brought back under the extradition treaty, and could find no provision by which he felt authorized to have him arrested there. Not being satisfied with the result of his own researches, he employed able counsel, and yesterday received the opinion that grand larceny is not named in any treaty with Great Britain as an extraditable offense. Hence, it will be seen that Mr. Garrison must be permitted to roam the fields of British Columbia at will, and wave his hat in defiance of American laws and American institutions.
“Mr. Garrison must be permitted to roam the fields of British Columbia at will, and wave his hat in defiance of American laws.”
This legal frustration highlights the porous nature of the border in the 19th century. While extradition treaties are more robust today, the jurisdictional dance between Seattle and British Columbia remains a feature of regional law enforcement.
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