What were they looking for? Is this just standard procedure when you are arrested?
I thought the strip search was oddly severe as “standard procedure,” now “cavity search” is standard??
And aren’t diplomats supposed to have immunity? They can be detained under house/office arrest or they can be expelled, but aren’t they supposed to be immune from being cuffed and jailed??
saw this earlier, really weird not sure whats going on there
That’s a good way to put your own diplomats in trouble overseas. Mutual respect is key with that sort of thing. Kind of unbelievable. Must be more to this.
Wait what… you get a cavity search now for possibly submitting false visa paperwork? Since when has that been “standard procedure”?
Give them a dose of their own medicine.
So, the government removed barracades around the American embassy and newspapers ran front page headlines proclaiming ‘India finally shows some spine’.
Pretty rich coming from the most spineless fker’s ever…
You guys can’t think of diplimatic immunity in the terms of “Lethal Weapon 2”.
I believe she had consulate immunity, which means immunity while performing functions for the consulate.
Committing Visa fraud (allegedly) and exploiting a person of a lower status, I hope, is not typical consulate activity and as such subject to the laws and penalties of this country.
She is accused of a crime and should be processed accordingly… but I’m at a loss as to why a strip search is common procedure for Visa fraud. But I’ve never committed Visa fraud, so I’m no expert.
Interesting, from CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2013/12/18/justice/indian-diplomat-immunity/
“Consular officers have some immunity involving official acts, but their “personal inviolability” is “quite limited,” the document says. They may be arrested and detained for alleged felonies, and may be prosecuted for misdemeanors. Their families have no immunity of any kind.”
So apparently, ambassadors have a pretty full diplomatic immunity, and possibly consul-generals themselves, but ordinary officers and staff don’t. This makes some sense, as the protections must at some point get phased out further down the chain of command.
However, India has transferred her assingmnet to the UN mission, which gives her full immunity now: http://www.ndtv.com/article/cheat-sheet/devyani-khobragade-transferred-to-un-mission-can-apply-for-full-diplomatic-immunity-460021?curl=1387461902
Devyani Khobragade transferred to UN mission, can apply for full diplomatic immunity
Immunity or not, it is kind of outrageous that a crime (technically, an allegation) like this involves a strip and cavity search; unless, perhaps, she was doing simialr kinds of things to the nanny herself. Normally strip and cavity searches are reserved for dangerous/potentially violent criminals and those who would be likely to smuggle contraband inside of body cavities, such as drug mules. There is definitely something odd about this.
My suspicion is that one of two things happened: 1) she started cursing out the officer that was processing her, and he/she decided to use their normal discretionary authority to “teach her a lesson,” or 2) that some NYPD officer thought she was an ordinary immigrant, possibly without a regular visa, and decided to treat her like crap, Abner Louima style, only later learing “OMG, she’s a Diplomat??” Neither 1 nor 2 puts NYPD in a good light, but #2 is particularly outrageous.
Technically diplomatic immunity is a claim a diplomat can make in court to defend themselves. It doesn’t get them out of being ticketed or arrested. Saying you have diplomatic immunity to a cop won’t get you anywhere. Saying to a prosecuting attorney will.
It’s been a while since I’ve travelled in circles where diplomatic immunity was relevant. I’d forgotten about that legal distinction. Quite right. However, cops are generally supposed to show respect for foreign dignitaries, which generally include higher-ranking consular staff.
Most New York cops know enough to be careful when handling diplomats, if only to avoid undue attention and provoking international incidents like this. New York is home to over a hundred and fifty missions to the UN, plus a fleet of consular offices, and most of these people live and work in a comparatively small section of the city. It’s not like some small-town cop accidentally tried to abuse a vacationing diplomat and got busted for it.
I find it interesting that nobody really seems to care about the real victim here, the nanny.
I think the current alarm is more about the process than the specific outcome. If the nanny was abused, that is likely to come out and get resolved, or at least stopped. I think a simple arrest or detaining would not be that problematic, provided that the arrested was treated with dignity. There still is a presumption of innocence until proven guilty. Once proven guilty, then go to town, or just expel her.
There is a danger that the diplomat simply gets recalled or expelled, and takes the nanny with her, so the nanny never sees justice. On the other hand, perhaps what has happened is that the nanny is being paid by normal Indian nanny standards, and the paperwork was filled out falsely simply because the US minimum wage is higher than the Indian nanny wage. In that case, the nanny may not have really suffered that much (or at least never expected more), and the alleged crime is more technical than moral. There’s of course the chance that the nanny is little more a wage slave, and that’s more serious.
EDIT: I forgot to add that that doesn’t absolve the accused of breaking laws and lying on an official document, and if so, there clearly needs to be some kind of consequence for that, even if it’s just ejection; I’m just mean that the nanny may not have been undergoing personal trauma while employed. The nanny’s still been cheated out of what’s rightfullly hers as a nanny working in the US, but if she knew that when she came here (as opposed to a bait and switch), it’s harder to feel too sorry for her, even if one does hope that she will be properly paid when this all washes out.
I find it interesting that it takes the victim to be a diplomat for the Indian Government to care about woman’s rights. (Although I’m sure this is more about her being in a respected social status than her gender).
If I read another BBG article on the lack of justice for the rapes/abduction and forced weddings/abuse of countless women in India I’m going to be sick.
This was not a routine traffic stop, Dr. Khobragade was indicted on a very serious crime, visa fraud, and could face 10 years in prision. She was not strip-searched by NYPD, she was strip searched by US Marshals at a US courthouse. If the US Attorney for the Southern District of NY who ordered her arrest and happens to be Indian himself is to be believed, everyone taken into custody by US Marshals is strip-searched.
It’s not really a women’s rights issue. They probably would have conducted the same cavity search on a male diplomat. Also, I’m not sure if this is worth clarifying - but the diplomat was arrested by US Marshals, not the NYPD. Presumably, visa fraud is a federal offense. US Marshals most likely deal with more severe offenses on average compared to the NYPD. Maybe this is why they have a standard cavity search.
I also read that some cavity searches involved inserting the whole hand inside someone’s anus. What the f…
She still have diplomat status, she should not have been searched ?
^ She was not a diplomat when she was indicted or arrested. Under the terms of the Vienna Convention, her immunity extends only to her official acts as deputy consul general.
I really see this case as being quite simple. Ms. Khobragade is an upper class elitist who, due to her social status, is very likely used to getting her way in her home country. When she read US immigration laws concerning bringing in domestic help, including nannies, I imagine she was aghast at having to pay a 3rd class citizen a wage that would be very, very, very, very generous in India and said farg that. So, she decided to lie on the visa application (it wouldn’t have been approved otherwise) and just pay what she felt the nanny deserved based on an Indian payscale. In doing so, she intentionally committed a federal crime. As deputy consul general, you would think that she would have an appreciation for the seriousness of violating federal laws. She probably didn’t know that anyone who is taken into custody by US Marshals is strip-searched, but she still knew she was breaking the law and didn’t care. As the saying goes: if you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime. In this case, the “time” also includes having a US Marshal stick her fingers up your bum.
Completely off-topic, but not too inappropriate…
Whenever I see her full name in a news article I immediately get the urge to Shiva-blast.
“SHIVAKAMINI SOMAKANDARKRAM!”