The controversy surrounding U.S. Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte,
three of his teammates and a purported robbery took a
rather bizarre turn within the past 48 hours. I have
no idea whether he and his fellow swimmers concocted a story or
whether they were really robbed, though evidence of the
former seems to be mounting. What I do know is that,
given that no charges had been filed against Mr. Lochte prior to
his departure from Rio on Tuesday morning, there was no reason for
him not to board a plane home.
I spoke with LA-based ace criminal lawyer Errol Stambler to see
how the U.S. usually handles such matters. According to Errol, the
short answer is that in a violent world, this is not a major
priority in most jurisdictions. In California, the most that would
be brought by law enforcement is a misdemeanor charge of
obstructing justice and filing a false report. If the situation was
reversed and California wanted a defendant returned from Brazil, it
would not happen. Thus,
