Should Canadian-born environmentalist and marine species activist Paul Watson be extradited to Costa Rica, he is likely to be represented in court by criminal attorney Federico Morales Herrera from the Quiros Abogados Central Law firm. According to national newspaper La Nacion, Mr. Watson, who is in custody in Germany and getting ready to fight extradition, asked his attorney Oliver Wallasch to contact Mr. Morales and begin planning his defense.

Mr. Morales specializes in criminal defense. He is an alumnus of the University of Costa Rica and has been practicing for over a decade. He has participated in dozens of conferences that focus on criminal practice in our country and abroad. He is no stranger to high-profile cases; he represented Rodrigo Mendez Soto -a communications executive- in the infamous ICE Alcatel affair, in which former Presidents Miguel Angel Rodriguez and Jose Maria Figueres were embroiled. It is not clear whether Mr. Morales or his firm practice Maritime or Admiralty Law, something that may come in handy for Mr. Watson’s defense should he face trial in Costa Rica.

Although Mr. Watson has been loosely accused of the ominous-sounding charge of attempted murder, the specific offense he may have to respond to, if extradited, is reckless endangerment of a vessel at sea with intent to cause a shipwreck. The case has been widely reported in international media outlets, and it emanates from a 2002 incident in which Mr. Watson was in command of the Sea Shepherd vessel Farley Mowat.

Mr. Watson allegedly steered the Farley Mowat and caused it to ram a fishing vessel allegedly involved in illegal shark finning operations. The incident did not occur in Costa Rica’s sovereign waters, but the Tico crew members claimed that Mr. Watson used a water cannon and pyrotechnic flares against them while they were adrift and performing mechanical repairs. Two out of the eight crew members claim they were injured.

According to La Nacion, Mr. Watson could face up to 15 years in prison for his alleged actions. He was supposed to answer to the charges filed against him back in 2006, but he had already been on the lam since 2002. He was going to be arrested in Guatemala, where he was towing the rammed fishing vessel to, but he released it and set sail for Costa Rica. Once docked in Puntarenas, he was allegedly advised by counsel to leave the country while he could.

The Criminal Section of the San Jose Tribunal is currently engaged in translating the extradition petition into English, French (due to Canada’s two official languages) and German.