MEXICO CITY — When registration opens today for Mexico's newly elected Congress, there is one up-and-coming legislator whom officials will be relieved to count as a no-show.
Julio Cesar Godoy, in addition to being a lawmaker-elect from the state of Michoacan, is also a fugitive from the law. Godoy, brother of the state governor, is one of dozens of politicians and police chiefs from Michoacan accused of aiding the notorious La Familia drug cartel. He dropped out of sight as arrest warrants came down in May and June, but won election anyway.
Godoy's situation underscores the suspected depth of drug-fueled corruption in Mexican politics. It also presents a dilemma for officials: If Godoy registered for Congress (a step required by national rules) and was sworn in Sept. 1, he would be entitled to immunity and could escape prosecution.
Should authorities risk the spectacle of arresting Godoy as he arrived at the congressional building? Might he sneak in the back door? If he didn't appear, he would lose the seat to an alternate elected with him who has not been accused of crimes.
On Wednesday afternoon, Congress found a way around the problem for now. The body's leadership ruled that Godoy cannot register until he "resolves his judicial situation."
And so, Mexico's political world continues to wait for Godoy's next move.
He hasn't been seen in public since he went on the lam in late June, although he wrote a letter to members of his party saying all of the allegations were untrue.
His brother, Leonel Godoy, governor of Michoacan, called on Julio Cesar to turn himself in but also questioned the case against him. The governor says the allegations have tarnished his own reputation.
"I've been the subject of a media lynching," he said.
Michoacan, the home state of President Felipe Calderon, is one of the most violent fronts in Mexico's war against drug traffickers and a prime example of their penetration into politics.
In May, government security forces arrested about 30 mayors and law enforcement officials in the state accused of providing protection networks for the La Familia cartel, a ruthless criminal syndicate that controls the export of methamphetamine to the U.S. and other drug ventures. In recent weeks, army and federal police forces have captured nearly 100 suspects. La Familia hit back in mid-July, killing at least 16 officers in coordinated attacks across the state.
