Judges often release defendants on the merest of legal technicalities, he told one person whose question was selected for response. "One gets rather tired of it, but I do appreciate them (the judges)," Calderón added. He made reference to a pending case involving an ex-director of the Federal Electricity Commission who is accused of fraud and financial crimes. The man was arrested on a Saturday but released just hours later using Mexico's notorious amparo procedure, a legal tool which enables an accused person to walk out of jail long before all (or any) of the evidence has been presented against him. On the following Monday, another judge ruled the amparo was invalid, and ordered police to rearrest the man. Authorities are still looking for him.
The amparo is somewhat akin to habeas corpus procedures used in the United States and other common law nations, although in many respects it's a far more powerful legal tool. Habeas corpus tests the legality of someone's arrest and detention -- but generally only after he/she has been tried on the facts and all the evidence has been presented in open court. The Mexican amparo, on the other hand, commonly short-circuits the trial altogether and enables an accused person to get a free Out of Jail card upfront, without the bother of that pesky, inconvenient stuff known as "evidence."
El amparo siempre ha sido un recurso para sacar de la carcel a criminales a cambio de fuertes sumas de dinero
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