In United States v. Bravo, 2007 U.S. App. LEXIS 6618, the First Circuit found that jurisdiction under the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Act does not include a nexus requirement. As such, a United States district court could properly hear a drug case involving an unmarked vessel in international waters, even though there had been no showing that the drugs being transported in the vessel would affect the United States. Moreover, the court found that the Coast Guard’s actions in boarding the vessel were in compliance with international law, given that Colombia had been unable to confirm the ship’s claim that it was a registered Colombian vessel. The court noted that the Fourth Amendment does not apply to actions by United States authorities against aliens in international waters.
Harvard International Law Journal
The oldest and most-cited student-edited journal of international law, the Harvard International Law Journal covers a wide variety of topics in public and private international law.