extradition
n. C / Un. the legal process of sending a person back to another country to face a trial or punishment. It usually happens when someone is accused of a crime in one country but is caught in another.
n. the formal process by which one state surrenders an individual to another state for prosecution or punishment for a criminal offence. Often governed by bilateral or multilateral treaties.
The government requested his extradition to face trial.
Lawyers for the suspect are fighting the extradition request, arguing that their client will not receive a fair trial in his home country.
The treaty outlines specific crimes that warrant extradition, ensuring that political offences are excluded from the mandatory surrender of individuals between the two sovereign nations.
From French extradition, itself from Latin ex- + traditio.
Often used in the phrase 'extradition treaty' or 'extradition request'. Uncountable when referring to the general legal concept; countable when referring to a specific instance or case.