{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://barletta.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/barletta-applauds-franklin-extradition-ruling-awaits-appeal", "Barletta Applauds Franklin Extradition Ruling, Awaits Appeal", "2015-12-10", "2015", "2015-12", "Republican", "House", "PA", "Lou Barletta", "B001269", "barletta.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON  Congressman Lou Barletta, PA-11, today praised a judges ruling in Argentina that accused murderer Anthony Rocco Franklin is to be extradited to the United States to face trial for the 2012 murder of his son-in-law, Frank Spencer, in Columbia County. Franklin, whose daughter Maria Sanutti-Spencer was married to Spencer and has already been convicted of first degree murder and arson in the case, has appealed his extradition to the Argentina Supreme Court. The time table for the resolution of the appeal is unclear, but is expected to take at least several months.\nThis is one major hurdle cleared in our ongoing efforts to have Mr. Franklin returned home to stand trial for his involvement in the murder of his son-in-law Frank Spencer, Barletta said. The family and friends of Mr. Spencer have been anticipating justice, and so have the people of Columbia County. With this ruling, we are one step closer to a conclusion.  We now await the results of his appeal, and I extend my thanks to the State Department and the Department of Justice for their work on this case. I also appreciate the diligence of the Pennsylvania State Police and local prosecutors.\nThe U.S. State Department notified Barletta this week of the judges ruling, having been informed by the Federal Bureau of Investigations office within the U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires. Under Argentinian law, Franklin has the right of one appeal to that countrys highest court. He has been held in Argentina since September 2014, after he fled Columbia County when a grand jury began discussing possible charges against him in connection with Spencers murder. Police investigators have maintained that both Franklin and Sanutti-Spencer were responsible for the crime.\nBarletta and Rep. Tom Marino (PA-10) have been engaged in efforts to return Franklin to Pennsylvania to stand trial. In June, the two Congressmen wrote to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch seeking the Department of Justices involvement in the case. They also wrote to the Argentinian Ambassador to the United States, Cecilia Nahn, requesting her governments cooperation.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://barletta.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/barletta-applauds-franklin-extradition-ruling-awaits-appeal"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5394189395010471, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}