Justice with a narco cartel smile by John Reid

Democracy, when applied like ketchup on a bad taco, doesn’t make the mess taste better, it just stains the shirt of justice. When critics warned that electing judges in Mexico might one day seat cartel lawyers on the bench, they weren’t being dramatic. They were being prophetic. And here we are. Silvia Delgado, the lawyer who once defended none other than Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, the crown prince of cocaine and corruption, has just been elected judge in Ciudad Juárez.

No, this isn’t the latest Narcos season. This is real life. Welcome to Justicia Mexicana: El Reality Show.

Let that sink in: a woman whose legal prowess was dedicated to keeping one of the most brutal drug lords in modern history out of a prison cell will now be donning the robe of impartiality, presumably with the same steady hand she once used to twist legal loopholes into narco get-out-of-jail cards.

It’s not just foxes guarding the henhouse. We’ve handed the fox the keys, the security cameras, and a hen-sized menu.

Electing judges might sound noble on paper, accountability, transparency, people’s choice and all that democracy jazz but Mexico isn’t Norway, and Ciudad Juárez isn’t Oslo. In places where organized crime has more sway than the Chamber of Commerce, the ballot box can become just another bullet casing.

In theory, the people vote. In practice? The people are coerced, manipulated, or simply misinformed, fed campaign slogans paid for with narco money and protected by a network of silence. When cartels infiltrate the judicial process, they don’t walk in with guns blazing. They stroll in with briefcases, legal degrees, and resumes polished with the blood of the innocent.

Silvia Delgado’s election is not just a red flag. It’s a blazing crimson banner flapping in the dry wind of Northern Mexico, spelling out exactly what critics feared: that narco-politics has evolved past bribes and envelopes under the table. Why buy justice when you can own the courtroom?

The old model of corruption was at least vaguely shameful. Bribes were passed in shadows, recorded in shaky videos, leaked in whispers. Now? It's bold. It's public. It's electoral. Justice is no longer for sale under the table; it’s on the ballot.

This is a cartel coup not through violence but through bureaucracy.

What’s next? A former cartel accountant as head of the anti-money laundering unit? Oh wait, maybe we shouldn’t give them ideas.

Let’s be honest: Delgado might technically fulfill all the “legal requirements” to be a judge. And yes, even cartel lawyers deserve civil rights and access to a political career. But let’s not pretend this is normal. Let’s not pretend the judge’s gavel hasn’t been dipped in cocaine residue.

This isn’t about one woman. It’s about what she represents: a system so twisted, so blindfolded by corruption, it thinks it can wash off years of cartel defense work with a quick robe and a new nameplate.

The rise of figures like Delgado to judicial power signals something deeper and darker than a one-time mistake. It points to a normalization of narco-influence in Mexican institutions.

In some countries, there’s a firewall between justice and crime. In others, there’s a glass door. In Mexico, it now seems like there’s an express lane.

How many cases will Delgado preside over that involve cartel violence, cartel victims, cartel money? Will anyone dare question her neutrality? More importantly: will any victims ever trust her courtroom?

Silvia Delgado’s ascension may be legal. But it is not just. Legality is not morality. The bench demands more than a law degree, it demands moral clarity. It demands the appearance, at least, of being unsullied by the very forces it must judge.

This election is not a victory for the people. It’s a victory for the cartels, wrapped in a ballot, and delivered with a wink.

There’s a Mexican saying: “El que con lobos anda, a aullar se enseña.” He who walks with wolves learns to howl.

Well, the bench is howling tonight, and justice just grew a snout.

And to those who still insist this is a step forward for democracy, I offer you this: when justice becomes a popularity contest in a narco state, the only winners are those who already rule the streets. We’ve mistaken a mafia masquerade for civic participation.

Delgado isn’t the problem. She’s the symptom. And unless Mexico wants to see more of its judges plucked from cartel résumés, perhaps it’s time to rethink how justice is chosen—not by votes influenced by fear and money, but by processes armored against corruption.

Because when crime becomes policy, and criminals become judges, we’re not electing justice. We’re burying it.