U.S. broke obligations in Mexican's execution

[ellisonz]

U.S. broke obligations in Mexican's execution
The International Court of Justice says the U.S. violated its ruling ordering reviews of death-row cases involving Mexican citizens when Texas executed one of the convicts.

By Ken Ellingwood
9:46 PM PST, January 19, 2009

Reporting from Mexico City -- The International Court of Justice ruled Monday that the United States violated its order last year when Texas proceeded with the execution of a Mexican national convicted of murder and rape.

The court, based in The Hague, said the United States remains bound by a 2004 ruling to review the cases of 51 Mexican citizens on death row despite its failure to do so in the past. That earlier decision said the United States violated the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations by not advising the Mexican arrestees of their right to seek help from their nation's consular officials.

But in Monday's ruling, the court, also known as the World Court, rejected Mexico's request that it require that U.S. authorities provide a guarantee to review and reconsider each case.

Mexico formally outlawed the death penalty in 2005, and the execution of Mexicans for capital crimes in the United States is a hot-button issue here. Many Mexicans believe their countrymen are more likely to face the death penalty than U.S. citizens charged with the same crimes.

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http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-mexico-execute20-2009jan20,0,2198496.story

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Bush administration ends with Texas executions, terror, and fear in Mexico. So long George!

:sarcasm: