Ginny Sloan posts, "Proposed Legislation Providing Consular Access Holds Lives in the Balance," at Huffington Post. She's the president of the Constitution Project.
Consular access also enhances the truth-seeking function at the heart of American justice, and provides an indispensable protection for foreign nationals who are unfamiliar with the U.S. criminal justice system. "Mandatory Justice: The Death Penalty Revisited," the 2005 report (PDF) of The Constitution Project's Death Penalty Committee -- a bipartisan committee comprising supporters and opponents of the death penalty -- concluded that "the policies underlying the [Vienna Convention] are similar to those underlying the right to counsel guaranteed by the United States Constitution." The diverse committee thus called on all jurisdictions to fully comply with the Vienna Convention.
The Consular Notification Compliance Act has significant implications for the many foreign nationals currently on death row, such as Humberto Leal Garcia, a Mexican national who is scheduled for execution by the state of Texas in less than a month. Mr. Leal was never told that he had a right to contact the Mexican consulate for legal assistance. If the legislation passes, it would give Mr. Leal the opportunity to petition a federal court to review his case and, if appropriate, order a new trial or sentencing hearing. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that the act will come up for a vote in the Senate or House before Mr. Leal's July 7th execution date, so it will be up to Texas Gov. Rick Perry to grant Mr. Leal a reprieve pending a vote on the proposed bill.
Given the life and death stakes, a diverse group of former military officials, diplomats, judges and prosecutors have petitioned Governor Perry to hold off on executing Mr. Leal until the legislation is considered. This week, attorneys for Mr. Leal will file a federal habeas petition and a motion for stay of execution in the federal district court, arguing that Mr. Leal has a due process right to remain alive so that he can benefit from the legislative remedy contained in the Consular Notification Compliance Act. Now, the whole world will watch to see if Texas, and the United States, will honor the rights promised by the Vienna Convention.
At Opinio Juris, Duncan Hollis posts, "Proposed Legislation Seeks VCCR Compliance by the United States."
Those who have followed the cases relating to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR) here in the United States and at the ICJ know that the United States has a compliance problem. The United States does not provide the ‘judicial review and reconsideration’ remedy that the ICJ has indicated is required in the event a violation of an individual’s rights under Article 36 of the VCCR, and the Supreme Court has indicated that the President alone cannot order U.S. states to provide those remedies. Since 2008, many commentators have suggested that the solution to this problem lies with Congress. Earlier attempts to enact legislation authorizing the necessary procedural steps to put the United States in compliance have fallen short. Senator Patrick Leahy, however, is ready to try again in light of a pending execution of a Mexican national in Texas (apparently scheduled for July 7), which also seems certain to revive international attention to this issue.
"U.S. Notables Urge Texas to Delay Mexican’s Execution," is the Latin American Herald Tribune report.
Retired U.S. military brass, diplomats, politicians and a former FBI chief urged the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles to delay the execution of a Mexican national convicted of murder, arguing that the case needs to be reviewed.
Humberto Leal Garcia, a 38-year-old native of Monterrey, is scheduled to be executed July 7.
He was sentenced to death in 1995 by a Texas court for the kidnapping, rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl.
Without disputing Leal’s guilt, the Mexican government recently asked Texas to commute the death sentence, citing both humanitarian concerns and the failure of Texan authorities to respect foreign suspects’ right to consular assistance under the Vienna Convention.
“Prompt knowledge of and access to our fellow-citizens held in foreign jails ensures that U.S. consular officers can help them obtain legal assistance, monitor their treatment, and connect them to family and friends back home,” retired military brass and diplomats said in a letter to the Texas parole board.
“The safety and well-being of Americans abroad is endangered by the U.S. maintaining the double standard of protesting denials of consular notification and access to its own citizens while simultaneously failing to comply with its obligation to remedy identical violations,” they said.
The board has received similar appeals from figures such as former FBI Director William Sessions and a former Texas governor, Mark White.
The International Court of Justice ruled on March 31, 2004, that Texas had violated the rights of Leal and other Mexican nationals, instructing U.S. authorities to review the death sentences of 51 Mexicans.
Texas, however, has refused to suspend the executions of foreigners, claiming that no international court’s ruling may replace state laws and the federal government has no authority to order the states to review such matters.
Earlier coverage of the Leal case begins with the preceding post. Related posts are in the foreign citizen index.
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