International Court Finds U.S. in Violation of Treaty

INTERNATIONAL COURT FINDS U.S. IN VIOLATION OF TREATY



On March 31, 2004 the  International Court of Justice (ICJ) decid­ed in favor of Mexico, find­ing that the United States vio­lat­ed the rights of most of the 51 Mexican cit­i­zens cur­rent­ly on death row across the coun­try. The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, which the U.S. has rat­i­fied, declares that for­eign cit­i­zens shall have the right to speak with diplo­mat­ic offi­cials upon arrest. The Mexican defen­dants named in the suit argued that they were denied that right and the court agreed. The ICJ said that U.S. courts must review the con­vic­tions and sen­tences in each case. At least one of the defen­dants, Osvaldo Torres, is fac­ing an immi­nent exe­cu­tion date in Oklahoma.

Decision of the ICJ

ICJ Press Release Announcing the Decision

Recent Editorials on the Court’s Decision

Amnesty International Brief on Osvaldo Torres, sched­uled for exe­cu­tion in Oklahoma on May 18

DPIC: Foreign Nationals on US Death Rows

DPIC Report: International Perspectives on the Death Penalty