On December 10, 2004 (Human Rights Day), the United States Supreme Court agreed to hear the case of Jose Medellin to deter­mine what effect the United States should give to a recent rul­ing by the International Court of Justice at the Hague, the United Nations’ high­est court. In the case of Medellin and 50 oth­er Mexican nation­als on death row, the World Court ruled that the U.S. failed to inform Mexico of their arrests, in vio­la­tion of the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. This fail­ing inter­fered with Mexico’s abil­i­ty to lend legal assis­tance to those fac­ing the death penal­ty. The Vienna Convention applies to Americans abroad and to for­eign­ers arrest­ed in the United States and requires that an arrest­ing gov­ern­ment noti­fy a for­eign nation­al of the right to talk with his or her con­sulate. It also requires that the con­sulate be informed of the arrest of one of their cit­i­zens. The Supreme Court grant­ed cer­tio­rari to deter­mine whether the World Court’s rul­ing sup­plants the hold­ing of low­er courts that Medellin should have raised this claim ear­li­er. The World Court ruled that U.S. courts should give the death row inmates ​“mean­ing­ful review” of their con­vic­tions and sen­tences. The case is Medellin v. Dretke, No. 04 – 5928. (Associated Press, December 10, 2004) See Supreme Court and Foreign Nationals.

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