Supreme Court Rules Consular Warnings Not Required

In a decision issued last month, the United States Supreme Court ruled that US Courts were not required to comply with international rules regarding the guarantee of consular rights to accused criminal defendants. The decision directly contradicts a ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which held that the Vienna Convention guarantees defendants the right to seek assistance from their embassy when being tried for a criminal offense in a foreign country.^[1]

The ruling addressed a Texas case involving Jose Ernesto Medellin, convicted of the rape and murder of two teenage girls, and 50 other Mexican inmates who were not given access to the Mexican consulate prior to their trials. In 2004, the ICJ held that the state of Texas was in breach of the Vienna Convention by not granting these rights, but on March 25, the US Supreme Court overruled the ICJ warning by a 6-3 decision. ^[2]

In the Supreme Court decision, Chief Justice John Roberts noted that state courts are not required to adapt their criminal procedures to international legal precedent, writing "[n]ot all international obligations automatically constitute binding federal law enforceable in US courts.”^[3] An executive order issued by President Bush was also found to be non-binding on state courts. "The responsibility for transforming an international obligation arising from a non-self-executing treaty into domestic law falls to Congress," added Roberts.^[4]

Mexico and countries from the European Union had urged the Supreme Court to issue a decision granting a new trial for Medellin and his counterparts, and despite the ruling, Medellin’s attorney, Donald Donovan, continued to urge Texas courts for a rehearing. Donavan also urged Congress to pass legislation requiring US courts to comply with the Vienna Convention. "Having given its word, the United States should keep its word.”^[5]

Further examples on consular rights in criminal cases can be found here, as well as on the Transnational Crimes Blog.

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[1] Suzanne Goldenberg, US courts given leave to bypass international legal rulings, The Guardian, March 26, 2007 (available at www.guardian.co.uk).

[2] Id.

[3] Id.

[4] Id.

[5] Id.