Jose Medellin is set to be executed tonight in Texas. Jose is a Mexican national who was convicted of raping and murdering two teenage girls in Houston, Texas, 15 years ago. Medellin bragged about having "virgin blood" on him after the rapes and murders. He was aided in these rapes and murders by 5 other gang members. Derrick O'Brien, not a Mexican, has already been executed. The other gang members were under 18 at the time and not eligible for the death penalty. Their victims were Elizabeth Peña, 16, and Jennifer Ertman, 14, lest anyone think we are only doing this because pretty little blond haired, blue eyed, white girls were involved or that Texas only executes Mexicans.

The Mexican government and lawyers for Medellin want an appeal because he was not allowed consular access before his trial. The Texas Attorney General's Office urged the Supreme Court to reject the appeals, saying the execution "fully complies with international law" and noting that the Justices already have ruled that the International Court of Justice's decisions are not U.S. law and not binding on American courts. Barring an 11th hour stay, it looks like we are going to serve justice tonight.

My Mexican immigrant buddy had this to say.

"You know, they are going to kill that Mexican tomorrow night."
"Good.", I said.
"Si. It's good. He should not have done that to those girls. This is not what a good Mexican man or any good man should do to little girls."
Me again, "Right. I hear in Mexico there is no death penalty."
"Oh, no. But this does not mean someone would not have cut off his pelotas and left him for dead."

Good riddance to bad rubbish. Sad to think that this guy has escaped justice for longer than one of his victims was alive...

If he had been convicted in Thailand (as an American), he would have already been hung....

Since he's admitted to his crimes, Aint, and is trying to get out through a technicality, perhaps his pelotas should have been cut off a long time ago.

It's underestandable that his defense attorneys would do everything possible to save him, but in this case I think justice was served by his demise.

The only way this case could be appealed is if it were found that it is illegal to deny a defendant consular access. He may have never even asked for it. It would have to be required by law that all criminal defendendants who are citizens of other countries must be granted a consular visit. I don't know for sure, but I don't think such a law exists.

It's too late now anyway. See ya in hell, champ.

Here is the thing...Medellin was a life long resident of the United States (at least since the time he was 3.) It is highly likely that he never revealed he was a Mexican citizen and led law enforcement to believe he was a US citizen. It was not until three years AFTER his conviction that he raised the issue of his Mexican citizenship. I strongly suspect it was a lawyer working with an anti-capial punishment group that discovered Medellin was a Mexican citizen and had never been afforded consular access. This would make this case an extremely poor case on which to base our discussion of consular access. Clearly, under the Vienna Convention the US has an obligation to ensure consular access for foreign citizens who become entangled with law enforcement. However, only a fool would believe that the Vienna Conventions imposed a burden on the signatories to see through subterfuge by those claiming to be citizens of the country in which arrested and provide them consular access without their having requested it or informed the arresting nation that they were in fact noncitizens.

What do we do in the future? There will be more and more cases similar to Medelllin's... MS 13 Gang members are a brazen bunch of thugs, who future arrests may challenge our system. Consular access for El Salvadorians? Will we deport future immigrant gang members? As it stands, our borders are a revolving door for these monsters... El Salvador contributes to the war effort in Iraq...will this have an impact on our diplomatic relations when deciding if some creep responsible for raping and killing Americans will be given "leniancy"?

Medellin is done and over...but the future remains to be unveiled. What do you think LM?

CG, I think foreign nationals arrested in the United States and identified as such either by their paperwork or by virtue of the fact they claimed that status should be afforded consular access. That is what is required under the Vienna Convention. As I stated before, the Medellin case is a very very poor case upon which to build any precedent. He concealed his status as a Mexican national until long after his conviction and only brought that status to light when it seemed it might provide a grounds to challenge his conviction. He should not be rewarded for that...I am glad to see he was not.

The law is always made because of extremists. Fireworks is a good example. If stupid children didn't blow their fingers off by holding a cherry bomb, or blind their friends by throwing a bottle rocket at them, or burn down their house by lighting a roman candle inside it, there would be no need for anti-fireworks laws.

You get a couple of criminal knuckleheads like Medellin who abuse the system to their own detriment, and before you know it, we'll stuff the Vienna Convention into the same orifice we stuffed the Geneva Convention, and goodbye consular rights for foreign nationals.

I disagree with you, Dax. Let me ask...Should Medellin have been afforded a new trial on the basis that his right to consular access was violated? Even though that right was "violated" because Medellin not only failed to reveal he was a Mexican national and ask for access to his consular officials but Medellin actively portrayed himself as an American citizen?