Humberto Leal received lethal injection Thursday evening in Huntsville.
His punishment capped a flurry of appeals that argued he deserved additional court review of his case because authorities didn't tell him he could seek legal help from the Mexican government when he was arrested for the murder of 16-year-old Adria Sauceda in 1994.
President Barack Obama's administration had joined with Leal's attorneys, arguing a delay was warranted so legislation covering cases like his could work its way through Congress.
Lawyers for the state of Texas opposed the appeals, saying un-passed legislation was not law.
Source:
Houston Chronicle, July 7, 2011
Texas executes Mexican after court stay rejected
HUNTSVILLE, Texas — A Mexican national was executed Thursday for the rape-slaying of a San Antonio teenager after the U.S. Supreme Court turned down a White House-supported appeal to spare him in a death penalty case where Texas justice triumphed over international treaty concerns.
Humberto Leal, 38, received lethal injection for the 1994 murder of Adria Sauceda. She was fatally bludgeoned with a piece of asphalt.
Leal was pronounced dead at 6:21 p.m.
Leal moved with his family from Monterrey, Mexico, to the U.S. as a toddler. Police never told Leal following his arrest that he could seek legal assistance from the Mexican government under an international treaty and his case had prompted appeals on what it could mean for other foreigners arrested in the U.S. and for Americans detained in other countries. His appeals lawyers said such assistance would have helped his defense.
The argument was not new. Texas, the nation's most active death penalty state, has executed other condemned foreign nationals who raised similar challenges, most recently in 2008.
Leal's appeals, however, focused on legislation introduced last month in the U.S. Senate by Vermont Democrat Patrick Leahy. Leahy's measure would bring the U.S. into compliance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations provision regarding the arrests of foreign nationals and ensure court reviews for condemned foreigners to determine if the lack of consular help made a significant difference in the outcome of their cases.
President Barack Obama's administration took the unusual step of intervening in a state murder case when Solicitor General Donald Verrilli Jr. last week joined Leal's appeal in asking the high court halt the execution and give Congress at least six months to consider Leahy's bill.
"The legislation would give Mr. Leal an opportunity to demonstrate that with consular assistance, he likely would not have been convicted, let alone sentenced to death," Sandra Babcock, a Northwestern University law professor and one of Leal's lawyers, said.
Leal's attorneys had the support of the Mexican government and other diplomats who believed the execution should be delayed so his case could be thoroughly reviewed. Some also warned Leal's execution would violate the treaty provision and could endanger Americans abroad.
Measures similar to Leahy's have failed at least twice in recent congressional sessions. The Texas Attorney General's office, opposing the appeals, pointed to those failures in its Supreme Court arguments, saying history had validated that "legislative relief was not likely to be forthcoming."
Stephen Hoffman, an assistant attorney general, said the request for a reprieve to extend through the end of the current congressional term next January was audacious and that evidence pointing to Leal's guilt was strong.
"At this point, it is clear that Leal is attempting to avoid execution by overwhelming the state and the courts with as many meritless lawsuits and motions as humanly possible," Hoffman said., said. "Simply put, a bill is not federal law.... And because most bills introduced never become law, it is altogether unsurprising that bills are not afforded legal effect."
Source:
Houston Chronicle, July 7, 2011
MEXICO CONDEMNS EXECUTION OF MR. HUMBERTO LEAL GARCIA
The Government of Mexico strongly condemns today’s execution of Mexican national Humberto Leal GarcÃa, in Huntsville, Texas, in clear violation of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Avena ruling of 2004 (Mexico vs. the United States of America), which ordered the United States to review and reconsider the convictions and sentences of 51 Mexican nationals -including Mr. Leal GarcÃa- who were sentenced to death without being notified of their consular rights, in contravention of Article 36 of the Vienna Convention, to which Mexico and the U.S. are parties.
Moreover, the Government of Mexico deplores the decision of the State of Texas not to grant a reprieve of Mr. Leal Garcia’s execution to allow for U.S. compliance with the ruling by the ICJ, as requested by the Mexican Government, other foreign governments and the preeminent international human rights organizations and NGOs.
The Government of Mexico has officially protested to the U.S. State Department via diplomatic note in response to the United States’ violation of international law. In it, Mexico expressed its utmost concern for the negative legal precedent set forth by this case for the remaining Mexican nationals included in ICJ’s Avena ruling, as well as for the rights of Mexicans that could be detained in the U.S. in the future.
As part of its diplomatic actions, and taking into consideration the U.S Supreme Court decision in Medellin v. Texas (2008), the Government of Mexico actively engaged key members of U.S. Congress to promote the implementation of the ICJ’s decision. Therefore, the execution of Mr. Leal GarcÃa is even more worrisome in light of the bill recently introduced in the Senate which, if passed, would allow the U.S. to comply with the Avena ruling within the framework of U.S. law.
The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Mr. Leal Garcia’s defense team exhausted all domestic and international legal recourses at their disposal in order to obtain the review and reconsideration mandated by the International Court of Justice.
The Secretary of Foreign Affairs and the Ambassador of Mexico to the U.S. sent letters to the Governor of Texas underscoring the importance of fulfilling the international obligations of the U.S. regarding consular notification. The Ambassador also called the Governor, who was unable to take the call, and therefore spoke with the Governor’s Chief of Staff to convey Mexico’s position.
The Government of Mexico fully acknowledges the willingness shown by the U.S. Administration to comply with the Avena ruling through actions carried out at the highest levels before Texas authorities and the U.S. Supreme Court, where an Amicus curiae brief was filed in support of the petition of stay presented by the defense of Mr. Leal GarcÃa.
The Government of Mexico will continue to urge the U.S. to comply with its obligation to provide for the review and reconsideration of the convictions and sentences of the other Mexican nationals included in Avena, and to guarantee the right to consular notification that assists all of our nationals abroad.
Source:
Mexican Foreign Ministry, Mexican Embassy to the United States, July 7, 2011
Lundbeck’s Pentobarbital kills its 19th patient in Texas on July 7, 2011
Despite the Obama administration and international leaders’ numerous calls for reprieve on behalf of Humberto Leal, Lundbeck‘s Pentobarbital killed its 19th patient in Texas on July 7, 2011.
After the execution, the Mexican authorities stated:
“The Government of Mexico strongly condemns today’s execution of Mexican national Humberto Leal GarcÃa, in Huntsville, Texas, in clear violation of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) Avena ruling of 2004 (Mexico vs. the United States of America)…”
For 7 months now, Lundbeck has been the US executioner’s partner in crime. Its adamantly slow decision process has caused 19 executions out of the 26 in the US, and many more to come this year.
When healthcare is a business where respect for human life has no place, a health laboratory becomes a death laboratory.
Lundbeck is now responsible for 19 of the 26 executions carried out so far in the United States in 2011.
Five more patients await Lundbeck’s treatment for the sole month of July 2011:
Kenneth Smith, Ohio, July 19, 2011
Thomas West, Arizona, July 19, 2011
Mark Stroman, Texas, July 20, 2011
Andrew Grant DeYoung, Georgia, July 20, 2011 - NEW DATE -
(execution to be carried out between the 2oth and 27th)
Robert Jackson III, Delaware, Juy 29, 2011
Source:
The Pentobarbital Experiment, July 8, 2011
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By a 5-4 vote along ideological lines, the Supreme Court has just refused to stay the execution of convicted killer Humberto Leal Garcia, a Mexican convicted of the rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl in 1994. ...
Humberto Leal Garcia Jr., 38, was convicted of raping a 16-year-old girl and then bludgeoning her to death with a 35-pound piece of asphalt in 1994. He is scheduled to be executed by lethal injection on July 7. ...
6 hours ago
Humberto Leal, 38, is awaiting a ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court on whether to block his lethal injection in Huntsville. He was sentenced to die for the 1994 rape and murder of 16-year-old Adria Sauceda of San Antonio....
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