Mexican on Oklahoma Death Row Gets Life in Prison

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=1895&ncid=1895&e=9&u=/nm/20031121/us_nm/execution_oklahoma_dc

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OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - A Mexican man who once came within days of being executed was sentenced to life in prison for a 1989 murder after Mexican authorities protested that his rights had been violated, Oklahoma officials said on Friday.



The new sentence for Gerardo Valdez, 43, came after two years of efforts by Mexican officials, including President Vicente Fox (news - web sites), to have Valdez's life spared. Fox wrote to then Gov. Frank Keating in 2001 asking that Valdez's sentence be commuted to life in prison.


A state court of appeals ordered Valdez resentenced on Thursday in light of information that he had been denied a lawful consultation with the Mexican consulate.


Keating did not commute the sentence, but he did issue a stay of execution that resulted in the appeal. Valdez had been scheduled to die on Aug. 30, 2001, for the 1989 murder of Juan Barron

"A state court of appeals ordered Valdez resentenced on Thursday in light of information that he had been denied a lawful consultation with the Mexican consulate."

Isn't that a violation of the Treaty of Vienna, and a serious international crime?

would deny someone rights if it might stand in their way?

Always getting in the way of our holy righteous ritual sacrifices.

are fairly frequent in the U.S.. A couple of years ago a German (Austrian) national was in a similar prediciment but I believe he was executed anyway in Virginia. He had been denied the same right to contact his Consul. It created quite an international stir if I recall correctly.