In a 5-4 vote on August 5, the U.S. Supreme Court rejected a stay of execution for Jose Medellin, a Mexican citizen, who was then executed in Texas that night. On August 7, Heliberto Chi, an Honduran citizen, was also executed in Texas. Medellin’s case had come before the Supreme Court on two previous occasions because the International Court of Justice had ruled that the U.S. had violated the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations by not informing him and other foreign nationals of their rights under that treaty. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that, without further action by Congress, Texas was not bound to hold up the execution, despite the treaty violation. In the most recent majority opinion rejecting Medellin’s stay, the Court said that the prospect of Congress acting soon on this issue was remote. The four Justices who dissented from the denial of the stay each wrote separately about their concerns. Excerpts from some of their opinions follow:

Justice Breyer: “[T]o permit this execution to proceed forthwith places the United States irremediably in violation of international law and breaks our treaty promises.… In my view, we should seek the views of the Solicitor General (which may well clarify these matters), and we should grant a stay of sufficient length for careful consideration of those views, along with the other briefs and materials filed in this suit. A sufficient number of Justices having voted to secure those views (four), it is particularly disappointing that no Member of the majority has proved willing to provide a courtesy vote for a stay so that we can consider the Solicitor General’s view once received.”

Justice Stevens: “I believe we should request the views of the Solicitor General, who argued on behalf of the Executive Branch in earlier proceedings in the suit, before allowing Texas to proceed with the execution.… Balancing the honor of the Nation against the modest burden of a short delay… convinces me that the application for a stay should be granted.”

Justice Souter: “I would therefore enter the requested stay of execution for as long as the remainder of the 2007 Term, to allow for a current statement of the views of the Solicitor General and for any congressional action that could affect the disposition of petitioner’s filings.”

Medellin v. Texas, No. 06-984, Aug. 5, 2008. See Foreign Nationals, International and U.S. Supreme Court.