Friday, July 08, 2011

INTERNATIONAL TREATY NOTWITHSTANDING, THIS EXECUTION SHOULD NOT BE DELAYED (2)

Thank God for the five conservative Supreme Court justices! In a last-minute appeal, they refused to delay the execution of rapist-murderer Humberto Leal and in effect told President Obama, the Mexican government and the International Court of Justice to take a flying leap.

Naturally, the four liberal justices backed Obama who had asked that Leal’s execution be delayed six months so the issue of violating the Vienna Convention for Consular Relations, a treaty signed by the U.S., could be sorted out by Congress. Lawyers for the administration urged the justices to delay the execution, arguing it would cause "irreparable harm" to U.S. interests and citizens traveling abroad. That phony scare tactic did not sway the five conservative justices.

Leal’s lawyers also argued that he was wrongly convicted because he wasn't told of his right to contact the Mexican consulate, as provided under the Vienna Convention. That’s just absurd. The bastard had his execution stayed twice to ensure that he was not wrongly convicted.

On Thursday evening, Leal was finally executed by the State of Texas for his 1995 conviction of murdering and raping a 16-year-old girl. The victim’s nude body was found with a bloody and broken stick protruding from her vagina and her body had several bite marks that matched Leal’s teeth. He strangled her and smashed her head in with a 30 to 40 pound chunk of asphalt.

After more than 16 years of endless appeals, and two stays of execution, justice has finally been served. But, had Obama been able to make just one more appointment to the Supreme Court, this long overdue execution would have been delayed and Leal would probably have been spared the death penalty for good.

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