Texas defies World Court, executes condemned Mexican
DALLAS, Aug 5 (Reuters) - Texas defied the World Court and executed a Mexican national by lethal injection on Tuesday over the objections of the international judicial body and neighboring Mexico.
Jose Medellin, 33, was pronounced dead at 9:57 p.m. CDT (0257 GMT), the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said in a statement. He had been condemned for the 1993 rape and murder of 16-year-old Elizabeth Pena in Houston and late on Tuesday night lost his last-ditch bid to the U.S. Supreme Court for a stay.
The World Court last month ordered the U.S. government to "take all measures necessary" to halt the upcoming execution of five Mexicans including Medellin on the grounds that they had been deprived of their right to consular services after their arrests. (Reporting by Ed Stoddard, editing by Jackie Frank)
Jose Medellin, 33, was pronounced dead at 9:57 p.m. CDT (0257 GMT), the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said in a statement. He had been condemned for the 1993 rape and murder of 16-year-old Elizabeth Pena in Houston and late on Tuesday night lost his last-ditch bid to the U.S. Supreme Court for a stay.
The World Court last month ordered the U.S. government to "take all measures necessary" to halt the upcoming execution of five Mexicans including Medellin on the grounds that they had been deprived of their right to consular services after their arrests. (Reporting by Ed Stoddard, editing by Jackie Frank)
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