Abolition Now !

Press Releases on Javier Medina's Case

 Sun, 18 Aug 2002 17:28:13 -

We knew Javier as "Bobby" at the United Methodist Church where I was pastor at that time. He was a member of our Sunday school for three or four years prior to the shooting of Detective Lawrence Cadena. Bobby was a friendly, helpful young man who assisted me with the children I supervised while their parents studied English. His family moved away to another area of the city because, we were told, he was getting in with the wrong crowd.

While Bobby was being held in the jail here in Dallas, I talked with him on more than one occasion. He never denied pulling the trigger to me, but he vowed to me that he had never seen the gun he held before that night, had never seen the coat that was around his shoulders, and he was obeying orders from the young men who had earlier threatened the life of his sister. He was a frightened kid who could hardly comprehend what he
had done and the reality of the death sentence.

The worthiness of Detective Cadena, a very nice man whom I met at least once, and the tragedy of his killing, do not automatically turn the 19-year-old who shot him into an ogre nor make his crime more "heinous" than others. Nor should we have a sense of satisfaction that "justice has been done." Poverty and the disadvantage of being a minority, combined with the empty promises of the drug culture, have sucked in so
many young lives. "Justice" has already been compromised in so many places for young people caught in this kind of trap that it doesn't make sense to sentence a 19-year-old to death. We, myself included, are guilty of too much contributory negligence.

We Texans continue to see sentencing as retribution rather than as an opportunity for rehabilitation. Why would one assume that Javier Suarez could not be rehabilitated?

Finally, thank you, Mexican President Vicente Fox, for caring about what happened to this young man. I am so sorry for the double tragedy that happened here.

Victoria Davidson, pastor, Brandon Avenue United Methodist Church,  Dallas

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Texas Executes Man Despite Pleas
Wed Aug 14,10:53 PM ET
By MICHAEL GRACZYK, Associated Press Writer

HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) - A man convicted of killing a Dallas police officer in 1988 was executed Wednesday despite protests that putting him to death violated international law.

Speaking English and Spanish, Javier Suarez Medina apologized for the crime, asked forgiveness from the relatives of the slain police officer and thanked the people of Mexico for their support in his case.

"I'd like to apologize to the Cadena family for whatever hurt and suffering I've caused them," he said in a final statement that lasted several minutes. "I sincerely ask in your heart to forgive me."

As the lethal injection was administered, Suarez began singing the hymn "Amazing Grace." He was pronounced dead nine minutes later.

The mother and son of the officer were among the execution witnesses. Afterward, Lawrence Cadena Jr. thanked local and federal authorities "who helped push this through the system."

The U.S. Supreme Court ( news - web sites), without comment, turned down an appeal about 90 minutes before the scheduled execution. Gov. Rick Perry then denied Suarez a 30-day reprieve.

Suarez was convicted of gunning down Dallas police Officer Lawrence Cadena, 43, during an undercover drug sting. He was 19 at the time.

Prosecutor Lori Ordiway said Suarez filed many appeals, but only in the past week did his lawyers raise the issue of violating international law.

"He had 13 years," she said. "It's a way for him to try to delay his rightful sentence."

Similar appeals in Texas citing the Vienna Convention failed to save condemned inmates Stanley Faulder, a Canadian, and Miguel Flores, a Mexican.

At least four Mexican nationals have been executed in Texas. More than two dozen of the 453 inmates on Texas death row are foreigners - 18 from Mexico.

In the Mexican border town of Piedras Negras, Suarez's family had prayed he would be spared. Mexico does not have the death penalty.

Late Wednesday, President Vicente Fox ( news - web sites), who had asked Perry to halt the execution, canceled a trip to Texas during which he was scheduled to meet with President Bush ( news - web sites) later this month.

 ....................................

Lydia M.V. Brandt
The Brandt Law Firm, P.C.
Richardson, Texas
(972) 699-7020 Voice; (972) 699-7030 Fax
 

PRESS RELEASE

August 14, 2002

The Final Request of Javier Suárez Medina: An Appeal for Peace and Forgiveness
Despite unprecedented and urgent interventions by many of the United States’ closest allies, Mexican national Javier Suárez Medina was executed this evening in Huntsville, Texas. The execution was allowed to proceed after the United States Supreme Court denied the final appeal and after the Governor of Texas refused to grant a reprieve.

 “Javier told me to be sure and express his profound thanks for the support of the Mexican government and the prayers of the Mexican people,” Lydia Brandt, counsel to Mr. Suárez  Medina, said today. “I know that he was also intensely grateful for all of the efforts made on his behalf by the international community.”

“Javier asked that there be no violence or demonstrations to protest his execution–he wanted there to be peace.”
 
 “Most of all, Javier wanted to convey his deepest remorse to the Cadena family. One of his main concerns– regardless of whether his sentence was carried out– was that the family of Officer Cadena know that he is grieving with them,” she said.

“Javier specifically asked that it be made known to the Cadena family that he deeply regrets the crime and the suffering that they've endured, and that he really wants the family to find closure and peace,” Ms. Brandt said.

ENDS.

Background Information

The final tally of intervening nations and international bodies bears testament to the depth of concern which the case of this quiet young Mexican generated around the world. As of earlier today, seventeen nations had expressed deep concern over the undeniable violation of Mr. Suárez Medina’s consular rights, either by sending appeals for clemency or by intervening at the Supreme Court in support of a judicial review. The nations are, first and foremost, Mexico–along with Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, Poland, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Uruguay and Venezuela.

An extraordinary array of inter-governmental, religious, legal and human rights organizations also called on the United States and Texas authorities to stay the execution. They included: the European Union, the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights, UN Sub-Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Amnesty International, the American Bar Association, the Dominican and Franciscan Orders and many others.
 
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PRESS RELEASE: August 14, 2002

Nations Unite to Support Suárez Medina Appeal

  In an extraordinary display of international solidarity and concern, thirteen nations have joined with Mexico in supporting a United States Supreme Court review of the case of Javier Suárez Medina. A Mexican national, Mr. Suárez Medina is scheduled for execution this evening in Texas, despite evidence that Texas authorities violated his right to consular notification and prevented Mexican authorities from providing consular assistance during his 1989 trial. Texas is required to provide notification of consular rights without delay to any detained foreign national, under the terms of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

     In a joint amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief filed with the Supreme Court, the 14 countries urge the granting of a full hearing in order to resolve the legal implications of the treaty violation in this case.

    The joint brief declares that Texas “should not be permitted to damage the United States’ relationship with its allies, invite international condemnation, and increase the danger that nationals detained abroad will be denied their time-honored right to consular assistance and protection”.  The 14 nations also point out that the United States is under a binding obligation to
comply with a judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Last year, the ICJ ordered that US authorities must provide review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence in cases where foreign nationals were deprived of their consular rights and sentenced to death.

     “This outpouring of international concern is simply unprecedented,” said Sandra Babcock, the attorney representing Mexico and the other intervening nations. The countries which have signed on to Mexico’s brief are: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, Poland, Spain, Uruguay and Venezuela.

In an appeal filed yesterday with the US Supreme Court, Mr. Suárez Medina cites the failure of the Texas courts to review the treaty violation and asserts that a judicial remedy must be applied to vindicate his right to receive timely consular notification and assistance. The petition is supported by extensive  new evidence uncovered through Mexican consular assistance, evidence which would have resulted in a lesser sentence if consular assistance had not been denied at the time of the trial.

 “Under the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution, this treaty obligation is binding on all individual states, including Texas,” Ms. Babcock said. “The international community is today calling on the Supreme Court to grant consideration of a basic legal right, one which is mandated both under the law of nations and under the supreme law of this land.”

ENDS

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  USA: Texas must grant immediate reprieve to Mexican national facing execution
 

Amnesty International today called on authorities in the State of Texas, USA,  to grant a reprieve to Javier Suárez Medina, a Mexican national scheduled for execution on 14 August.

 The organization noted the unprecedented international concern over the failure of Texas authorities to inform Suárez upon arrest in 1988 of his right to consular notification, as required under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

 "Consular notification and access are both binding legal obligations and  essential human rights safeguards which must be respected," Amnesty International said, adding that "At a minimum, Texas must remedy its flagrant breach of consular obligations by permitting thorough review and reconsideration of this deeply troubling case."

 Javier Suárez Medina  was sentenced to death in 1989 for the killing of a Dallas police officer during an undercover drug operation. However, new mitigating evidence discovered with the recent assistance of Mexican consular authorities has cast serious doubts on the fairness of his trial and sentence. Mexican authorities also maintain that Texas police repeatedly provided false and misleading information to them regarding Suarez’s nationality, thus preventing consular assistance until the trial had been concluded.

 Under Texas law, either the Governor or the Board of Pardons and Paroles (BPP) may grant a reprieve to permit further consideration of the grounds for clemency in a death penalty case.

 Texas has carried out 276 executions since 1982, yet the Texas BPP has only once recommended clemency on humanitarian grounds and almost never convenes clemency hearings. In at least two cases (Ricky McGinn and Johnny Garrett), Texas governors have exercised their independent authority by granting 30-day reprieves to allow further consideration of unresolved issues.

 On 27 June 2001, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that the United States had violated its binding obligations under the Vienna Convention by permitting the execution of two German nationals who had been deprived of consular notification and assistance. In its compulsory judgement, the ICJ held that the United States must provide "review and reconsideration" of the convictions and sentences of foreign nationals whose consular rights were violated. Shortly after the ICJ decision, the Governor of Oklahoma granted a reprieve to Mexican national Gerardo Valdez, to permit further consideration of the case. On 1 May 2002, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals set aside Valdez’s death sentence, noting "the significance and importance of the factual evidence discovered with the assistance of the Mexican Consulate."

 On 29 July 2002, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights of the Organization of American States issued "precautionary measures" in the Suárez case, calling on the United States to take all necessary steps to preserve his  life while his human rights petition is under review by the Commission. On 8 August 2002, the UN Sub-Commission for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights urged the United States to reprieve the execution of Javier Suárez Medina and to re-examine his case, based on the violation of his right to benefit from consular assistance and his right to a fair trial. Calls for commutation have also come from the President of the European Union, the American Bar Association and from a coalition of 13 nations which have joined with Mexico in supporting a final appeal to the United States Supreme Court.

 The ongoing failure of United States authorities to remedy violations of consular rights has been a deep concern to Amnesty International for many years. "Unless Texas authorities halt this execution immediately, the United States will once again lose its credibility as a nation which respects its binding human rights obligations," the organization said.
 
For additional information on consular rights violations in US death penalty cases, see A time for Action-- Protecting the consular rights of foreign nationals facing the death penalty, AI Index AMR 51/106/2001, available at: http://web.amnesty.org/802568F7005C4453/0/573D601A037DA71880256AA1005C8E7C

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 Wed Aug 7, 6:23 PM ET: Mexico issues another plea to spare the life of a Mexicancitizen set to die in Texas 

MEXICO CITY - Mexico's Foreign Relations Secretary called U.S. Secretary of  State Colin Powell ( news - web sites) and contacted Texas Gov. Rick Perry,  asking them to cancel the planned Aug. 14 execution of  Mexican citizen Javier Suarez.  Suarez was sentenced to die for the murder of an undercover drug agent in1988.

 In a statement released Wednesday, Jorge Castaneda's office said the
foreign  minister talked with Powell by telephone to "convey Mexico's worry about the grave violations committed in" the Suarez case.  It also said Casteneda contacted Perry to "ask for clemency."
The new wave of diplomatic efforts comes less than two weeks after
Mexico's embassy in Washington sent a letter to Perry asking the governor to spare Suarez's life based on purported new evidence about his mental state at
the time of the killing. The government has not specified what the new evidence was.

No one denies that the then 19-year-old Mexican killed an undercover agent who was posing as a drug buyer. But Suarez supporters insist it was a non-premeditated murder, which are generally not subject to the death penalty.

They say Suarez got mixed up with drug traffickers the same night of the murder because they had threatened to hurt his family and that he shot the agent in a moment of fear and confusion.

There are now 17 Mexicans facing the death penalty in Texas and 54 in all of the United States, according to foreign ministry figures. Four have been executed over the past 10 years: three in Texas and one in Virginia.

All ordinary legal means to halt the execution of Suarez, now 33, were  exhausted at the end of June.  The Mexican government has based previous appeals on supposedly inadmissible evidence entered at a sentencing hearing, and the failure by Texas police to notify the Mexican consulate of Suarez' arrest, as required under international treaties. ---**cut*

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Press Release
For Immediate Release:       Contact: Jen Corlew  202-544-0200 x247

Tuesday, August 6, 2002

Amnesty International: Texas Officials Must Halt Execution of Mexican Citizen or Flout International Law

(Washington) -- Texas authorities must commute Mexican national Javier Suarez's death sentence or risk defying international law, Amnesty International said today. As a signatory to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR), the United States was legally bound to inform Suarez when he was arrested of his right to legal assistance from the Mexican government, who could have provided competent counsel and thwarted the troubling irregularities in his trial, the organization said.  Texas currently holds 25 foreign nationals on death row, 17 of whom are Mexican citizens.

"The US government would never allow one of its citizens to face trial and execution in a foreign country without access to US assistance -- and therefore must respect Mexico's wishes to halt this execution" said Eric Olson, Americas Director for Amnesty International USA (AIUSA.)  "The US must respect its obligation to international law and commute the death sentence of Javier Suarez."

Suarez was sentenced to death in 1989 for the murder of undercover police officer Lawrence Cadena.  His trial was severely flawed.  To invoke a death sentence in Texas, the jury must unanimously agree that the offender poses a future danger to society.  The jury based Suarez's propensity to  "future dangerousness" on an alleged crime that had not been proved in a court and for which there was no hard evidence tying Suarez to the crime.   Citing these concerns as well as new mitigating evidence that Suarez suffers from significant mental disorders, the Mexican government has called for the commutation of Suarez's sentence. The European Union, Inter-American Human Rights Commission, and the American Bar Association have also cited concerns about his case.

“Last spring the International Court of Justice ruled against the US for defying the VCCR by executing German nationals who had not been informed of their rights, yet the US persists in this practice," said Sue Gunawardena-Vaughn, AIUSA's Director of the Program to Abolish the Death Penalty. “The United States cannot claim to uphold international law while defying a binding judgment from the world's highest court."

In a case similar to Suarez's, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals ruled last year to vacate the death sentence of Mexican national Gerardo Valdez because local officials also violated his right to consular notification and due to mitigating evidence Mexican government officials discovered.

Suarez has exhausted all normal avenues of appeal and is scheduled to be executed on August 14th.  Suarez was 19 years old at the time of the crime; this is his 14th execution date since 1995.

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To receive a copy of Amnesty International's report, “A Time for Action - Protecting the consular rights of foreign nationals facing the death penalty” contact Jen Corlew at the above numbe

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JULY 24, 2002:  Javier Suárez Medina
Texas bid to execute Mexican citizen "illegal, unjust and cruel"

Attorneys cite unheard evidence, treaty violations in new petitions
 

RICHARDSON, TX.     Attorneys representing a mentally impaired Mexican national have filed a flurry of last-minute petitions to halt his execution in Texas on August 14th. Javier Suárez Medina was sentenced to death in 1989 for the shooting death of Lawrence Cadena, an undercover Dallas police officer. However, attorneys have now raised compelling new evidence as grounds to halt Mr. Suárez Medina’s death by lethal injection.

“With the assistance of the Mexican Government, we have uncovered persuasive new facts about this case which were never considered by Javier’s jury or any court,” said Lydia Brandt, counsel to Javier Suárez Medina. “Given this compelling new evidence,  Javier’s execution is illegal, unjust and cruel.”

A petition filed today with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights in Washington, DC, outlines grave violations of Mr. Suárez Medina’s fundamental right to a fair trial and calls on the Commission to issue “precautionary measures” to halt his execution. As a full member of the Organization of American States, the USA must comply with safeguards enshrined in the human rights treaties which the Inter-American Commission is responsible for monitoring and enforcing.

 “There is no doubt that Texas authorities have violated several binding treaty obligations. At a time when the United States is concerned about the treatment of Americans overseas, Texas must recognize that the execution of Javier Suarez Medina could undermine respect for human rights not just on a local level, but internationally,” said attorney Sandra Babcock, director of the Mexican Capital Legal Assistance Program. “Without question, this execution is illegal under international law and must be stopped.”

Among other issues, the petition to the Inter-American Commission details the failure of the arresting police to inform Mr. Suárez Medina of his right to obtain assistance from the Mexican Consulate, even though police were aware of his nationality from the outset. New evidence reveals that Texas police provided false information to Mexican consular officials about Mr. Suárez Medina’s nationality, preventing them from assisting him during his capital murder trial.

During his 13 years on death row, Javier Suárez Medina has been subjected to fourteen execution dates.  “The torment of undergoing repeated execution rituals is not a just punishment– it’s torture, pure and simple,” Ms. Babcock declared.

A clemency petition filed with the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles documents the prosecution’s reliance on an alleged prior crime to establish Mr. Suárez Medina’s “future dangerousness”, a necessary element in any Texas death sentence. Defense investigations have now established that the eyewitness testimony of the victim of that prior crime, while sincere, was completely mistaken. “Javier was sentenced to death based on testimony about a prior crime that he did not commit,” Ms. Brandt noted. “Only the Board of Pardons can undo the devastating effect of this false evidence on the jury, by recommending commutation to life imprisonment.”

The clemency petition also documents crucial mitigating evidence which was never heard by the jury. The new evidence includes the findings of a leading neuropsychologist, who concluded that Mr. Suárez Medina suffered from brain damage and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder at the time of the shooting incident.

“Javier’s mental impairments dramatically change the circumstances of the shooting and demand a lesser sentence,” said Lydia Brandt. “The jury determined that Javier acted deliberately and represented a future danger to society, but we now have overwhelming proof that both conclusions were wrong.”

“The shooting of undercover officer Cadena was a tragic mistake committed by a mentally impaired  teenager in a moment of panic. A death sentence was then unjustly imposed, based on testimony about a prior crime Javier did not commit at all,” Ms. Brandt concluded. “All we seek is a fair review of our new evidence, which now tilts the scales from death to life in prison.”

ENDS.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Lydia M.V. Brandt, counsel to Javier Suarez Medina
Richardson, TX
Tel: (972) 699-7020; Fax: (972) 699-7030

Sandra L. Babcock, Mexican Capital Legal Assistance Program
Minneapolis, MN
Tel.  (612) 871-5080; Fax. (612) 872-4967

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July 24, 2002  Amnesty International: 

Texas Prepares to Execute Mexican National in Defiance of International Law

(Washington) -- Texas authorities must commute Mexican national Javier Suarez's death sentence or risk flouting international law, Amnesty International said today. As a signatory to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR), the United States
was legally bound to inform Suarez when he was arrested of his right to legal assistance from the Mexican government, who could have provided competent counsel and thwarted the troubling irregularities in his trial, the organization said. "The US government would never allow one of its citizens to face trial and execution in a foreign country without access to US assistance -- and therefore must respect Mexico's wishes to halt
this execution" said Eric Olson, Americas Director for Amnesty International USA (AIUSA.) 
"The US must respect its obligation to international law and commute the death sentence of Javier Suarez."

Suarez was sentenced to death in 1989 for the murder of undercover police officer Lawrence Cadena. His trial was severely flawed. To invoke a death sentence in Texas, the jury mustunanimously agree that the offender poses a future danger to society. The jury based Suarez's propensity to "future dangerousness" on an alleged crime that had not been proved in a court and for which there was no hard evidence tying Suarez to
the crime.

Citing these concerns as well as new mitigating evidence that Suarez suffers from significant mental disorders, the Mexican government has called for the commutation of Suarez's sentence.

"Last spring the International Court of Justice ruled against the US for defying the VCCR by executing German nationals who had not been informed of their rights, yet the US persists in this practice," said Sue Gunawardena-Vaughn, AIUSA's Director of the Program to Abolish the Death Penalty. "The United States cannot claim to uphold international law while defying a binding judgment from the world's highest court."

In a case similar to Suarez's, the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals ruled last year to vacate the death sentence of Mexican national Gerardo Valdez because local officials also violated his right to consular notification and due to mitigating evidence Mexican government officials discovered. Suarez has exhausted all normal avenues of appeal and is scheduled to be executed on August 14th. Suarez was 19 years old at the time of the crime; this is his 14th execution date since 1995.

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Wednesday, July 3, 2002   The Houston Chronicle
 
Mexico Tries to Save Texas Prisoner Condemned to Die


MEXICO CITY (AP) - The Mexican government has launched a last-ditch effort to save the life of Javier Suarez, sentenced to die in Texas in August for the murder of an undercover drug agent in 1988.

"I still have faith that soon someone will say to me, Senora Guadalupe your son's death sentence has been suspended," Suarez's mother, Guadalupe Medina, said today.

She spoke during a press conference in the foreign ministry while flanked by her husband, Samuel Avila, and government officials working on the case.

There are now 17 Mexicans facing the death penalty in Texas and 54 in the whole of the United States, according to ministry figures. Four have been executed over the last 10 years: three in Texas and one in Virginia.

The ministry's chief legal adviser, Juan Manuel Gomez, said that all ordinary legal means to halt the execution of Suarez, now 33, were exhausted at the end of June.

That leaves the possibility of persuading Texas Gov. Rick Perry to grant clemency, something Juan Gomez admitted was unlikely.

But he said Mexico would try to find ways to reopen the case under the argument that Texas authorities violated international law by failing to inform Javier Suarez of his right to get help from the Mexican consulate when he was detained.

Javier Suarez is set to die August 14.

This argument, the official said, was the basis of a recent ruling in Oklahoma in favor of Gerardo Valdez, another Mexican sentenced to death. It would also form the backbone of a petition to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

Javier Suarez's mother and stepfather appeared to pin most of their hopes on a campaign to rally public sympathy for having death penalty commuted to a life sentence.

"I want to reach the hearts of everyone I can," Guadalupe Medina said, holding tightly to her husband's hand throughout the press conference, during which she frequently broke down in tears.

"I want to explain the pain and the fear of knowing that you could lose a son."

Javier Suarez was convicted by a Dallas court in 1989 of killing narcotics agent Larry Cadena the year before. Larry Cadena had been posing as a drug buyer.

No one denies that the then 19-year-old Mexican killed Larry Cadena, but his supporters insist it was not a premeditated murder.

"It would be a terrible injustice if the state of Texas executes Javier Suarez," said Sandra Babcock, a U.S. lawyer who heads a program set up by the Mexican government to support Mexicans facing the death penalty.

Sandra Babcock said Javier Suarez got mixed up with drug traffickers the same night of the murder because they had threatened to hurt his family and that he shot Larry Cadena in a moment of fear and confusion.

The lawyer claimed that the court sentenced Javier Suarez to die because of dubious testimony linking him to a violent robbery in 1987, despite his ability to prove he was working in a restaurant at the time. "He was 19 and had no record of criminal violence at all," said Sandra Babcock.

She also complained of the stress caused by the 14 changes in the scheduled execution.

"Every time they (Javier Suarez and his family) have had to prepare themselves," Sandra Babcock said. "I don't think it is an exaggeration to say this has been torture."

Javier Suarez has lived in Texas since he was 3 years old. He was taken there by his mother after she left her native state of Coahuila in search of work.

"He was always a good boy and a good teen-ager. Always joking, always in a good mood, always kind to his mother," Guadalupe Medina said.

She sobbed as she spoke of never touching him since he went to prison 14 years ago: "There is always glass between us."

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 Analysis: Efforts to get Mexican citizens off death row in US
 11 July 2002
NPR: Morning Edition

BOB EDWARDS, host: Fifty-four Mexicans are on death row in the
United States. Mexico does not execute prisoners, and opposes death
sentences for its nationals abroad. In some cases, the accused were not
informed of their right to call their consulate. Soon after Vicente Fox
became president, Mexico opened a special office to help Mexicans avoid US death chambers. It's the first of its kind, and NPR's Gerry Hadden reports, it's having some success.

       GERRY HADDEN reporting:

Javier Suarez Medina was 19 years old when he shot dead an
undercover Dallas policeman in an aborted drug deal. Fourteen years
later, he awaits execution in a Texas jail. In early July, his parents
came to Mexico City in a last-minute bid to save their son from his
August 14th execution. Guadalupe Medina, Javier's mother, spoke to
journalists.

Ms. GUADALUPE MEDINA (Mother): 
(Through Translator) I know you're also parents and you know the pain and fear of losing a child. For this reason, before you all, with your reporting, I want to touch the hearts of all mothers, to gain support for Javier even if it's just moral. When you go to the church, remember Javier's name. Pray that they don't execute him.

HADDEN: There are few legal angles left for Medina. On June 28th,
the US Supreme Court refused to consider his final appeal. But
attorneys for Mexico's new Capital Legal Defense Fund are pursuing
options Medina might not have learned about from inexperienced
court-appointed lawyers. Juan Manuel Gomez from Mexico's foreign
ministry helps oversee Mexico's new program.

 Mr. JUAN MANUEL GOMEZ (Foreign Ministry): (Spanish spoken)

HADDEN: 
`We're trying for a governor's pardon,' he says, `and we're
also filing a formal complaint to the US government in Washington,
DC,regarding the violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular
Relations if it remains clear that the US never informed Javier of his
right to contact the Mexican Consulate.' According to Amnesty
International, of the 16 foreign nationals put to death since the US
reinstated capital punishment in 1976, at least a dozen never learned of
this right guaranteed under the decades-old Vienna Convention. Sandra
Babcock, an American attorney, leads Mexico's new legal defense team.
She says often police don't know of the convention, and courts have
ignored it.

Ms. SANDRA BABCOCK (Attorney): Mexico is trying to reach out to
police departments to provide training. The State Department says that
it's trying to provide training to local law enforcement officers. But
obviously whatever they're doing, it's not enough. And until the
courts start providing remedies for the violation of this treaty, I think there's really no incentive for law enforcement to comply because if they do violate the treaty, it's no harm, no foul.

HADDEN: Babcock works closely with Mexico's consulates, helping
suspects find Spanish-speaking attorneys and mental-health experts.
She and her six part-time aides have been able to persuade prosecutors
not to seek the death penalty in 15 of the 64 cases they've taken on so
far. The legal office is also helping organize high-level diplomatic intervention. Last year, President Vincente Fox himself appealed successfully to the state of Oklahoma to commute the death
sentence of a Mexican who had allegedly received flawed re- presentation. But in the larger picture of US-Mexico relations, the death penalty does not top the agenda. The two nations are grappling with immigration, water scarcity, border security. Yet this year, four more Mexicans are likely to enter US execution chambers, and some 140 more could be sentenced to death in coming months. 

Gerry Hadden, NPR News, Mexico City.

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 La Jornada interview with Javier:

Javier Suárez: 
no merezco estar fuera, pero tampoco creo en la pena capital

ELENA VEGA ESPECIAL PARA LA JORNADA

Livingston, Texas, 11 de julio. Al mexicano Javier Suárez Medina le
quedan 35 días de vida. El 14 de agosto, de acuerdo con lo programado,
será ejecutado con una inyección letal en Huntsville, Texas, en la misma
cámara de la muerte en la que han muerto otros cuatro mexicanos.

Tranquilo, amable y en ocasiones sonriente, Suárez, de 33 años de edad,
habla de su cita con la muerte, de su vida en prisión, de Dios, de su
familia y del crimen que pagará con su vida.

"Ahora estoy tranquilo, yo sé que tengo fecha de ejecución, pero no
tengo miedo, no estoy nervioso, yo estoy preparado por si llega a
pasar... Estoy listo", dice en entrevista con La Jornada en la prisión
conocida como Polunski Unit, ubicada en el poblado de Livingston, Texas, donde 17 mexicanos esperan turno para ser ejecutados.

A través de un cristal a prueba de balas y de sonido, Suárez conversa
con la ayuda de un teléfono colocado en el estrecho cubículo de
entrevistas. Su principal preocupación ahora, dice, son sus padres. "Lo único que ahora me molesta es lo que están sufriendo mis papás, mi familia, mis amigos."

En mayo de 1989, Suárez fue encontrado culpable de homicidio en primer grado por haber matado a tiros a un policía encubierto durante una operación de venta de cocaína.
De acuerdo con la evidencia presentada en la corte, Suárez y un cómplice, Fernando Fernández, se encontraron en un estacionamiento con el agente Larry Cadena para venderle cocaína.

Tras entregar la droga, Suárez abrió la puerta del automóvil de Cadena y
le disparó siete veces. Otro policía que observaba la operación disparó
en contra de Suárez y su cómplice, y ambos fueron detenidos.

Desde el momento del crimen, Suárez reconoció su responsabilidad e
indicó que los disparos los había realizado debido a que sintió miedo
tras escuchar algunos balazos.

"No voy a decir que merezco estar allá afuera", dice Suárez, y agrega
que a pesar de las condiciones en las que ha vivido en los últimos 13
años, durante los cuales ha recibido fecha de ejecución 14 veces, si
estuviera en sus manos decidiría vivir.

"La gente va a pensar que es fácil para mí decir esto por mi situación,
pero nunca he creído en la pena de muerte", explica. "Matándome a mí no van a (revivir) a nadie; si el muchacho Larry Cadena pudiera revivir
matándome a mí, entonces yo con ganas les pediría que lo hicieran, pero
la cosa es que no va a cambiar nada, esto sólo va a lastimar a más
gente", dice.

Agradece al gobierno mexicano por el apoyo en las apelaciones que tratan de salvarle la vida, pero indica que tratar de apelar al gobierno
estadunidense para una clemencia es perder el tiempo.

"Yo no pediría nada al gobierno americano, yo sé que para mí, como para cualquier otro, eso es un gasto de tiempo. Pida lo que pida uno aquí el gobierno americano no va a hacer nada.

"Ellos (el gobierno estadunidense) ya demostraron que quieren que esta
ejecución vaya adelante, ellos rompieron sus mismas leyes para condenarme y sentenciarme y eso demuestra que quieren que esta fecha
vaya adelante", dice en referencia a un testigo presentado durante el juicio, quien indicó que había sido atacado con un arma por Suárez dos años antes del crimen. El acusado ha negado dicho incidente.

"Para decir la verdad, no espero que quiten la fecha de ejecución, en mi
 corazón siento que sí me van a ejecutar y no estoy apurado. Yo ya estoy
 listo y <http://www.jornada.unam.mx/Images/052f1.jpg> esta gente cree que me está castigando, pero la verdad es que me están mandando a una parte mejor que aquí.''

Tierra mexicana para su sepelio

Cuando Suárez tenía tres años de edad, junto con su padre, su madre y
cuatro hermanos cruzó ilegalmente la frontera que separa a México de
Estados Unidos y dejó atrás su tierra natal: Piedras Negras, Coahuila.

"Lo triste es que no conozco nada por allá", dice Suárez.

La familia, explica, llegó a Estados Unidos "para encontrar un trabajo
más bueno, casi la misma razón que tiene la mayoría de los mexicanos que vienen para acá, para encontrar un trabajo más bien, para tener una vida más bien".

Los Suárez se establecieron en Dallas, en donde el padre de Javier
consiguió trabajo como cocinero. Todos lograron regularizar su estatus migratorio y actualmente viven en la ciudad de Uvalde, ubicada 84 millas al suroeste de la ciudad de San Antonio.

Si ahora, dijo Suárez, tuviera la oportunidad de salir libre, lo primero que haría sería ir a México.

"Para empezar me saldría de Estados Unidos y ya nunca regresaría para
acá. Me fuera para México y nunca regresaría. (...) Yo prefiero estar en
México, pero bien adentro de México, en un rancho en donde no estuviera cerca de Estados Unidos", expresó.

Por lo pronto, señaló, su deseo inicial era ser enterrado en Coahuila.
Pero debido a que sus padres viven en Estados Unidos, Suárez decidió ser enterrado en este país, pero con una condición: "que antes de cubrir el agujero con la tierra americana que se traigan tierra de México, porque aunque estoy en Estados Unidos pueden decir que estoy debajo de tierra mexicana Es la única manera en la que quiero que me vayan a enterrar de este lado".

 Trece años de soledad

Durante los 13 años en que Javier Suárez ha esperado su cita con la
justicia estadunidense no se le ha permitido tocar a sus familiares. Si
Suárez muere el 14 de agosto será sin haber tocado a sus padres en todo
ese tiempo. Aquí las despedidas consisten en una visita de dos horas a
través de un grueso cristal.
Cada día de su estancia en esta prisión, la más segura del país, Suárez
es despertado a las 3 de la mañana, hora en la que se sirve el desayuno.
Después vuelve a dormir.
"Luego me levanto como a las 6:30 de la mañana y lo primero que hago es que me pongo a decir una oración a Dios, para darle gracias por el día que me da, y me ofrezco a él para que haga conmigo lo que él quiera ese día", explicó.

Después tiene derecho a una hora de recreo, en una sala rodeada de barras que se encuentra en el interior del edificio. El recreo esindividual y no hay contacto con los otros compañeros. No obstante, estando en la sala de recreo los presos pueden comunicarse hablando desde las celdas y desde dicha sala. Tras el recreo Suárez vuelve a su estrecha celda solitaria y ahí escucha la radio, "una estación que se llama La Raza, y me gusta porque ponen muchos corridos (...) me pongo a escribirle a varias amigas y amigos de otros países, me gusta mirar revistas y a veces me paro en la puerta y me pongo a hablar con los compañeros que están a los dos lados de mí", explicó.

Ahí, Suárez ha hecho amigos, muchos de los cuales han muerto ya. "Irineo Tristán era como mi hermano, igual Miguel Flores", dijo, en referencia a dos de los mexicanos que han sido ejecutados.

El próximo mexicano ejecutado será él. Ahora el gobierno de México, el
Programa de Asistencia Jurídica y la abogada Sandra Babcock tratan de
agotar todas las posibilidades legales para conseguir la conmutación de
la condena.

Si no tienen éxito, Suárez será ejecutado el miércoles 14 de agosto en
Huntsville, Texas. "Yo les he dicho a la familia, a mis hermanos, a todos, que el día que me maten yo no quiero que estén llorando, yo quiero que se pongan a celebrar por un mexicano pobre que se fue a una vida más buena que la vida en este mundo", dijo.

EXECUTION   IS   NOT   THE  SOLUTION   ! ! !