Cornyn: Supreme Court Should Let Texas Administer Justice Consistent With Constitution

Statement

Cornyn: Supreme Court Should Let Texas Administer Justice Consistent With Constitution

U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, former Texas Attorney General and Texas Supreme Court Justice, made the following statement Wednesday regarding the Medellin v. Texas case:

"Jose Ernesto Medellin confessed to and was convicted of the brutal gang rape and murder of two teenage girls in Houston. He has had numerous appeals rejected by state and federal courts. The only judicial body to rule favorably for this brutal murderer was the International Court of Justice in The Hague (Netherlands) in 2004, in a case brought by Mexico against the United States. Even that court rejected Mexico's request for annulment of Medellin's conviction and sentence.

"The U.S. Supreme Court should respect its own precedent and let the people of Texas administer criminal justice consistent with the Constitution. Our Founding Fathers fought the Revolutionary War to stop foreign governments from telling us what our laws say.

"The President lacks the constitutional authority to issue this unprecedented directive to a state and its court, unilaterally transforming an international treaty obligation into domestic law. The President's attempt to interfere with state law exceeds the Constitution's limits on his power, and, if allowed, would set a dangerous precedent."

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