Medellin v. Texas

Jose Medellin (defendant) was sentenced to death in Texas (plaintiff) without ever being told of his Vienna Convention right to contact his consulate, and after his state and federal habeas petitions were denied as procedurally barred, the International Court of Justice ruled in Avena that Medellin and other Mexican nationals were entitled to conviction review regardless of state procedural-default rules. President Bush then issued a memorandum directing state courts to comply with Avena, but the Texas courts denied Medellin's renewed habeas petition, holding neither Avena nor the presidential memorandum was binding, and the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari.