76 The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area life sentences without the possibility of parole was not in compliance with Article 24(1) of the ICCPR (provision on the protection of children).187 Individuals suffering from any form of mental disorder The US Supreme Court has ruled that the execution of an insane person – somebody who is not aware of the impending execution or the reasons therefor – violates the US Constitution.188 Furthermore, the Supreme Court has also ruled that the execution of a mentally retarded person violates the Constitution.189 The American Association of Mental Retardation defines mental retardation as substantial intellectual impairment appearing at birth or during childhood that impacts on the everyday life of the individual, although definitions of mental retardation differ from state to state. However, there is no constitutional bar against the execution of individuals who are mentally ill but are not classified as “insane”, e.g., persons diagnosed with schizophrenia Foreign nationals The Vienna Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR) provides that state authorities must inform foreign nationals without delay of their right to have their consulate notified of their detention.190 On 31 March 2004, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that the United States had violated its obligation to inform foreign nationals without delay of their right to have their consulate notified of their detention in 51 of the 52 cases of Mexican nationals brought before it by Mexico.191 The ICJ held that the United States should review the convictions and sentences in each case and determine whether the failure to provide consular notification caused actual prejudice to the defendant in the process of administration of criminal justice. The United States’ concerns that the ICJ’s decisions had interpreted the VCCR in ways not intended or anticipated by the parties led the United States to withdraw from the Optional Protocol to the VCCR. Despite the United States’ concerns with the ICJ’s interpretation of the VCCR, on 28 February 2005, President Bush issued a memorandum to the US attorney general affirming that the United States would comply with the ICJ judgement.192 Under the president’s determination, the 51 Mex187 Concluding observations of the Human Rights Committee: United States of America, advance unedited version, CCPR/C/USA/Q/3/CRP.4, para. 34. 188 189 190 191 Ford v. Wainwright, 477 U.S. 399 (1986). Atkins v. Virginia, 536 U.S. (2002). Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, 1963. Case concerning Avena and other Mexican nationals (Mexico v. United States of America), 31 March 2004. The International Court of Justice made a similar ruling in the LaGrande case (Germany v. United States), 27 June 2001. 192 Mexico v. United States of America, 31 March 2004.