Southern criminology, law and the ‘right’ to consular notification in Australia, New Zealand and the United States

This paper investigates the implementation of Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations in Australia, New Zealand and the United States (US) by using a Southern approach to examining law. We describe the incorporation of Article 36 from a defendant-centred perspective under Australian and New Zealand laws governing police procedure, and the commensurate jurisdictional tensions it has generated in the US. We then empirically analyse 16 non-capital US cases to identify the type of offence, the nationality and perceived English-speaking competency of the foreign suspect, and the point at which the alleged Article 36 violation is canvassed in legal arguments. This analysis highlights the importance of a defendant-centred Southern criminology of law in critically assessing the implementation of international legal requirements into domestic criminal justice practice.