Germany v. United States in the International Court of Justice
The United Nation's principal court, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), will hold public hearings in the case Germany v. United States of America, from November 13-17, 2000 at The Hague. Germany is suing the United States for violating international laws and treaties by executing two German foreign nationals in Arizona in 1999. Germany maintains that brothers Karl and Walter LaGrand were denied consular access, as required by the Vienna Convention. Germany also says that Arizona prosecutors violated the Convention because they knew the defendants were foreign nationals and did not inform German authorities of the arrests and convictions for the 1982 crimes until 1992, when the brothers' legal avenues had all been exhausted.