[legion]

Believe it or not, I'm kind of 50/50 on this.

Clearly, in this case, consulting with the Mexican consulate would have meant jack squat. Why? Because by and large, our system of justice is impartial.

However, if I was in some foreign country and accuses of a crime, I'd sure as hell want access to an American Embassy/consulate. Remember the whole Madeline McCain thing? It seemed to me that the Portuguese police didn't have any real leads and accused the parents to drive them from the country and bring the investigation to an abrupt end. (It was embarrassing for the Portuguese government.) In many Asian countries, their justice system is largely based on family reputation. Essentially the ONLY argument made in those courts is: XXX could not have murdered YYY because XXX comes from a respectable family and he would not bring shame upon them. The net effect of this kind of justice is that people from wealthy/influential families never get convicted, while people from poor/common families do. Guess what? Foreigners have no standing in this kind of justice system as their family history is unknown. Other countries have justice systems based on bribes and corruption. Again, I'd sure as hell want access to an American Embassy/Consulate.