DATE: Friday, September 12, 1997            TAG: 9709120617

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY LAURA LaFAY, STAFF WRITER

DATELINE: RICHMOND                          LENGTH:   85 lines

MEXICO MAKES PROPOSAL TO SAVE COMDEMNED MAN'S LIFE<< MEXICAN NATIONAL WOULD SERVE TIME IN PRISON IN MEXICO.

In the first offer of its kind, the Mexican government on Thursday called on Gov. George F. Allen to spare the life of Mario Benjamin Murphy, a Mexican citizen sentenced to death in Virginia Beach.

Should Allen heed the request, said Mexican Consul General Salvador Cassian, Mexico will ``accept custody'' of Murphy and incarcerate him in a Mexican prison on terms satisfactory to both countries. Murphy's execution is set for Sept. 17.

Mark Warren, a death penalty expert with Amnesty International in Canada, called Mexico's offer a potential ``win-win'' situation.

``Virginia is given an option which basically doesn't cost them anything and the person they're concerned about will be punished severely,'' he said.

``From the perspective of Mexico, their citizen is not executed and the purposes of justice are served.''

Cassian and Arturo A. Dager, Mexico's counselor for legal affairs, filed a clemency petition with Allen's office Thursday and held a press conference in the downtown Richmond office of Murphy's lawyers.

``We believe in, and we appeal to, the good judgment of Governor Allen to reverse this mistake,'' Cassian told reporters.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit denied Murphy's request for a stay of execution Thursday. His lawyers plan to meet with Allen aides today.

Barring clemency, Murphy's only hope lies with the U.S. Supreme Court, which is considering whether to review his case.

Murphy, 25, was born in Tijuana, Mexico, and lived in San Diego and Mexico before moving to Virginia Beach at age 11. He was a 19-year-old high school dropout in 1991 when he was drawn into the murder-for-hire scheme of Navy wife Robin Radcliff and her lover, Gary Hinojosa.

Six people were charged in the subsequent murder of Radcliff's husband, James. All except Murphy were offered life sentences in exchange for pleading guilty.

Murphy's lawyers have argued in appeals that Murphy was singled out for the death penalty because he is a Mexican. Also, they say, authorities violated the rights of both Murphy and Mexico by failing to notify the Mexican Embassy about his arrest.

According to the terms of Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, such notification is required whenever a participating country arrests a foreign national. Had the Mexican Embassy known of Murphy's plight before he was sentenced, the lawyers argue, they could have helped him to avoid the death penalty.

Mexico agrees.

``Mexico places high importance on extending consular assistance to its citizens facing capital prosecution,'' Cassian wrote in his petition.

``Consequently Mexico has initiated numerous programs designed to enhance the ability of its consuls to . . . make the difference between life and death.''

Mexican officials have also protested to the U.S. Department of State on Murphy's behalf. As a result, the State Department asked the Allen administration this week to provide it with information on the case.

``We're not an intermediary between Mexico and Virginia,'' said John Foard, an attorney adviser in the Office of the Legal Adviser for Consular Affairs in Washington.

``Our role is to assess whether an Article 36 violation took place, and if so, what we should do about it.''

The last time Mexico protested to the State Department about an Article 36 violation was in the case of Irineo Tristan Montoya, a Mexican national executed in Texas June 18.

In that case, said Foarde, the State Department determined that an Article 36 violation had occurred and asked Texas Gov. George Bush Jr. to consider the violation when making a decision about clemency.

Bush ``assured us that he did take that into account, and we were satisfied,'' said Foarde.

Montoya's execution June 18 sparked a riot on the international bridge between Brownsville, Texas, and Matamoros, Mexico. At the time, American officials warned U.S. citizens traveling in Mexico that they could face retaliation.

Asked Thursday whether there might be a similar reaction to the execution of Murphy, Cassian said he couldn't speculate. But Amnesty International's Warren noted that Murphy's execution is scheduled to take place on a Mexican national holiday to celebrate the country's independence.

``When a Mexican citizen faces execution on Independence Day, it could have a big impact,'' said Warren. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo

Mario Benjamin Murphy's execution is set for Sept. 17. KEYWORDS: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT DEATH PENALTY EXECUTION

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