timely, the objection of failure to exhaust domestic remedies must be made in the early stages of the proceeding before the Commission; otherwise, a tacit waiver of the argument on the part of the State may be presumed. 23 Finally, according to the applicable burden of proof in this matter, it is incumbent on a State that argues nonexhaustion of domestic remedies to identify which remedies are to be pursued and why.24 Therefore, if the State in question does not satisfy this requirement in a timely manner, it is considered to have waived its right to argue the lack of exhaustion of domestic remedies and to have failed to meet the burden of proof incumbent upon it. 58. In the instant case it is necessary it is necessary to define three separate matters in which the protection of the Inter-American system is sought: the death sentence imposed on Mr. Ruiz Fuentes on May 14, 1999, during his trial for kidnapping of a minor; the alleged acts of torture to which he was said to have been subjected at the time of his arrest prior to the proceeding; and finally, the alleged summary execution of Mr. Ruiz Fuentes. 59. With regard to the death sentence, the Commission understands that the death of Mr. Ruiz Fuentes during the processing of this case does not prevent the IACHR from analyzing its merits concerning possible State responsibility for the death sentence imposed on the alleged victim. 60. With respect to the exhaustion of domestic remedies concerning the death sentence, information supplied by the petitioners indicates that on May 14, 1999, Mr. Ruiz Fuentes and others charged with kidnapping were tried by the Sixth Tribunal of Criminal Judgments, Drug Activities, and Crimes against the Environment [Tribunal Sexto de Sentencia Penal, Narcoactividad y Delitos contra el Ambiente], and sentenced to death based on Article 201 of the Guatemalan Penal Code. This verdict was challenged with a special appeal, which was rejected by the Fourth Chamber of the Appeals Court on September 13, 1999. This ruling was then appealed by a motion to vacate, which was rejected by the Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court on July 20, 2000. Faced with this decision, Mr. Ruiz Fuentes and another of the accused filed an action for amparo [protection], which was rejected as a last resort by the Constitutional Court on July 4, 2001. 61. The Commission holds that the information supplied by the petitioners, not disputed by the State, shows that domestic remedies to challenge the death sentence imposed on Mr. Hugo Humberto Ruiz were exhausted, culminating with the ruling of the Constitutional Court of which counsel of the alleged victim was Series C No. 124, para. 49; and I-A Court, Case of the Serrano Cruz Sisters. Preliminary Objections. Judgment of November 23, 2004. Series C No. 118, para. 135. 23 See I-A Court, Case of the Mayagna Community (Sumo) Awas Tingni. Preliminary Exceptions. Judgment of February 1, 2000. Series C No. 66, para. 53; Case of Castillo Petruzzi et al. Preliminary Exceptions. Judgment of September 4, 1998. Series C No. 41, para. 56; and I-A Court, Case of Loayza Tamayo. Preliminary Exceptions. Judgment of January 31, 1996. Series C No. 25, para. 40. The Commission and the court have held that “early stages of the procedure” must be understood to mean “the admissibility stage of the procedure before the Commission, in other words, before any consideration of the merits (…) See, e.g., IACHR, Report Nº 71/05, petition 543/04, Admissibility, Ever de Jesús Montero Mindiola, Colombia, October 13, 2005, which cites I-A Court, Case of Herrera Ulloa. Judgment of July 2, 2004. Series C No. 107, para. 81. 24 See IACHR, Report Nº 32/05, petition 642/03, Admissibility, Luis Rolando Cuscul Pivaral et al (persons affected by HIV/AIDS), Guatemala, March 7, 2005, paras. 33-35; I-A Court, Case of the Mayagna Community (Sumo) Awas Tingni. Preliminary Exceptions, supra note 3, para. 53; Case of Durand y Ugarte. Preliminary Exceptions. Judgment of May 28, 1999. Series C No. 50, para. 33; and Case of Cantoral Benavides. Preliminary Exceptions. Judgment of September 3, 1998. Series C No. 40, para. 31. 10