Submitted by crinadmin on
Summary: A suit against a US Border Patrol agent for shooting dead a 15-year-old Mexican boy in June 2010 has been dismissed by the US judge appointed to the case because the boy was shot on Mexican soil, and there are no statues that would apply in suing the US government. The parents of the boy alleged that the agent "negligently, wrongfully and tortuously caused the death" their son.
[18 August 2011] - A $25 million suit against the United States filed by the family of a 15-year-old Juárez boy who was shot and killed by a Border Patrol agent on the Rio Grande has been dismissed. The suit, filed by the family of Sergio Adrian Hernandez Güereca, alleged that the Border Patrol agent "negligently, wrongfully and tortuously caused the death of Güereca" on June 7, 2010, near the Paso del Norte Bridge. Senior U.S. District Judge David Briones dismissed the case August 11th, according to court documents. The ruling basically says that because the boy was shot in Mexico, there are no statutes that would apply in suing the US government. The shooting of the boy made international news and was videotaped on a cellphone on the Mexican side of the border. According to the suit, Border Patrol Agent Jesus Mesa Jr. was patrolling on a bicycle when he came upon a group of boys who had been running up a concrete drainage culvert and touching the US fence line. When Mesa detained one of the boys, the rest of the group allegedly began to throw rocks at the agent. Mesa then raised his firearm and fired shots at the group, striking Hernández Güereca twice, once fatally in the head. A Corpus Christi law firm, Hilliard Muñoz Gonzales LLP, represents Hernández Güereca's parents, Maria Guadalupe Güereca Betancour and Jesus Hernández. They could not be reached for comment Wednesday. Hernández's family and Mexican officials have demanded a full investigation. His relatives have also said they want prosecutors in Mexico to file murder charges against the agent and seek his extradition. But legal experts have said that, according to a treaty between the United States and Mexico, the agent's extradition is not likely, even if the Mexican government requests it. A civil rights investigation by the FBI is continuing in the case. US Attorney General Eric Holder described Hernández's death as "extremely regrettable" during a news conference last year about an unrelated drug operation in Washington, D.C. Holder, according to a transcript provided by the Department of Justice, said the FBI is investigating the shooting of the Juárez teenager. "The matter is under investigation," Holder said. "And we'll have to determine exactly what happened, who, if anyone, should be held responsible, what the circumstances were for the shooting. And all that is just a part of this ongoing investigation." The shooting was recorded on a cellphone video that was aired internationally by a Spanish-language television network. The video shows an encounter that begins when a group of men try to cross a border fence near the railroad Black Bridge, just west of the Paso del Norte Bridge. A Border Patrol agent is seen arriving on a bicycle, and rocks are allegedly being thrown at the agent while he tries to detain a man on the US edge of the river. The agent is seen pointing his handgun, and three gunshots are heard. Güereca can then be seen lying on the ground at the foot of the Black Bridge on the Mexican side of the mostly dry river. It is not shown if he was throwing rocks. The teenager was buried in Juárez. The boy's family described the him as a student who stayed out of trouble. But US law enforcement officials said he had a criminal record of sneaking undocumented immigrants across the border. Mexican President Felipe Calderón also called for a full investigation into the boy's death. In a statement, Calderón said the teenager's case was especially serious because "Sergio Adrian Hernández was a minor, and he was killed by gunfire while on Mexican territory, in Ciudad Juárez." Further Information:
Owner: Armando V. Durazopdf: http://www.elpasotimes.com/ci_18702055?source=most_viewed