Kin of Teen Killed in Cross-Border Shooting Can’t Sue U.S. Agent

The family of a Mexican teen can’t sue the U.S. border patrol agent who killed him nearly a decade ago in a cross-border shooting, the Supreme Court ruled in a 5-4 opinion that broke along ideological lines.

In its decision, the court on Tuesday continued its recent trend of significantly limiting when plaintiffs can take legal action against federal officials for constitutional violations.

Sergio Adrián Hernández Güereca, 15, was shot in 2010 by Border Patrol Agent Jesus Mesa Jr. while playing a game that involved running into U.S. territory, his family’s complaint alleged. Mesa was standing in El Paso, Texas, when he shot Hernandez, who was on Mexican soil.

The case turned on interpretations of the Supreme Court’s 1971 holding in Bivens v. Six Unknowned Named Agents allowing such suits against federal officials, as well as its decision two years ago in Ziglar v. Abbasi that drastically limited its application.

The majority refused to extend Bivens in this case.

The Justice Department determined that Mesa had acted in accordance with Customs and Border Patrol policy, finding that he was being pelted by rocks while attempting to apprehend an individual crossing illegally into the U.S. The government declined to prosecute or extradite him to Mexico.

This was the second time the Hernandez case was before the high court.

The case is Hernandez v. Mesa, U.S., No. 17-1678.