Hernandez v. Mesa

Supreme Court of the United States · 2020 · Federal Courts

Federal CourtsBivensSeparation of PowersForeign RelationsNational SecurityBivenscross-border shootingnew context

Facts

Sergio Adrián Hernández Güereca, a 15-year-old Mexican national, was in a concrete culvert separating El Paso, Texas, from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. After Hernández ran from the United States side back onto Mexican soil, Border Patrol Agent Jesus Mesa, Jr., who was on the U.S. side, fired two shots, and one struck and killed Hernández on the Mexican side of the border. The shooting became an international incident: the Department of Justice investigated and declined to prosecute or discipline Mesa, while Mexico sought Mesa's extradition and supported the family's suit. Hernández's parents then brought a damages action under Bivens in federal court.

Issue

Whether the Court should extend Bivens to allow a damages remedy against a federal border agent for a cross-border shooting in which the agent fired from the United States and killed a foreign national on Mexican soil. More specifically, the question was whether this claim arose in a new Bivens context and, if so, whether special factors counseled hesitation.

Rule

When asked to extend Bivens, a court first asks whether the claim arises in a new context, meaning it differs in a meaningful way from prior Bivens cases recognized by the Supreme Court. If the context is new, the court asks whether any special factors counsel hesitation; if there is reason to pause, especially based on separation-of-powers concerns such as foreign relations, national security, or congressional reluctance to create comparable remedies, the court must reject the extension.

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One of 10 multiple-choice questions for this case. Pick an answer to see why.

In San Diego, a federal coastal enforcement agent standing on a U.S. pier fires at a speedboat fleeing toward Mexican waters. The shot strikes Diego Ramos, a Mexican national who is already in Mexican territorial waters. Diego's family sues the agent in federal court for damages under the Fourth Amendment.

How should the court analyze the request for a damages remedy?

Explanation. The majority requires a two-step inquiry. First, the court asks whether the claim arises in a new context, understood broadly as any meaningful difference from prior Supreme Court Bivens cases. A cross-border use of force by a federal officer is meaningfully different from prior recognized contexts, even if the plaintiff invokes the Fourth Amendment. If the context is new, the court must reject extension whenever special factors counsel hesitation, especially separation-of-powers concerns such as foreign relations, national security, and Congress's reluctance to create comparable remedies for injuries abroad.