Justice on the border: When do foreigners have rights under America’s constitution?
Justice on the border
When do foreigners have rights under America’s constitution?
from The Economist
Fernández v Mesa which revolves around the death of a Mexican teenager on the Mexican border is a hard case and reached the Supreme Court
In 2010, American border-patrol agent Mr Mesa killed 15-year-old Mr Hernández who was just playing with friends as video evidence confirms
Since the act took place on Mexican soil, the constitution does not apply and the parents have no basis for a suit
It’s the same as Iraqi people who had lost a leg or a family member in Obama’s drone strikes cannot bring lawsuits to US’s Supreme Court
Mr Hilliard, the parents’ lawyer, could not find a proper reason to make his client win and exasperated sympathetic Justice Breyer
The liberal-leaning justices did their best and implied that when the border is fuzzy, the border agent is responsible for the shooting
In view of the tensions between Mr Trump and Mexico, Justice Kennedy’s hope for rapport between the two countries may not be realistic
If the justices are split 4-4, they could call for a new hearing with a dilemma: encourage constitutional claims or empower border agents
