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Border Patrol faces lawsuit over fatal shooting

DOUGLAS — A Mexican couple claims a U.S. Border Patrol agent maliciously shot and killed their son as he tried to cross illegally into the United States with a group of Mexican nationals, according to a recent lawsuit.

The nine-page complaint comes from Renato Ariza Dominguez and Maria Clara Leonor Rivera Cordero. They are suing the Border Patrol agent, Nicholas William Corbett, in federal court in Tucson on behalf of their son, Francisco Javier Dominguez Rivera.

In January 2007, the couple claims, Dominguez Rivera was traveling with three other Mexican nationals near the U.S.-Mexico border outside of Douglas, Ariz. The National Guard stationed at the border notified Border Patrol agents about illegal immigrants crossing the border, and agent Corbett was dispatched to apprehend them.

Around 3:15 p.m., Corbett caught and arrested three men and loaded them into his patrol vehicle. The complaint says he drove off after another group, which included Dominguez Rivera.

His family alleges that Corbett nearly hit the group with his vehicle. Then he hopped out and ordered the four illegal immigrants to kneel. Dominguez Rivera was attempting to kneel when Corbett shot him dead through the chest.

The complaint says Corbett told his supervisors that he shot Dominguez Rivera in self-defense because he confronted him with a rock. But the other witnesses gave a conflicting account of events when interviewed individually, according to the complaint.

Lawyers for Dominguez Rivera’s parents are suing Corbett on these grounds. They also accuse the Border Patrol of negligently allowing Corbett to remain on the job despite a history of violent behavior. However, the agency is not named as a defendant in the case.

The Dominguez Rivera family is represented by Richard J. Gonzales in Tucson and Federico Castelan Sayre, Kent M. Henderson and Michael J. Carey in Santa Ana, Calif.

Mexican sues Border Patrol over fatal crash

YUMA — A U.S. Border Patrol agent was negligent when he lost control of his pickup and struck a Mexican man and his daughter while they were trying to cross the border, a recent lawsuit claims.

The case stems from an incident on March 5, 2006. Juan Cruz Torralva and his 12-year-old daughter, Lourdes, were walking through the desert south of Yuma in an attempt to cross illegally from Mexico into the United States.

According to the 12-page complaint, a four-door Chevrolet pickup driven by U.S. Border Patrol agent Gregario Garcia was approaching them at a high rate of speed. At the time, Garcia was pursuing other illegal immigrants about five miles south of exit 78 on Interstate 8, which is just east of Yuma.

Torralva’s lawyer claims Garcia lost control of the truck and struck Torralva and his daughter. Torralva suffered spinal fractures and cuts and bruises all over his body. She suffered blunt force injuries to her lungs, liver and spleen that led to internal bleeding.

Torralva was taken by helicopter to Yuma Regional Medical Center and is now permanently disabled. Lourdes died at the scene.

The complaint claims Garcia’s job "required that, among other things, [he] maintain a safe speed, keep a proper look out for pedestrians, yield to pedestrians and control [his] vehicles so as to avoid collisions with pedestrians" along the border.

Claims were filed against the Border Patrol in January and February, but U.S. authorities rejected them.

Now Tucson lawyer David Karnas, who is representing Torralva, is following up by asking for a jury trial in federal court in Tucson. He is also seeking an undisclosed sum for punitive and compensatory damages.