Border Docket: The 1954 Hearings

• Chapter 1 Transcript of Entry: Bridge of the Americas
• Chapter 2 Ex Parte Investigation No. 402
• Chapter 3 The Redacted Manifest
• Chapter 4 Intercepted Correspondence: The Chihuahua Letters
• Chapter 5 Deposition of Patrol Inspector Vance
• Chapter 6 Motion to Suppress: Docket 54-B
• Chapter 7 The Juarez Ledger
• Chapter 8 Affidavit of the Missing Interpreter
• Chapter 9 Special Inquiry: Operation Wetback Directives
• Chapter 10 Cross-Examination of Witness Reyes
• Chapter 11 Exhibit A: The Stamped Passport
• Chapter 12 Confidential Memorandum: District Director's Desk
• Chapter 13 The Detainee in Cell 4
• Chapter 14 Subpoena for the Western Union Logs
• Chapter 15 Preliminary Hearing: The Immigration Appeals Board
• Chapter 16 The Telegram from Washington
• Chapter 17 Re-Direct: The Rio Grande Survey Map
• Chapter 18 Seizure Report: The Sealed Envelope
• Chapter 19 Citation for Contempt
• Chapter 20 The Midnight Deposition
• Chapter 21 Defense Motion for Emergency Stay
• Chapter 22 The Translated Letter of June 14
• Chapter 23 Closing Argument: Transcript Volume III
• Chapter 24 The Judge’s In-Camera Review
• Chapter 25 Order of Deportation
• Chapter 26 Final Appeal: Case Closed

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE
DISTRICT NO. 15: EL PASO, TEXAS

IN THE MATTER OF:
HECTOR GOMEZ-ALVARADO,
Applicant for Admission.

FILE NO.: A-8 901 442
DATE: June 12, 1954
LOCATION: Primary Inspection Station, Bridge of the Americas, El Paso, Texas
PRESENT: Inspector Thomas Vance, Presiding Officer; Hector Gomez-Alvarado, Applicant; Miss Evelyn Brooks, Official Stenographer.

INSPECTOR VANCE: State your full, legal name for the record.

MR. GOMEZ: Héctor Gomez-Alvarado.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Speak up, please. The machine requires a clear audio imprint, and Miss Brooks cannot transcribe whispers. Spell your surname for the record.

MR. GOMEZ: G-O-M-E-Z hyphen A-L-V-A-R-A-D-O.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Date and place of birth?

MR. GOMEZ: August 14, 1922. Parral, Chihuahua, Mexico.

INSPECTOR VANCE: What is your citizenship, Mr. Gomez?

MR. GOMEZ: Mexican.

INSPECTOR VANCE: And what is the purpose of your entry into the United States today, June 12, 1954?

MR. GOMEZ: I am returning to my work. I have my papers here, sir. The Form I-151 and the letter from the cotton gin in Ysleta.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Hand them over. Do not reach into your coat pocket so quickly, please. Just hand the document folder across the counter.

MR. GOMEZ: Yes, sir. Excuse me. Here is the card.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Let the record reflect that the applicant has produced a Alien Registration Receipt Card, Form I-151, bearing the number A-8 901 442, issued at El Paso on March 10, 1951. The card bears a photograph purporting to be the applicant. Mr. Gomez, is this your photograph?

MR. GOMEZ: Yes, Inspector. It was taken three years ago at the Downtown office.

INSPECTOR VANCE: The laminate on the upper right corner appears to be lifted, Mr. Gomez. There is a distinct bubble over the seal of the Department of Justice. Did you tamper with this card?

MR. GOMEZ: No, sir. It was in my wallet. Rain got into the leather last month when I was working the irrigation ditch. It just peeled a little bit from the water.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Rain. In El Paso. In May.

MR. GOMEZ: It rained one afternoon, sir. Very hard.

INSPECTOR VANCE: We’ll have the laboratory in Washington look at the adhesive. Where were you born again?

MR. GOMEZ: Parral, Chihuahua.

INSPECTOR VANCE: But you claimed on your 1951 application that your mother was a natural-born citizen of the United States, born in Terlingua, Texas, in 1904. Is that correct?

MR. GOMEZ: Yes, sir. Maria Alvarado. She was born in Brewster County.

INSPECTOR VANCE: If your mother was a U.S. citizen, why did you apply for an Alien Registration Card as a Mexican national?

MR. GOMEZ: Because at the time, the clerk told me it was faster. He said the birth certificate from Terlingua was burnt in the court house fire of 1928, and to prove the citizenship would take two years of affidavits. He said, take the resident card, you can work right away. So I took the card.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Which clerk told you that?

MR. GOMEZ: I do not know his name. A thin man with wire glasses. He sat at desk four in the old building on Mills Street.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Desk four. I see. Conveniently anonymous. Mr. Gomez, who is Arthur Miller?

MR. GOMEZ: I do not know an Arthur Miller, sir. Is he a lawyer?

INSPECTOR VANCE: I ask the questions, Mr. Gomez. I have here an index card from the El Paso Intelligence Unit, dated four days ago. It lists an Arthur Miller, alias Arturo Gomez, as an organizer for the Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers Union in Hurley, New Mexico.

MR. GOMEZ: I am not a miner. I pick cotton, and I clear brush for Mr. Henderson in Ysleta. You can call Mr. Henderson. His number is written on the back of the envelope.

INSPECTOR VANCE: We will call who we need to call. Why did you cross into Juárez yesterday evening at twenty minutes past eight?

MR. GOMEZ: My sister’s child was baptized at the Church of San José. I went for the dinner and the Mass.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Did you meet with anyone else while in Juárez?

MR. GOMEZ: My family. My brother-in-law, my mother.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Did you meet with a man named Roberto Reyes at the Café Central on Calle Lerdo?

MR. GOMEZ: I had a coffee at the Café Central while waiting for the bus back to the bridge. There were many men there. I did not talk to anyone named Reyes.

INSPECTOR VANCE: The patrol log from the International Bridge lists you as crossing on foot at 8:20 PM yesterday, and returning today at 6:05 AM. But the manifest for the city bus line shows a Hector Gomez registered on the 11:45 PM departure for Chihuahua City. Did you intend to take that bus?

MR. GOMEZ: No, sir. I was at my sister’s house on Calle Mina until five o'clock this morning.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Then why is your name on the passenger manifest for the Chihuahua line?

MR. GOMEZ: I do not know. It is a common name. There are ten Hector Gomez’s in the valley.

INSPECTOR VANCE: This one carried the exact same registration number handwritten in the margin of the ticket stub recovered from the terminal wastebasket by Inspector Vance—that’s myself—at midnight.

MR. GOMEZ: I did not buy a ticket to Chihuahua. I have my home in Ysleta. My tools are in the shed behind Mr. Henderson’s house.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Stand up, please. Empty your pockets onto the wooden tray.

MR. GOMEZ: Here is my watch. Three dollars and forty cents in silver. A handkerchief. A small comb. And this letter.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Let the record show the applicant has deposited upon the desk one pocketwatch, American manufacture; three U.S. silver dollars; four dimes; one handkerchief, white cotton; one plastic comb; and one unsealed envelope addressed to 'H. Gomez, General Delivery, El Paso, Texas.'

MR. GOMEZ: That is a letter from my cousin. It arrived last week.

INSPECTOR VANCE: I am opening the letter. Miss Brooks, note that the letter is written in blue ink on ruled paper, in Spanish. I will read a translation for the record: 'The papers you requested from the archive in Saltillo cannot be delivered until the fee of fifty pesos is paid to the notary. Do not come back until the work in the north is finished, because the inspectors are watching the roads near the river.'

MR. GOMEZ: That is not about the border. That is about the farm in Parral.

INSPECTOR VANCE: It specifically says 'the inspectors are watching the roads near the river.' Which river, Mr. Gomez? The Mississippi?

MR. GOMEZ: The Rio Conchos. Near the farm.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Mr. Gomez, under Section 235 of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, I am temporarily detaining you for further examination before a Special Inquiry Officer. Your card is held as evidence of possible fraudulent acquisition under Section 212(a)(19).

MR. GOMEZ: But I must go to work today. The cotton needs the second ditch opened before the sun gets high. If I am not there, Mr. Henderson will hire someone else from the street corner.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Mr. Henderson will have to find another hand. Step through that door to your left. The officer in the hall will take your belt and your shoes.

MR. GOMEZ: May I call a lawyer?

INSPECTOR VANCE: You have the right to counsel at your own expense during the formal hearing before the Special Inquiry Officer, provided it does not delay the proceedings. The United States Government will not supply you with an attorney. Do you understand?

MR. GOMEZ: I have a phone number for a man in El Paso. A Mr. Miller. Not the miner. A lawyer named Miller.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Give me the scrap of paper.

MR. GOMEZ: It is written inside the back cover of my pocket notebook.

INSPECTOR VANCE: The small red notebook is confiscated under Bureau Order 204 as potential political material. You will be held at the Overland Street Detention Facility until your docket number is called.

MR. GOMEZ: How long will that be?

INSPECTOR VANCE: The docket is full today, Mr. Gomez. Operation Wetback began its local sweep three days ago. We have four hundred men in the processing pens behind the station. You will wait until we are ready for you.

MR. GOMEZ: I have lived here six years, Inspector. My mother was born in Texas.

INSPECTOR VANCE: Everyone’s mother was born in Texas once they reach this side of the desk, Mr. Gomez. Step through the door.

[TRANSCRIPT TERMINATED — 06:22 AM]
CERTIFIED AS A TRUE AND ACCURATE RECORD:
Evelyn Brooks, Official Reporter
USINS, El Paso District

SPECIAL INQUIRY OFFICE RECORD OF DETENTION

NAME: GOMEZ-ALVARADO, Hector
ALIEN REGISTRATION NO.: A-8 901 442
BOOKING NUMBER: 54-1109
DATE OF DETENTION: June 12, 1954
TIME IN: 06:45 AM
CELL ASSIGNMENT: Cell 4, Sub-Basement, El Paso Federal Building

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION:
Height: 5 feet, 8 inches
Weight: 154 lbs.
Hair: Black
Eyes: Brown
Marks/Scars: Linear scar, 2 inches, left forearm; mole below right collarbone.

PROPERTY TAKEN FROM DETAINEE:

• One (1) leather wallet, worn brown, containing $3.40 U.S. currency.
• One (1) metal watch, Hamilton brand, broken crystal.
• One (1) leather belt, brass buckle.
• One (1) pair leather work shoes, brown, size 9, laces removed.
• One (1) small pocket notebook, red paper cover, containing handwritten entries in Spanish and English (transferred to Intelligence Unit, Room 208).
• One (1) receipt card, Form I-151 (retained by Inspector Vance as Exhibit 1).

INITIAL STATEMENT OF DETAINING OFFICER (Patrol Inspector T. Vance):
Subject presented suspect Form I-151 at primary check, Bridge of the Americas. Card displays evidence of physical alteration (delamination of protective cover). Subject’s name corresponds to intelligence advisory regarding union activities in New Mexico mining district, though subject denies identity with named subject. Subject claims U.S. citizenship through maternal line (mother: Maria Alvarado, alleged born Terlingua, Brewster County, TX, 1904). No official record of birth exists in Brewster County records according to 1952 regional index. Subject ordered held without bail pending Preliminary Hearing under Section 242(a).

REMARKS:
Counsel of record entered by phone at 08:15 AM: Saul Miller, Esq., 204 San Antonio Street, El Paso, Texas. Attorney informed that client is held for Exclusion/Deportation summary inquiry under 1954 Regional Directive. Attorney requested access to detention log and original transcript. Request denied pending appearance before Special Inquiry Officer.

LOG ENTRY — 09:30 AM
Attorney Saul Miller present at desk. Requesting interview with detainee Gomez-Alvarado. Interview granted for fifteen minutes in Room B (Unmonitored).

MEMORANDUM FOR THE FILE

TO: Saul Miller, Attorney at Law
FROM: Saul Miller
DATE: June 12, 1954
RE: Initial Interview with Hector Gomez-Alvarado (Cell 4)

I met with the client, Hector Gomez-Alvarado, in the basement interview room at the El Paso Federal Building. The client was brought in without shoelaces or belt. He appears calm but fatigued. He has worked in the El Paso area since 1948, continuously except for short family visits across the river to Juárez and Parral.

Primary Facts Established:

1. The Card: Gomez obtained his I-151 card in 1951. He claims he went to the Immigration Office on Mills Street after being told by his employer, Mr. Henderson, that he needed formal papers to stay on the farm. He states the clerk filled out the paperwork for him. The card has been in his wallet ever since. He denies altering it. The peeling noted by Vance appears to be standard wear from sweat and moisture common among agricultural workers.

2. The Maternal Claim: Gomez insists his mother, Maria Alvarado, was born near Terlingua in 1904. Her family worked the quicksilver mines before moving south into Mexico during the 1911 revolution. He says there is a family Bible currently held by an aunt in Ojinaga which records the birth, as well as a baptismal record from a traveling priest based out of Marfa. I will need to secure an affidavit or the original ledger from Ojinaga before the Special Inquiry Officer moves to deport.

3. The Intelligence Tie: Vance tried to link Gomez to the Mine-Mill strikes in Hurley. Gomez states he has never been to Hurley and has never worked in a mine. He believes the confusion stems from a second cousin, Arturo Gomez, who worked at Kennecott Copper two years ago. We must demand the production of the specific intelligence card mentioned by Vance to prove non-identity.

4. The Letter: The letter seized by Vance mentions 'inspectors near the river.' Gomez explains this refers to Mexican custom agents (fiscales) who patrol the Rio Conchos near his family’s property to prevent illegal tobacco transport, not U.S. Border Patrol. We need a qualified translator to challenge Inspector Vance’s selective and self-serving translation.

Procedural Obstacles:
The Service is operating under the new regional directives for Operation Wetback, which took effect earlier this month. They are attempting to process cases within twenty-four to forty-eight hours, using summary procedures under Section 235. If they class Gomez as an 'applicant for admission' rather than a resident alien returning from a temporary visit abroad, the burden of proof rests entirely on him, and his rights are severely restricted.

I have filed a formal Notice of Appearance (Form G-28) with the desk officer and requested an immediate copy of the complete transcript of the primary inspection. The clerk refused to provide the notebook seized from Gomez's pocket, claiming it is 'non-record intelligence property.'

I will file a Motion for Inspection of Documents and a Motion to Bar Summary Deportation before noon.

TELEGRAM

RECEIVED: 10:14 AM — JUNE 12, 1954
FROM: SAUL MILLER, ATTORNEY AT LAW, EL PASO, TEXAS
TO: DISTRICT DIRECTOR, IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE, EL PASO, TEXAS

RE: HECTOR GOMEZ-ALVARADO, A-8 901 442.
FORMAL DEMAND IS HEREBY MADE FOR THE IMMEDIATE RELEASE OF MY CLIENT ON REASONABLE BAIL PENDING HEARING. CLIENT IS A LEGAL PERMANENT RESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES WITH AN ESTABLISHED DOMICILE OF SIX YEARS IN EL PASO COUNTY. PROCEEDINGS UNDER SECTION 235 EXCLUSION ARE IMPROPER. CLIENT IS ENTITLED TO FULL DEPORTATION HEARINGS UNDER SECTION 242 WITH NOTICE OF CHARGES AND OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT WITNESSES. ANY ATTEMPT TO SUMMARY REMOVE CLIENT ACROSS THE INTERNATIONAL BRIDGE PRIOR TO SAID HEARING WILL BE MET WITH AN IMMEDIATE APPLICATION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS.

SAUL MILLER
204 SAN ANTONIO ST.
EL PASO, TEXAS

SERVICE RESPONSE MEMORANDUM

TO: Saul Miller, Esq.
FROM: District Director, USINS, El Paso District
DATE: June 12, 1954
SUBJECT: Alien Hector Gomez-Alvarado, A-8 901 442

Your request for bail in the case of the above-named alien is denied.

The applicant was intercepted at the port of entry (Bridge of the Americas) attempting to enter the United States. Under the provisions of Section 235(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, any alien who does not appear to the examining immigration officer to be clearly and beyond a doubt entitled to land shall be detained for further inquiry.

The status of the subject as a lawful permanent resident is not established. The Alien Registration Receipt Card presented by the subject (Form I-151) has been impounded on suspicion of forgery and physical alteration. Until the validity of said document is established by competent authority, the subject maintains the status of an unadmitted applicant for admission.

An unadmitted alien applying for admission to the United States possesses no constitutional right to release on bail pending the determination of his admissibility. See Shaughnessy v. United States ex rel. Mezei, 345 U.S. 206 (1953).

A Special Inquiry hearing has been scheduled for June 14, 1954, at 9:00 AM at the Immigration Station, El Paso. You may be present to represent your client at that time.

By Order of the District Director,
H. R. Cleary, Chief Legal Officer
El Paso District, INS

FORM I-213 (PRELIMINARY FIELD INVESTIGATION REPORT)

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Immigration and Naturalization Service

Date: June 12, 1954
Office: El Paso, Texas

1. Subject’s Name: GOMEZ-Alvarado, Hector
2. Nationality: Mexican
3. U.S. Address: Route 1, Box 44, Ysleta, Texas
4. Foreign Address: Calle Mina #12, Parral, Chihuahua, Mexico
5. Sex: Male 6. Age: 31 7. Marital Status: Single
8. Date & Port of Last Entry: June 12, 1954 — El Paso, Texas (Bridge of the Americas)
9. Manner of Entry: Applied as returning resident; held at primary inspection.
10. Visa or Card Presented: Form I-151, No. A-8 901 442 (SUSPECT).

STATEMENT OF EVIDENCE AND FINDINGS:

Subject arrived on foot at the Bridge of the Americas at 06:05 hours on June 12, 1954. Presented Alien Registration Receipt Card No. A-8 901 442. Card inspection under magnification revealed following irregularities:

• Film lamination separated along top and right borders.
• Hand-stamped registration seal shows irregular ink dispersion inconsistent with official INS District 15 equipment used in 1951.
• Subject's signature on card displays hesitation strokes on the capital 'G', suggesting possible execution by a third party.

Subject claims identity with one Hector Gomez-Alvarado, registered at El Paso in March 1951. However, cross-reference with Bureau Index indicates that File A-8 901 442 was originally assigned to a female agricultural worker, Maria Gomez-Garcia, who departed for Mexico via Presidio, Texas, in November 1952 without return authorization.

Subject claims derivative U.S. citizenship through mother, Maria Alvarado, allegedly born in Terlingua, Texas, circa 1904. Search of Texas Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics records for Brewster County shows no birth record for Maria Alvarado between 1900 and 1910.

Subject possessed at time of search a red pocket notebook containing names and figures matching known contact lists used by radical agricultural labor groups operating in the Lower Rio Grande Valley and the Southern New Mexico mining sector. Subject denies membership in such organizations.

RECOMMENDATION:

1. That subject be held in administrative detention without bond under Section 235(b).
2. That Exclusion Proceedings be conducted immediately to determine admissibility.
3. That Form I-151 No. A-8 901 442 be forwarded to the Document Examination Unit, Washington, D.C., for forensic analysis.

Investigating Inspector:
T. Vance, Patrol Inspector #412

Approved:
W. S. Palmer, Supervisory Inspector

AFFIDAVIT OF TRANSCRIPT ACCURACY

STATE OF TEXAS
COUNTY OF EL PASO

I, Evelyn Brooks, being duly sworn, depose and state:

1. I am an official shorthand reporter employed by the United States Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service, at the El Paso District Office.

2. On June 12, 1954, between the hours of 06:05 AM and 06:22 AM, I was present at the Primary Inspection Counter, Bridge of the Americas, El Paso, Texas, and took full and correct shorthand notes of the examination of the applicant Hector Gomez-Alvarado by Patrol Inspector Thomas Vance.

3. The foregoing transcript, comprising four (4) typewritten pages, is a full, true, and correct transcription of my said shorthand notes, and contains all questions asked of the applicant and all answers returned by him during said primary examination, without addition, omission, or alteration.

4. I further certify that the red pocket notebook referred to in said transcript was taken from the person of the applicant by Inspector Vance in my presence, and was placed in a yellow evidence envelope labeled 'Exhibits — Gomez-Alvarado.'

Evelyn Brooks
Official Reporter

Subscribed and sworn to before me this 12th day of June, A.D. 1954.

NILUS M. RYAN
Notary Public in and for El Paso County, Texas
(My Commission Expires: Jan. 1, 1955)

TRANSCRIPT OF TELEPHONE CONVERSATION

(EXCERPT — INS INTERNAL RECORD)

DATE: June 12, 1954
TIME: 11:10 AM
PARTIES: Chief Legal Officer H. R. Cleary (INS) and Saul Miller, Esq. (Counsel for Detainee)

MR. MILLER: Henry, I’ve got the transcript your office generated this morning. Your man Vance ran him through a meat grinder. He didn't even give him a chance to pull his paperwork together.

MR. CLEARY: Saul, the man turned up with a bad card at six in the morning during a major border operation. What do you expect Vance to do, invite him for coffee? The card matches a file for a woman who went back to Chihuahua two years ago.

MR. MILLER: That’s an administrative filing error on your end, and you know it. The District office was issuing cards out of shoe boxes back in '51. Half the numbers assigned in El Paso during the emergency cotton harvest were duplicated.

MR. CLEARY: That’s your theory, Saul. The card has a split laminate and the ink doesn't match our stamps. That makes him an unadmitted alien presenting a false document at the boundary. Section 235 applies. He stays in the basement until Monday.

MR. MILLER: He has a employer waiting for him in Ysleta who will testify he’s worked the same farm for six seasons. He’s got family rights here. His mother was born in Terlingua.

MR. CLEARY: Brewster County has no record of any Maria Alvarado. We checked the microfilms this morning.

MR. MILLER: Because the courthouse in Alpine burned down part of its records in twenty-eight, and Terlingua was a company mining town that didn't report half its births to the state. You’re holding him under a summary procedure so he can’t bring up the citizenship claim.

MR. CLEARY: If he has evidence of citizenship, bring it to the Special Inquiry Officer on Monday at nine o'clock. But I'll tell you now, Saul, the Director wants these cases cleared fast. The regional office in Dallas wants fifty exclusions processed a day while the sweep is active. We’re not hanging up the whole docket for a farmhand with a notebook full of union names.

MR. MILLER: Vance took that notebook without a warrant. It wasn't a search incident to an arrest because he hadn't arrested him yet—he was just conducting a primary inspection.

MR. CLEARY: Border search authority under Section 287 covers everything within fifty yards of the boundary line, including his pockets, his notebook, and his shoes. Read the statute again, Saul.

MR. MILLER: I know the statute, Henry. I also know the Constitution doesn't stop at the mid-channel of the Rio Grande. I'll see you in court on Monday morning.

MR. CLEARY: Room 302, Federal Building. Nine sharp. Don't be late; the Special Inquiry Officer has thirty cases on the morning calendar.

[END OF FILE — CHAPTER ONE DOCUMENTS]

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE
SOUTHWEST DISTRICT — EL PASO, TEXAS

MEMORANDUM OF INVESTIGATION

DATE: June 13, 1954
TO: District Director, INS, District 15, El Paso, Texas
FROM: Investigator Carl G. O’Malley, Special Intelligence Unit
SUBJECT: Ex Parte Investigation No. 402: Gomez-Alvarado, Hector (A-8 901 442) — Assessment of Security Risk and Document Validity

STATEMENT OF PURPOSE AND JURISDICTION

Pursuant to District Administrative Order 54-A, issued under the emergency enforcement directives of Operation Wetback, this Ex Parte Investigation was initiated to determine the true identity, criminal background, document validity, and potential sub-subversive affiliation of Hector Gomez-Alvarado, currently detained under Section 235(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952.

Because the subject claims derivative United States citizenship while simultaneously possessing a suspect Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I-151), this inquiry was conducted on an ex parte basis without notice to the subject or his legal counsel, Saul Miller, Esq., to prevent the destruction of secondary evidence across the international border in Juárez, Chihuahua.

SECTION I: EXAMINATION OF CONFISCATED POCKET NOTEBOOK

On June 12, 1954, Inspector T. Vance seized one red-paperbound pocket notebook from the person of the subject during primary inspection at the Bridge of the Americas. Said notebook was delivered to the Special Intelligence Unit, Room 208, for linguistic and document analysis.

The notebook consists of forty (40) ruled pages. Hand-written entries are made in blue ink, black pencil, and green grease pencil. The writing comprises three distinct hands, suggesting multiple authors or entries made over an extended timeframe.

Investigator’s Analysis: The reference on Page 12 to Local 890 of the International Union of Mine, Mill, and Smelter Workers is of critical intelligence value. Local 890, operating out of Grant County, New Mexico, was expelled from the CIO in 1950 due to alleged communist domination and has been under active surveillance by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The entry indicating dues paid in March 1954 directly contradicts the subject’s sworn statement at primary inspection, wherein he denied any connection to mining or union activity in New Mexico.

The reference on Page 18 to 'Reyes' at Calle Lerdo 114, Juárez, correlates with intelligence files maintained by the U.S. Consulate in Juárez regarding Roberto Reyes-Mendoza, a known broker of altered labor papers and forged border crossing permits operating out of the commercial district of Juárez.

SECTION II: CROSS-BORDER INQUIRY AND AGENT REPORT

On the afternoon of June 12, 1954, Confidential Informant CI-TEX-88 (a reliable source operating within the municipality of Ciudad Juárez) was instructed to verify the subject’s activities on the night of June 11–12, 1954.

Report of Confidential Informant CI-TEX-88:

• Location 1 (Church of San José, Calle Mina): Informant confirmed that a baptismal party occurred on the evening of June 11. However, the parish registry reveals no baptism recorded under the name of Gomez or Alvarado for that date. The parish priest, Father Esteban Ruiz, stated that several informal family gatherings use the church courtyard without registration.
• Location 2 (Café Central, Calle Lerdo): Informant interviewed the night bartender, one Manuel Torres. Torres identified a photograph of the subject, Hector Gomez-Alvarado, as a frequent patron. Torres stated that on the evening of June 11, at approximately 10:30 PM, the subject met with Roberto Reyes-Mendoza in a rear booth. The subject was seen handing an envelope to Reyes-Mendoza in exchange for Mexican currency.
• Location 3 (Transportes del Norte Bus Depot): Informant examined the passenger manifest for Departure No. 4, northbound for Chihuahua City, dated June 11, 11:45 PM. Seat 14 was reserved under the name 'H. Gomez.' The ticket was purchased in cash at 11:10 PM. The passenger failed to board, and the seat remained vacant upon departure.

Investigator’s Analysis: The subject’s claim that he remained continuously at his sister’s residence on Calle Mina until 5:00 AM on June 12 is false. The testimony of CI-TEX-88 and the bartender at Café Central demonstrates that the subject was actively negotiating with Roberto Reyes-Mendoza—a documented document vendor—only hours before presenting himself at the Bridge of the Americas with a suspicious Alien Registration Card.

SECTION III: VERIFICATION OF U.S. CITIZENSHIP CLAIM

Subject claims derivative citizenship through his mother, Maria Alvarado, allegedly born in Terlingua, Brewster County, Texas, on or about April 12, 1904.

Documentary Search Results:

1. Texas Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics (Austin, Texas):
   A search of the Master Birth Index for Brewster County covering the years 1898 through 1910 was conducted by telegraphic request. Result: Negative. No record of birth found for Maria Alvarado, Maria Alvarado-Gomez, or any child of similar parentage during the specified timeframe.

2. Brewster County Courthouse Records (Alpine, Texas):
   The County Clerk of Brewster County was contacted by telephone. County records for the mining district of Terlingua prior to 1910 are incomplete due to the destruction of field ledgers during the flood of 1917 and the courthouse fire of 1928. The clerk noted that quicksilver mining companies operating in Terlingua (specifically the Chisos Mining Company) maintained private employment registries, but these records were transferred to private holding in Chicago in 1942 and are unavailable for official verification.

3. Church Records Search (Diocese of El Paso / Vicariate of Southern New Mexico):
   A formal inquiry was submitted to the archives of the Catholic Diocese of El Paso regarding itinerant parish records for the Terlingua district for 1904. Archive search yielded no record of baptism for Maria Alvarado.

Investigator’s Analysis: The subject has failed to produce a scintilla of legal evidence to substantiate his claim of derivative U.S. citizenship. Under the provisions of Section 301 of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, the burden of proving United States citizenship rests entirely upon the party claiming it. In the absence of a birth certificate, baptismal record, or contemporaneous documentary proof, the subject’s claim of derivative citizenship must be rejected as legally insufficient.

SECTION IV: FORM I-151 AUDIT AND FILE CROSS-REFERENCE

Subject presented Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I-151) No. A-8 901 442, purporting to have been issued at El Paso, Texas, on March 10, 1951.

Central Office Index Search (Washington, D.C.):
A Master Index check via teletype to the INS Central Office produced the following historical record for File No. A-8 901 442:

Physical Inspection of Exhibit 1 (Seized Card):
The card seized from the subject was examined by the undersigned under 10x magnification and ultraviolet illumination. The inspection revealed:

• Lamination: The plastic shield shows evidence of thermal re-sealing along the edges. Traces of non-standard polyvinyl adhesive are visible beneath the laminate on the upper right margin.
• Seal: The circular ink stamp of INS District 15 shows structural anomalies. The letter 'S' in 'SERVICES' displays a broken curve corresponding to a known worn hand-stamp discarded by the El Paso office in December 1952.
• Photograph: The photograph attached to the card depicts a male subject matching the detainee. However, shadow analysis indicates the photo was taken against a non-standard background inconsistent with the neutral grey backdrop used by the Downtown El Paso INS processing facility in 1951.

Investigator’s Analysis: The physical evidence conclusively establishes that Form I-151 bearing number A-8 901 442 is either a counterfeit document or a legitimate card issued to one Maria Gomez-Garcia that has been materially altered by removing the original photograph and personal data and substituting the photograph and name of the detainee. The presence of non-standard adhesive and the use of a retired district stamp strongly suggest the document was manufactured or altered by an illicit document ring—most likely operating under the direction of Roberto Reyes-Mendoza in Juárez.

SECTION V: EMPLOYMENT VERIFICATION AND LOCAL INQUIRY

On June 13, 1954, at 08:30 AM, Investigator O’Malley conducted an in-person interview with the subject’s employer, Mr. George Henderson, at his farm on Route 1, Ysleta, Texas.

Interview Record:

INVESTIGATOR O’MALLEY: Mr. Henderson, how long have you employed the man known as Hector Gomez-Alvarado?

MR. HENDERSON: Hector’s worked my cotton fields every season since forty-nine. Good hand. Never gives any trouble. Drives the tractor, handles the irrigation pipes.

INVESTIGATOR O’MALLEY: Did he present an Alien Registration Card to you when you hired him?

MR. HENDERSON: Back in forty-nine, nobody asked for cards. We just hired whoever showed up at the canal line. But around fifty-one, the Border Patrol came around telling us we needed registered hands. Hector went into town one morning and came back with a green card. Showed it to me, I wrote the number down in my ledger, and that was it.

INVESTIGATOR O’MALLEY: Do you have that ledger, Mr. Henderson?

MR. HENDERSON: Sure do. Keep it in the kitchen.

(Mr. Henderson produced a ledger notebook. Page 44 contains an entry dated March 14, 1951: "Hector Gomez - Card # A-8 901 442.")

INVESTIGATOR O’MALLEY: Did Hector ever mention working in New Mexico? At the copper mines in Hurley?

MR. HENDERSON: Never mentioned New Mexico. He goes home to Parral every winter after the gin closes down. Comes back in April. That’s his pattern.

INVESTIGATOR O’MALLEY: Did you ever pay him sixty cents an hour, Mr. Henderson?

MR. HENDERSON: Fifty cents is the valley rate for irrigators. I paid him fifty cents. Where’d you get sixty?

INVESTIGATOR O’MALLEY: A notebook found on his person. It shows an entry claiming you owed him twenty-two dollars based on a sixty-cent rate.

MR. HENDERSON: Well, he’s mistaken. Or somebody else wrote it. Hector can barely read English, Inspector. He’s no trouble-maker. If he owes somebody money or made a mistake on his card, I’ll stand for him. I need him on the ditch today. The south forty is drying out.

INVESTIGATOR O’MALLEY: He won’t be on the ditch today, Mr. Henderson. He’s being processed for exclusion.

Investigator’s Analysis: While Henderson confirms the subject’s physical presence in Ysleta since 1949, his testimony demonstrates that he relied entirely on the subject’s self-reported card in 1951 without independent verification. The discrepancy between the fifty-cent wage rate paid by Henderson and the sixty-cent calculation recorded in the subject’s notebook suggests the notebook entries relate to labor activities elsewhere—potentially connected to the New Mexico union network identified in Section I.

SECTION VI: EVALUATION OF DEFENSE COUNSEL’S DEMANDS

Defense Counsel Saul Miller, Esq., has filed written demands for:

1. Immediate production of the red pocket notebook.
2. Production of the internal intelligence index cards referenced by Inspector Vance.
3. Transfer of the proceedings from Section 235 Exclusion to Section 242 Deportation.

Security and Policy Evaluation:

1. The Notebook: Release of the red notebook to defense counsel would compromise ongoing intelligence operations targeting Local 890 in New Mexico and document forgery rings in Juárez. The notebook contains names of unindicted third parties currently under surveillance by federal authorities. It should remain classified as an Internal Service Exhibit exempt from pre-hearing disclosure.

2. Intelligence Index Cards: The index card maintained by the El Paso Intelligence Unit contains confidential informant source codes. Disclosure to defense counsel would identify CI-TEX-88 and compromise cross-border intelligence channels.

3. Procedural Classification: Counsel’s attempt to reclassify this proceeding as a deportation hearing under Section 242 must be resisted. In deportation proceedings, the Service bears the burden of proving deportability by clear, unequivocal, and convincing evidence, and the alien enjoys statutory rights to administrative discovery. In exclusion proceedings under Section 235, the applicant bears the entire burden of proving his right to enter, and summary procedures apply under current Regional Directives. Because the subject was intercepted at the physical boundary (Bridge of the Americas), he has not made an 'entry' in contemplation of law, despite his claimed prior residence.

SECTION VII: FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

FINDINGS:

1. The subject, Hector Gomez-Alvarado, presented an altered or forged Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I-151, No. A-8 901 442) at the port of entry on June 12, 1954.
2. Central Office records establish that File No. A-8 901 442 was assigned to a third party (Maria Gomez-Garcia) and was never lawfully issued to the subject.
3. The subject has failed to produce documentary proof of U.S. citizenship through his maternal line, and state records yield no support for his claim.
4. Confiscated material links the subject to labor organizations designated as security concerns and to documented document-forgery figures in Ciudad Juárez.
5. The subject’s statements regarding his whereabouts on the night of June 11–12, 1954, are contradicted by physical and informant evidence.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

1. Maintain Exclusion Status: Proceed against the subject exclusively under Section 235 (Exclusion) as an unadmitted applicant for admission.
2. Deny Document Inspection: Refuse defense requests for access to the red notebook, intelligence index cards, and internal investigator memoranda under executive privilege and border security provisions.
3. Formal Order of Exclusion: Prepare an Order of Exclusion based on Section 212(a)(19) [seeking entry by fraud or misrepresentation] and Section 212(a)(20) [lack of valid entry documents].
4. Referral for Criminal Prosecution: Forward the impounded Form I-151 to the United States Attorney for potential prosecution under 18 U.S.C. § 1546 (fraud and misuse of visas, permits, and entry documents).

Respectfully submitted,

Carl G. O’Malley
Investigator, Special Intelligence Unit
USINS, El Paso, Texas

MEMORANDUM OF REJECTION (DEFENSE FILING)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF TEXAS — EL PASO DIVISION

IN RE: HECTOR GOMEZ-ALVARADO
Petitioner

v.

DISTRICT DIRECTOR, U.S. IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE, EL PASO, TEXAS
Respondent

CIVIL ACTION NO. 1889 — PETITION FOR WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS

INTER-OFFICE MEMORANDUM — INS LEGAL STAFF

TO: Patrol Inspector T. Vance
FROM: Chief Legal Officer H. R. Cleary
DATE: June 13, 1954 — 04:30 PM
SUBJECT: Hearing Preparation — Gomez-Alvarado Docket (June 14)

Tom:

Judge Thomason just tossed Miller’s habeas petition out of federal court. We have total green light for the Special Inquiry Officer hearing tomorrow at nine o'clock.

O’Malley’s investigation report (Ex Parte No. 402) gives us everything we need to wrap this up in thirty minutes. The Central Office teletype confirms the green card number belongs to a dead file for a woman who went back to Mexico two years ago. That kills his lawful resident claim dead on arrival.

Miller is going to try to drag this into a long argument about his client’s mother being born in Terlingua in 1904. Don't get drawn into the weeds on that. If Miller brings up the courthouse fire or old family Bibles, object immediately on ground of hearsay and lack of official certification under Rule 44. The law requires a certified state record, not family stories.

The Special Inquiry Officer for tomorrow is SIO Joseph Rodgers. Rodgers is under strict orders from the Dallas Regional Director to clear at least twenty dockets before noon. He is not going to tolerate long speeches from Miller.

Here is your battle plan for tomorrow:

• First: Present the seized card (Exhibit 1) and the teletype report showing the card belongs to Maria Gomez-Garcia.
• Second: Put yourself on the stand to testify regarding the split laminate and the retired stamp.
• Third: Move for an immediate finding of excludability under Section 212(a)(19) and Section 212(a)(20).

Do not mention O’Malley’s report or the red notebook in your direct testimony unless Miller specifically opens the door. If Miller asks about the notebook, state simply that it was seized as part of routine border inspection procedure and transferred to administrative holdings. We do not want to get into the Union stuff or the informant in Juárez on the record—it creates unnecessary appealable issues for the Board of Immigration Appeals in Washington.

Keep it tight, keep it simple. Card is bad, citizenship is unproven, man is outside the border. End of story.

H. R. C.

LETTER FROM SAUL MILLER TO CLIENT’S EMPLOYER

LAW OFFICES OF SAUL MILLER
204 San Antonio Street
El Paso, Texas

June 13, 1954

Mr. George Henderson
Route 1, Box 44
Ysleta, Texas

RE: Hector Gomez-Alvarado — INS Detention

Dear Mr. Henderson:

I am writing to update you on the legal situation regarding your employee, Hector Gomez-Alvarado, who was detained by the Immigration Service at the International Bridge yesterday morning.

The federal court today refused to intervene in Hector’s detention, which means we must fight his case directly before the Immigration Service hearing officer tomorrow morning, Monday, June 14, at 9:00 AM at the Federal Building in El Paso.

The Service is taking an extremely harsh stance. They claim the green card Hector has used for the past three years is invalid, and they are attempting to deport him immediately under summary rules that deny him a full trial.

To beat them, we need to prove two things tomorrow:

1. That Hector has lived and worked continuously in El Paso County since at least 1949, making him a resident entitled to fair procedure.
2. That he is a man of good moral character who has earned his living honestly.

Your testimony is absolutely critical. I need you present in Room 302 of the Federal Building at 8:45 AM tomorrow. Please bring your payroll ledger showing the entries for Hector starting in 1949, as well as any cancelled checks or receipts you have on file.

The government is moving at high speed to process as many men as possible under Operation Wetback. If we do not make a strong stand tomorrow morning, Hector will be across the river by afternoon, and bringing him back will be almost impossible.

Thank you for your willingness to help your worker.

Sincerely yours,

Saul Miller

TELEGRAM FROM DEFENSE COUNSEL TO COUNTY CLERK

SENT: JUNE 13, 1954 — 05:15 PM
FROM: SAUL MILLER, ATTORNEY, EL PASO, TEXAS
TO: COUNTY CLERK, BREWSTER COUNTY COURTHOUSE, ALPINE, TEXAS

URGENT REQUEST FOR SPECIAL INQUIRY HEARING TOMORROW MORNING. PLEASE TELEGRAPH IMMEDIATELY ANY RECORD, INDEX ENTRY, TAX ROLL, OR HISTORICAL NOTE MENTIONING MARIA ALVARADO, RESIDING TERLINGUA OR STUDY BUTTE BETWEEN 1900 AND 1910. MOTHER OF DETAINEE CLAIMING DERIVATIVE U.S. CITIZENSHIP. COURTHOUSE FIRE OF 1928 KNOWN TO HAVE DESTROYED PRIMARY REGISTER. NEED ANY SECONDARY COUNTY MENTION OF FAMILY NAME ALVARADO FOR FEDERAL HEARING AT NINE AM MONDAY. CHARGE TELEGRAM EXPENSES TO MY OFFICE ACCOUNT.

SAUL MILLER
204 SAN ANTONIO ST, EL PASO

TELEGRAPHIC REPLY FROM BREWSTER COUNTY CLERK

RECEIVED: JUNE 13, 1954 — 07:40 PM
FROM: COUNTY CLERK, ALPINE, TEXAS
TO: SAUL MILLER, EL PASO, TEXAS

RE YOUR WIRE REGARDING ALVARADO NAME IN TERLINGUA RECORDS. MAIN BIRTH REGISTRY DESTROYED 1928 FIRE AS KNOWN. SEARCH OF SURVIVING COUNTY TAX ASSESSMENT ROLLS FOR CHISOS MINING DISTRICT SHOWS ONE MANUEL ALVARADO LISTED AS REAL PROPERTY OWNER AND POLL TAX PAYER IN TERLINGUA FOR YEARS 1904 THROUGH 1908. ROLLS NOTE HOUSEHOLD INCLUDES WIFE AND TWO MINOR CHILDREN. NO INDIVIDUAL NAMES OF CHILDREN LISTED ON TAX ROLLS. CERTIFIED COPY OF TAX ROLL PAGE MAILED TODAY SPECIAL DELIVERY. TELEGRAPHIC CONFIRMATION SENT AT YOUR EXPENSE.

MARY AGNES KERR
COUNTY CLERK, BREWSTER COUNTY

ATTORNEY’S WORK SHEET — CASE PREPARATION

DATE: June 13, 1954 — 10:00 PM
CASE: In the Matter of Hector Gomez-Alvarado (File A-8 901 442)
HEARING DATE: June 14, 1954 — 09:00 AM (Room 302)

Key Vulnerabilities in Government's Position:

1. The Card Issue: The INS claims File A-8 901 442 belongs to Maria Gomez-Garcia. But who assigned that number? In March 1951, the El Paso district office was overwhelmed by thousands of agricultural registrations under emergency harvest directives. Clerks were typing cards by hand from loose stacks of pre-numbered forms. It is entirely probable that the clerk assigned a duplicate number to Hector while issuing a card to Maria Gomez-Garcia, or recorded the wrong number in the master index. The fault lies in their bookkeeping, not in my client's intent.

2. The Lamination Defect: Inspector Vance relies on the peeling laminate as proof of forgery. But George Henderson will testify that Hector worked in wet irrigation ditches every summer. Moisture and heat regularly destroy the cheap plastic lamination used on 1951 cards. This is wear-and-tear, not criminal alter-ation.

3. The Citizenship Line: The Brewster County tax roll proves a Manuel Alvarado lived in Terlingua in 1904 with minor children. This provides crucial corroboration for Hector’s statement that his grandfather Manuel lived in Terlingua when his mother Maria was born. It shifts the argument from complete absence of proof to incomplete public records caused by the county fire.

4. The Exclusion Trap: The INS wants to try this as an exclusion case under Section 235 because it strips Hector of due process rights. But under established law (Kwong Hai Chew v. Colding, 344 U.S. 590), a lawful permanent resident who makes a temporary visit abroad is entitled to due process upon return and cannot be treated as a newly arriving alien without a hearing on his resident status. I must force the SIO to rule on whether Hector lost his resident status before he can be subjected to exclusion.

Action Items for 08:00 AM Tomorrow:

• Meet George Henderson at court entrance; inspect his original 1951 ledger entry.
• File Motion to Convert Exclusion Proceeding to Deportation Hearing based on Kwong Hai Chew.
• Object to any introduction of O’Malley’s ex parte intelligence report or the seized notebook without full defense access.
• Subpoena District Chief Legal Officer Cleary to produce the original 1951 El Paso registration logs for the A-8 series.

[END OF FILE — CHAPTER TWO DOCUMENTS]