Victor Meza-Carmona v. Merrick Garland

I. Background

Victoria was born in Los Angeles, California, on August 21, 1947. Eleven months later, on July 11, 1948, Victoria was baptized in El Paso, Texas. At some point after Victoria’s baptism, her godmother, Leonilla Carmona de Cedillo, took custody of her. Victoria resided with Cedillo in El Paso for approximately two years. While Victoria was in her care, Cedillo, a Mexican citizen and lawful permanent resident of the United States, renewed border crossing cards every six months. These cards authorized Cedillo to freely reenter the United States from Mexico. At some point before Victoria began school, she moved to Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, where her paternal grandparents raised her. Victoria eventually began a relationship with a Mexican citizen, Francisco Meza. Meza-Carmona was born to the couple on August 5, 1968, in Ciudad Juarez. Victoria and Francisco later married. When Meza-Carmona was five years old, the family moved to Arizona. In 1975, Victoria filed a citizenship application on Meza- Carmona’s behalf, claiming that he acquired citizenship at birth. The record supporting the application is not clear. According to a contemporaneous summary by the Immigration and…