Martin Jimenez v. Bruce Barber, District Director of the Immigration and Naturalization Service for the Thirteenth Immigration District

Appellant Martin Jimenez is an alien. He filed his complaint in the district court for injunctive and declaratory relief challenging the action of a District Director of the Immigration and Naturalization Service in taking him into custody for deportation. The complaint concedes that there is lawful basis for appellant’s deportation but asserts that the Attorney General has improperly disposed of his application for suspension of deportation under Section 19(c) of the Immigration Act of 1917, as amended. More particularly, Jimenez alleges that the Attorney General granted him a hearing on his application for suspension of deportation but denied relief because of his “refusal to answer questions asked before the hearing officer * * * about his membership in or affiliation with certain organizations, including but not limited to the Communist Political Association and the Communist Party.” The District Director moved to dismiss the complaint, arguing both that the Attorney General was an indispensable party and that the complaint did not state a cause of action. That motion was granted and this appeal followed.

In the light of Shaughnessy v. Pedreiro, 1955, 349 U.S. 48 , 75 S.Ct.…