Rivera-Alonzo

BACKGROUND AND FACTS

Border Patrol Agent Alex Mendoza encountered Rafael Rivera-Alonzo (“Rivera”) and his cousin (Luis Valdez- Cordero) after they illegally entered the United States near San Luis, Arizona on July 15, 2006. When Agent Mendoza approached the men, he was wearing his Border Patrol uni- form and was driving in a marked Border Patrol vehicle. When Rivera and Valdez-Cordero began running, Agent UNITED STATES v. RIVERA-ALONZO 14353 Mendoza (driving his vehicle) pursued them. As Agent Men- doza drew near, he ordered the men (in both English and Spanish) to stop, but both men kept running.

According to Agent Mendoza, he made two attempts to physically stop Rivera. On the first attempt, the agent drove ahead of Rivera but stumbled while getting out of his truck, allowing Rivera to run past him. On the second attempt, as Agent Mendoza approached, Rivera dove at the agent’s legs.

A physical struggle ensued. During the struggle, Agent Mendoza initially subdued Rivera by drawing his gun and ordering him to the ground. But when the agent holstered his gun, Rivera began fighting with the agent and eventually took the agent’s gun from him, attempting to pull the…