United States Ex Rel. Medeiros v. Watkins

Were my colleagues’ decision correct, the following rule would now prevail: If a citizen leaves this country and if, upon his return, the immigration officials give him a hearing after which they decide as a fact that he is not a citizen, that decision is final, provided only there was conflicting evidence before those officials as to his citizenship, and the hearing was fair. I cannot agree. I therefore think that the district judge erred in holding that relator here was not entitled to a judicial trial de novo of his claim to citizenship.1

*901Where the immigration authorities seek to deport an…