Bustamante v. Mukasey

Alma and Jose Bustamante (plaintiffs) were a married couple. Alma was a United States citizen, and Jose was a citizen of Mexico who traveled frequently between the two countries. Alma applied for an immediate-relative immigration petition on Jose’s behalf, and Jose applied for a visa at the United States consulate in Mexico. The consular official told Jose that the head of the local office of the United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) had informed the consulate that Jose was suspected of being a drug trafficker. Under 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(2)(C), any alien who a consular official knows, or has reason to believe, is or has been a drug trafficker is inadmissible. Jose later met with DEA officials in Mexico, and they asked him to become an informant. Jose claimed that the DEA officials told him that his visa application would be denied if he did not become an informant. Jose refused the DEA’s request, and his visa application was denied. The Bustamantes filed an action against the United States (defendant) in federal district court, claiming that Jose was not a drug trafficker, that the consular officials wrongly denied Jose’s visa application, and that the denial violated Alma’s constitutional rights under the Due Process Clause. The United States moved to dismiss the claim and for summary judgment. The district court granted the United States’ motion, and the Bustamantes appealed.