Humberto Álvarez Machaín


Humberto Álvarez Machaín is a Mexican physician from Guadalajara, Mexico, who was accused of aiding the torture and killing of the American Drug Enforcement Administration agent, Enrique Camarena Salazar, in February 1985. He was acquitted of the charges. Álvarez is a resident and citizen of Mexico.

Early life

Capture

A federal prosecutor in Los Angeles confirmed that Álvarez had been captured in Mexico by bounty hunters seeking a reward offered by the US government, giving rise to concerns over the legality of his apprehension. However, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration continues to deny news reports that it had offered a reward of as much as $100,000 for the capture of Álvarez.

Trial

Álvarez was indicted by a federal grand jury in Los Angeles in 1990 for alleged complicity in the kidnapping, torture and murder of Camarena-Salazar and his Mexican pilot Alfredo Zavala-Avelar in Guadalajara, Mexico, in February 1985. The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California issued a warrant for Álvarez's arrest after his indictment.

Repatriation

Álvarez was tried for Camarena's kidnapping, torture and murder in 1992. After the presentation of the government's case, the district court judge granted Álvarez's motion for judgment of acquittal on the ground of insufficient evidence to support a guilty verdict. The district court specifically concluded that the government's case was based on "suspicion and hunches, but no proof" and that the theory of the prosecution's case was "whole cloth, the wildest speculation". As a result, Álvarez was repatriated to Mexico.

Suing United States

In 1993, Álvarez initiated a civil action in the United States District Court for the Central District of California, alleging numerous constitutional and tort claims arising from his abduction, detention, and trial. Sosa, Gárate, five unnamed Mexican nationals, the United States and four DEA agents were listed as defendants. The district court ruled in favor of Álvarez in the amount of $25,000, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed Sosa's liability on appeal.
The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari on December 1, 2003, to determine the issue of whether Álvarez was entitled to remedy, pursuant to the Alien Tort Statute. The Supreme Court held that an illegal detention of a single day did not constitute a sufficient harm for relief.