Wrongly Detained U.S. Citizen With Learning Disabilities Allegedly Forced To Sign Documents He Couldn't Read

A 19-year-old U.S. citizen is denying allegations made by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and claiming he was coerced into signing documents he could not read due to intellectual disabilities.

Jose Hermosillo, who lives in New Mexico, was visiting his girlfriend's family in Arizona when he suffered a seizure on April 8 and was transported to a nearby hospital in Tucson.

After being released from medical care, Hermosillo became disoriented and attempted to walk back to the house where he had been staying. According to a sworn statement, he approached a Border Patrol officer for assistance but was quickly questioned about his legal status.

"You're not from here. Do you have any papers?" the officer asked, according to Hermosillo's statement. Hermosillo said he told the officer he was from New Mexico, but the officer accused him of lying.

The man was then arrested by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and charged with illegal entry into the country. Hermosillo's parents told CBS News their son has intellectual disabilities, cannot read or write, and struggles with speech.

"He's never been able to read and was always in special education classes in school," said his mother, Guadalupe Hermosillo, speaking in Spanish. He was held for 10 days before being released.

Despite the disabilities, federal officers allegedly pressured Hermosillo to sign documents acknowledging he had entered the country illegally.

A copy of the sworn statement shared by DHS on social media shows Hermosillo answering "yes" when asked whether he had crossed the border illegally and identified himself as a Mexican citizen. DHS officials have said his arrest was a "direct result of his own actions and statements."

But Hermosillo and his family insist he did not understand what he was signing. He claims an officer ordered him to "sign everything," and he complied without reading the documents—because, as he stated, he cannot read.

Although Hermosillo was released on April 17 after a Tucson magistrate judge dismissed his criminal case, confusion surrounding the details of his arrest remains. His family had provided documentation proving his American citizenship, including his birth certificate, which was presented to the court the day after his first appearance.

Inconsistencies between agency statements and official documents have also drawn concern from civil rights advocates. The initial criminal complaint, filed April 9 by a Border Patrol agent, stated Hermosillo was arrested "at or near Nogales" without proper immigration documents. DHS later said the arrest occurred in Tucson.

According to Hermosillo's sworn statement, he never told officers he was born in Mexico or that he entered the U.S. illegally.

For Rebecca Sheff, senior staff attorney at the ACLU of New Mexico, the shifting narrative raises red flags.

"What's most troubling is how it appears that Homeland Security keeps changing their story, according to what's been publicly reported—and why it took 10 days for this father of a young child to come home," Sheff said.