Biography
Enrique Medina Fernandez was one of five Spanish sailors who deserted a Franco naval vessel and crossed into the U.S. at Tijuana on July 4, 1957 seeking political asylum. Held by U.S. immigration authorities and ordered returned to Spain under a 1902 treaty by a Los Angeles federal court, they fought removal — backed by the ACLU — fearing imprisonment, torture, or death under Franco.