San Diego

An illegal alien who claimed she was sexually attacked by a immigration detention officer failed to prove her case, a U.S. district court judge ruled.

The woman, Florelia Gonzalez, had sought $4.5 million from the federal government and the former officer, George Underwood, in a civil lawsuit. But U.S. District Judge Judith Keep said in a 25-page decision Tuesday that she had doubts about whether the attack had occurred and whether Gonzalez’s testimony could be believed, according to Assistant U.S. Atty. Karen Shichman, who represented the government in the case.

Underwood pleaded guilty in 1984 to a charge of transporting Gonzalez to Los Angeles rather than deporting her to Mexico when she was detained at the San Clemente immigration checkpoint in July, 1983.

He had been charged with sexually assaulting Gonzalez. But at the time of his sentencing, Underwood said in court that she voluntarily had sex with him after asking how she could repay him for not returning her to Mexico.

Underwood was fired by the Immigration and Naturalization Service and served almost two years in federal custody. He represented himself in the non-jury civil trial.