US: Ex-Mexico leader immune from Conn. lawsuit

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — The U.S. State Department says that former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo should be immune from a lawsuit filed in Connecticut over the 1997 killings of 45 people in a Mexican village.

Zedillo is currently an international studies professor at Yale University. He has denied the allegations that he bears responsibility for the massacre by paramilitary groups in Acteal, in the southern state of Chiapas, and that he tried to cover up the killings.

The State Department issued its opinion in a letter Friday. It said the lawsuit involves actions taken in Zedillo's capacity as president and noted that the Mexican government had asked for immunity to be granted.

Ten unnamed plaintiffs sued Zedillo in September 2011 accusing him of crimes against humanity. They are seeking $50 million in damages.