On September 17, 1963, a makeshift bus carrying migrant workers participating in the “bracero program” collided with a train in Chualar, a census-designated place in the Salinas Valley. The tragedy claimed 32 lives and injured more than 25—making it the worst transportation accident in the country at the time. Behind the wheel of the train was Francisco Espinosa, who claimed he could not see or hear the train coming. Attorney Robert Ames was appointed to defend Espinosa, who was charged with 32 counts of manslaughter.

Amid a politically charged atmosphere with demands for the deaths, Ames prepared a formidable legal defense that eventually led to Espinosa’s acquittal. He discovered that many vagabonds had previously been killed on the same tracks and he dug deeper to find out why, noting that telegraph poles and landscape features obstructed visibility. The coroner told him that the howling winds prevented people from hearing trains approach. Investigators confirmed that geography made it difficult to hear oncoming trains until it was too late to get out of the way. Further, an eye exam revealed that the diabetic Espinosa “had complete tunnel vision; he had no peripheral vision at all.”

The case also became a rallying point for immigration rights and Chicano farm workers, the fate of the bracero workers jammed on the bus exposing the growers’ disregard for safety—in particular, the practice (which had resulted in other fatal incidents) in which trucks were illegally converted into buses and driven by poorly trained personnel. The bracero program ended within a year of the Chualar crash.

Espinosa’s acquittal was the first of many notable accomplishments in Ames’ career, which includes serving as chief judge for the Hopi Tribe in Arizona. Ames was also the first Native American student and graduate of Stanford Law School, earning him a spot in the university’s multicultural hall of fame in 2004.