crimmigration.com

The intersection of criminal law and immigration law

Archive

After regularly updating crimmigration.com from January 2009 until November 2022, I have stopped doing so. I hope you continue to benefit from the blog as an archive. For up-to-date information about my work, visit ccgarciahernandez.com. – César

  • Home
  • About César
  • Articles
  • Books
  • Talks & Media

Understanding the modified categorical approach

Few areas of crimmigration law are as confounding to novices and seasoned practitioners as the method by which courts determine whether a particular crime exposes a migrant to removal. Known as the categorical approach, cases expounding on this analytical method’s centrality have become a mainstay of Supreme Court decisions in recent years. Earlier this month, the Court reiterated its emphasis on the categorical approach in Mellouli v. Lynch (for analyses of that decision, see here, here, here, here, here, here). As if to illustrate how maddening categorical approach analyses can be, the very next day the BIA issued a decision, Matter of Francisco-Alonzo, 26 I&N Dec. 594 (BIA 2015), that ignores the Court’s clear-eyed focus on determining removability based on a person’s actual conviction (for my analysis of that decision, see here).

Some of this confusion stems from the BIA’s intransigence. The Board seems insistent on flouting Supreme Court directives, and the Court seems committed to pushing back.

A lot of the confusion, however, comes from the fact that the categorical approach is not straightforward. Maureen Sweeney, an associate professor at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, has devoted a great deal of energy to helping make sense of the categorical approach. A few months ago, I blogged about an outstanding video she created explaining the categorical approach. Now she’s added to that with a video explaining what happens when a criminal statute contains multiple alternative provisions. I’m pleased to present that video below.

Find this information useful? Then let others know about crImmigration.com, as well as César’s Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn pages. And to make sure you don’t miss an update, subscribe to the blog by entering your email address in the subscription box that appears on every page.

  • Share via Facebook
  • Share via LinkedIn
  • Share via Twitter
  • Share via Email

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Posted by César on June 25, 2015 on 4:00 am 1 Comment
Filed Under: Uncategorized

Comments

  1. 200-105 Cisco Real Exam Questions says

    December 7, 2017 at 10:40 pm

    Some of this confusion stems from the BIA’s intransigence. The Board seems insistent on flouting Supreme Court directives, and the Court seems committed to pushing back.

    Reply

Leave a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Subscribe


Recent Posts

  • Pelosi attacker reportedly Canadian overstayer
  • Biden marijuana pardon meets immigration law & fizzles
  • California private prison ban is illegal, 9th Circuit says
  • Citizenship is complicated
  • Supreme Court says Biden can end MPP
  • Uvalde massacre & immigration law aid

Search

Social Media

Blawg 100 Honoree

The information contained on these pages must not be considered legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. This work by www.crImmigration.com is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.