crimmigration.com

The intersection of criminal law and immigration law

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

Illegal Entry Convictions Interrupt Continuous Physical Presence

By Sarah Flinn The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) recently affirmed an immigration judge’s decision to deny an application for cancellation of removal due to a break in the necessary ten year continuous physical presence requirement. Matter of Velasquez-Cruz, 26 I&N Dec. 458 (BIA 2014). The migrant in this case, Ms. Rosa Isela Velasquez-Cruz, was apprehended in the United States twice within just a few days. Subsequent to apprehensions on August 9, 2004 and August 11, 2004, Ms. Velasquez-Cruz pled guilty to illegal entry in violation of section 275(a)(1) of the Immigration and [...]

Posted by César on April 21, 2015 on 4:00 am Leave a Comment
Filed Under: Board of Immigration Appeals, cancellation of removal, guest blogger, illegal entry

5th Circuit addresses good moral character requirement for non-LPR cancellation

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently clarified two related requirements for obtaining Cancellation of Removal for non-Lawful Permanent Residents. Rodriguez-Avalos v. Holder, No. 13-60736, slip op. (5th Cir. March 4, 2015). Specifically, the court concluded that the good moral character requirement doesn’t involve an analysis of moral turpitude and that the applicant must have established GMC during the ten years immediately preceding the immigration judge or Board of Immigration Appeals’ decision. This case involved a migrant who entered without inspection and was later [...]

Posted by César on March 19, 2015 on 4:00 am Leave a Comment
Filed Under: 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, cancellation of removal, crime involving moral turpitude, good moral character

9 Cir: Inconclusive record favors migrant

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversed course this week holding that a record of conviction that inconclusively identifies whether a migrant is removable must be viewed as failing to prove removability. Almanza-Arenas v. Holder, No. 09-71415, slip. op. (9th Cir. Nov. 10, 2014). This is a significant change for the Ninth Circuit, but also an important move away from the BIA’s position which it adopted when Almanza-Arenas’s case was before it. Matter of Almanza-Arenas, 24 I&N Dec. 771, 774 (BIA 2009). Here’s how I explain this situation in my forthcoming book [...]

Posted by César on November 13, 2014 on 4:00 am Leave a Comment
Filed Under: 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, cancellation of removal, Uncategorized

10 Cir: Sentence reduction doesn’t alter period actually confined for good moral character determination

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that the period of confinement actually served governs a determination of whether a migrant lacks good moral character even if a criminal court reduces the sentence to a period less than the time actually spent behind bars. Garcia-Mendoza v. Holder, No. 13-9531, slip op. (10th Cir. June 2, 2014). Judge Briscoe wrote the panel’s opinion. This case involved a man who overstayed a visa and, years later, was convicted of driving under the influence and leaving the scene of an accident. He spent 104 days in jail prior to his conviction, all of [...]

Posted by César on August 21, 2014 on 4:00 am Leave a Comment
Filed Under: 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, cancellation of removal, good moral character, imprisonment

5 Cir: Drug trafficking aggravated felony requires knowing substance was illicit

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that Florida’s cocaine delivery offense is not a drug trafficking type of aggravated felony because, unlike federal law, it does not require, as an element of the crime, showing that the defendant knew that the substance was a controlled substance. Paez Sarmientos v. Holder, No. 13-60086, slip op. (5th Cir. Feb. 12, 2014) (Reavley, Prado, and Owen, JJ.). Judge Owen wrote the panel’s opinion. This case involved an LPR who pleaded guilty to delivering cocaine in violation of Florida Statute § 893.13(1)(a)(1). After finding that Paez [...]

Posted by César on April 1, 2014 on 9:00 am 2 Comments
Filed Under: 11th Circuit Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, aggravated felony, cancellation of removal, controlled substance offense, drug trafficking, illicit trafficking

Immigration law in the age of marijuana decriminalization

By Jordan Cunnings In a recent New Yorker interview, President Obama described marijuana use as a “bad habit and a vice, not very different from. . . cigarettes,” and not more dangerous than drinking. The President expressed concern with the disproportionate rates of criminal punishment for marijuana use in poor and minority communities, and spoke favorably of recent efforts to legalize small amounts of the drug in the states of Colorado and Washington. While Obama’s comments may be a good sign for marijuana legalization advocates, his personal viewpoint is glaringly inconsistent with his [...]

Posted by César on March 4, 2014 on 9:00 am 7 Comments
Filed Under: 212(h), adjustment of status, cancellation of removal, commentaries, controlled substance offense, guest blogger

10 Cir: CO child abuse isn’t child abuse offense

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that a conviction for child abuse in Colorado categorically wasn’t a “child abuse” type of offenseaggravated felony. Ibarra v. Holder, No. 11-9539, slip op. (10th Cir. July 1, 2013) (Murphy, Seymour, and Holmes, J.). Judge Seymour wrote the panel’s decision. This case involved a woman who, despite having been brought to the United States as a four-year-old in 1985, remains unauthorized. She was convicted of “child abuse—negligence—no injury,” a Colorado misdemeanor carrying a minimum sentence of $50, Colo. Rev. Stat. § 18-6-401(1)(a), [...]

Posted by César on August 29, 2013 on 9:00 am Leave a Comment
Filed Under: 10th Circuit Court of Appeals, cancellation of removal, child abuse

Tx Ct Crim App: Right to counsel properly waived despite not being told about deportation possibility

The Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas, the state’s highest criminal court, held that a person who waived his right to an attorney in a misdemeanor drug possession prosecution did not do so impermissibly despite not having been told that he might be deportable upon conviction. State v. Guerrero, No. PD-1258-12, slip op. (Tex. Crim. App. June 5, 2013) (Cochran, Keller, Price, Womack, Johnson, Keasler, Hervey, and Alcala, JJ.). Judge Cochran wrote the court’s opinion. This case presents like the picture of interior immigration enforcement in the age of crImmigration law. The defendant entered [...]

Posted by César on July 16, 2013 on 9:00 am 14 Comments
Filed Under: § 212(c), cancellation of removal, conviction, habeas, local immigration policing, Padilla v. Kentucky, post-conviction relief, state court, stop-time rule, Texas state court, waiver

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • Next Page »

Subscribe


Recent Posts

  • Moving to Ohio State University
  • Immigration, Nativism & Race in the United States
  • Border Patrol apprehensions, 1925-2020
  • Supreme Court says gap in conviction records hurts migrant
  • Abolish ICE
  • Federal court enjoins 100-day deportation pause

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.