Immigration & Citizenship Law Blog | Levin and Pangilinan PC

BIA Clarifies Recent Precedent Decision That Crime Of Aggravated Battery Under The Puerto Rico Penal Code Is Not Categorically A Crime Of Violence Per 18 U.S.C § 16(a), Holding that Controlling Circuit Court Law Must Be Followed On The Question Of Whether The Use or Threatened Use Of Poison To Injure Another Involves Sufficient `Force` To Constitute A Crime Of Violence.

December 24, 2017 Philip Levin

On September 9, 2016, The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA or Board), readdressing a question that it had confronted earlier this year, issued an opinion clarifying Matter Of Guzman-Polanco, 26… CONTINUE

BIA Holds That “Rape” Under INA § 101(A)(43)(A) Includes An Act Of Vaginal, Anal, Or Oral Intercourse, Or Digital Or Mechanical Penetration, No Matter How Slight. Perez-Gonzalez V. Holder, 667 F.3d 622 (5th Cir. 2012), Not Followed. “Rape” Also Requires That The Underlying Sexual Act Be Committed Without Consent, Which May Be Shown By A Statutory Requirement That The Victim’s Ability To Appraise The Nature Of The Conduct Was Substantially Impaired And The Defendant Had A Culpable Mental State As To Such Impairment.

December 8, 2017 Philip Levin

On October 20, 2017, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA or Board), in ruling on the appeal of a respondent convicted of aggravated felony rape under INA § 101(a)(43)(A) and… CONTINUE

BIA Holds That Criminally Negligent Homicide In Violation Of New York Penal Law § 125.10 Is Categorically Not A Crime Involving Moral Turpitude As It Does Not Require A Defendant To Have A Sufficiently Culpable Mental State.

December 1, 2017 Philip Levin

On October 16, 2017, the Board of immigration Appeals (BIA or Board), in sustaining a respondent’s appeal of an Immigrant Judge’s (IJ’s) order of removal, held that criminally negligent homicide… CONTINUE

One Has “Previously Been Admitted” To The U.S. “As An Alien Lawfully Admitted For Permanent Residence” Under INA § 212(H) If He Or She Was Inspected, Admitted And Physically Entered The Country As A Lawful Permanent Resident At Any Time In The Past, Even If Such Admission Was Not The Person’s Most Recent Acquisition Of Permanent Resident Status.

November 17, 2017 Philip Levin

On October 3, 2017, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA or Board) ruled on the appeal of a respondent held by the Immigration Judge (IJ) to be ineligible for a… CONTINUE

One Seeking To Qualify For The Inadmissibility Exception To INA § 212(A)(6)(A)(ii) Must Satisfy All 3 Subclauses Of That Section, Including The Requirement That He Or She Be A “VAWA Self-Petitioner.”

November 10, 2017 Philip Levin

On October 6, 2017, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA or Board) sustained a DHS appeal of an Immigration Judge’s (IJ’s) termination of removal proceedings in the case of a… CONTINUE

When A Petitioner Seeking To Prove A Family Relationship Files A Birth Certificate That Was Not Registered Contemporaneously With The Birth In Question, USCIS Must Consider The Certificate And All Evidence Of Record Including The Circumstances Of The Case, To Determine Whether The Claimed Relationship Has Been Proven By A Preponderance Of The Evidence.

October 30, 2017 Philip Levin

On September 20, 2017, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA or Board), ruled on the appeal of a denied Form I-130, Petition for Alien Relative in a situation where the… CONTINUE

BIA Holds A Misrepresentation Is Material Per INA § 212(a)(6)(C)(i) If It Tends To Shut Off A Line Of Inquiry Relevant To Admissibility And Would Predictably Have Disclosed Other Facts Relevant To The Applicant’s Eligibility For A Visa, Other Documentation, Or Admission To The U.S. Forbes v. INS, 48 F.3rd 439 (9th Cir. 1995) Not Followed. Therefore, In Determining Whether One Assisted Or Otherwise Participated In Extrajudicial Killing, An Adjudicator Should Consider 1)The Nexus Between The Applicant’s Role, Acts, Or Inaction And The Killing And 2) His Or Her Prior Or Contemporaneous Knowledge Of The Killing. Miranda Alvarado v. Gonzalez, 449 F.3rd 915 (9th Cir. 2006) Not Followed.

October 23, 2017 Philip Levin

On September 14, 2017 the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA or Board), in another extremely lengthy opinion, ruled on the appeal of a native of Bosnia-Herzegovina who had been found… CONTINUE

BIA Holds That Criminally Negligent Homicide In Violation Of New York Penal Law § 125.10 Is Categorically Not A Crime Involving Moral Turpitude As It Does Not Require A Defendant To Have A Sufficiently Culpable Mental State.

One Seeking To Qualify For The Inadmissibility Exception To INA § 212(A)(6)(A)(ii) Must Satisfy All 3 Subclauses Of That Section, Including The Requirement That He Or She Be A “VAWA Self-Petitioner.”

Deportations and Voluntary Departures

The Deportation Process

Deported from the U.S.