Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-5_07-cv-01275/USCOURTS-cand-5_07-cv-01275-2/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 530
Nature of Suit: Prisoner Petitions - Habeas Corpus
Cause of Action: 28:2241 Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus

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United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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ORDER DENYING EX PARTE MOTION FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AND DISMISSING PETITION FOR

HABEAS CORPUS—No. C-07-01275 RMW

MAG/LJP

United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

E-FILED on 7/9/07

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

SAN JOSE DIVISION

VICTOR GARCIA-GARCIA,

Petitioner,

v.

ALBERTO GONZALES, EXECUTIVE

OFFICE FOR IMMIGRATION REVIEW,

MICHAEL CHERTOFF, UNITED STATES

IMMIGRATION & CUSTOMS

ENFORCEMENT,

Defendants.

No. C-07-01275 RMW

ORDER DENYING EX PARTE MOTION

FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER

AND DISMISSING PETITION FOR

HABEAS CORPUS

On March 5, 2007, petitioner Victor Garcia-Garcia, currently in custody in Santa Rosa,

California and awaiting removal to Mexico, filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus and request for

stay of removal. At the same time, he moved for a temporary restraining order to prevent the

reinstatement of an order of removal issued in October 2000. The 2000 removal order issued

because the immigration judge sustained a charge that petitioner was an alien removable for having

been convicted of an aggravated felony under INA section 101(a)(43)(F). The aggravated felony

was a felony DUI conviction.

Petitioner was removed to Mexico pursuant to the 2000 removal order. When he returned to

the United States, he was arrested for violating his probation. On January 30, 2007, petitioner filed a

Case 5:07-cv-01275-RMW Document 10 Filed 07/09/07 Page 1 of 4
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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ORDER DENYING EX PARTE MOTION FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AND DISMISSING PETITION FOR

HABEAS CORPUS—No. C-07-01275 RMW

MAG/LJP 2

motion to reopen and reconsider the immigration judge's determination with the Immigration Court

in light of Leocal v. Ashcroft, 543 U.S. 1 (2004), which states that DUI convictions under statutes

that do not require a mens rea component or require only a showing of negligence in the operation

of a vehicle cannot be aggravated felonies under INA section 101(a)(43)(F). Accordingly, petitioner

contends that the removal order entered against him is invalid. On March 15, 2007, the immigration

judge denied petitioner's motions to open and reconsider as untimely. INS issued a Notice of

Intent/Decision to Reinstate Prior Order on May 21, 2007.

Petitioner believes that the order of removal will be reinstated against him and that he will be

removed to Mexico before his challenge to the 2000 removal order is completed. He contends that

this court has jurisdiction because his detention is unlawful based upon the assertion that the

removal order was improperly entered against him. He also contends that he has no other relief

available to him because "[r]einstatement of a prior removal order – regardless of the process

afforded in the underlying order – does not offend due process because reinstatement of a prior order

does not change the alien's rights or remedies. Morales-Izquierdo v. Gonzales, 477 F.3d 691, 704,

2007 WL 329132, *8 (9th Cir. 2007). 

While the court sympathizes with petitioner's plight, it lacks jurisdiction to address the

petitioner's challenge to the removal order. On May 11, 2005, Congress enacted the REAL ID Act

of 2005, which expanded the jurisdiction of the circuit courts over final orders of removal. The Act

made the circuit courts the "sole" judicial body able to review challenges to final orders of

deportation, exclusion, or removal. Alvarez-Barajas v. Gonzales, 418 F.3d 1050, 1052 (9th Cir.

2005) (citing REAL ID Act, Pub.L. No. 109-13, 119 Stat. 231, § 106(a)). To accomplish this

streamlined judicial review, the Act eliminated habeas jurisdiction from the district courts, including

jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, over final orders of deportation, exclusion, or removal. Id.

(citing § 106(a)(1)(B) (amending 8 U.S.C. § 1252)). The REAL ID Act's jurisdiction-stripping

provision "does not apply to federal habeas corpus petitions that do not involve final orders of

removal." Nadarajah v. Gonzales, 443 F.3d 1069, 1075 (9th Cir. 2006). "Therefore, in cases that

do not involve a final order of removal, federal habeas corpus jurisdiction remains in the district

court, and on appeal . . . pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 2241." Id. at 1076. However, because petitioner's

Case 5:07-cv-01275-RMW Document 10 Filed 07/09/07 Page 2 of 4
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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ORDER DENYING EX PARTE MOTION FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AND DISMISSING PETITION FOR

HABEAS CORPUS—No. C-07-01275 RMW

MAG/LJP 3

contention that his detention is unlawful is solely on the basis that his order of removal is invalid,

this court does not have jurisdiction. See, e.g., Barragan-Campos v. Chertoff, 2007 WL 108341 at *

2 (N.D. Cal. 2007) (finding the court did not have jurisdiction over petitioner's challenge to

reinstatement of deportation order); Iasu v. Chertoff, 426 F. Supp. 2d 1124, 1126-27 (S.D. Cal.

2006) (dismissing petition that challenged the merits of the underlying removal order rather than the

detention itself). 

ORDER

For the foregoing reasons, the court denies petitioner's motion for a temporary restraining

order and dismisses petitioner's habeas petition for lack of jurisdiction.

DATED: 7/9/07

RONALD M. WHYTE

United States District Judge

Case 5:07-cv-01275-RMW Document 10 Filed 07/09/07 Page 3 of 4
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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ORDER DENYING EX PARTE MOTION FOR TEMPORARY RESTRAINING ORDER AND DISMISSING PETITION FOR

HABEAS CORPUS—No. C-07-01275 RMW

MAG/LJP 4

Notice of this document has been electronically sent to:

Counsel for Plaintiff:

Lamar Peckham crimigration@aol.com

Counsel for Defendants:

Edward A. Olsen edward.olsen@usdoj.gov

Counsel are responsible for distributing copies of this document to co-counsel that have not

registered for e-filing under the court's CM/ECF program.

Dated: 7/9/07 /s/ MAG

Chambers of Judge Whyte

Case 5:07-cv-01275-RMW Document 10 Filed 07/09/07 Page 4 of 4