I 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1995 

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect to aliens 

associated with criminal gangs, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 17, 2021 

Mr. ZELDIN (for himself and Mr. BROOKS) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act with respect 

to aliens associated with criminal gangs, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Protecting Our Com5 munities from Gang Violence Act of 2021’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF CRIMINAL GANG. 

7 Section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality 

8 Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

9 the following: 


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1 ‘‘(53) The term ‘criminal gang’ means an ongo2 ing group, club, organization, or association of five 

3 or more persons that has as one of its primary pur4 poses the commission of one or more of the following 

5 criminal offenses and the members of which engage, 

6 or have engaged within the past 5 years, in a con7 tinuing series of such offenses, or that has been des8 ignated as a criminal gang by the Secretary of 

9 Homeland Security, in consultation with the Attor10 ney General, as meeting these criteria. The offenses 

11 described, whether in violation of Federal or State 

12 law or foreign law and regardless of whether the of13 fenses occurred before, on, or after the date of the 

14 enactment of this paragraph, are the following: 

15 ‘‘(A) A ‘felony drug offense’ (as defined in 

16 section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act 

17 (21 U.S.C. 802)). 

18 ‘‘(B) An offense under section 274 (relat19 ing to bringing in and harboring certain aliens), 

20 section 277 (relating to aiding or assisting cer21 tain aliens to enter the United States), or sec22 tion 278 (relating to importation of alien for 

23 immoral purpose). 

24 ‘‘(C) A crime of violence (as defined in sec25 tion 16 of title 18, United States Code). 


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1 ‘‘(D) A crime involving obstruction of jus2 tice, tampering with or retaliating against a 

3 witness, victim, or informant, or burglary. 

4 ‘‘(E) Any conduct punishable under sec5 tions 1028 and 1029 of title 18, United States 

6 Code (relating to fraud and related activity in 

7 connection with identification documents or ac8 cess devices), sections 1581 through 1594 of 

9 such title (relating to peonage, slavery, and 

10 trafficking in persons), section 1951 of such 

11 title (relating to interference with commerce by 

12 threats or violence), section 1952 of such title 

13 (relating to interstate and foreign travel or 

14 transportation in aid of racketeering enter15 prises), section 1956 of such title (relating to 

16 the laundering of monetary instruments), sec17 tion 1957 of such title (relating to engaging in 

18 monetary transactions in property derived from 

19 specified unlawful activity), or sections 2312 

20 through 2315 of such title (relating to inter21 state transportation of stolen motor vehicles or 

22 stolen property). 

23 ‘‘(F) A conspiracy to commit an offense 

24 described in subparagraphs (A) through (E).’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. GROUNDS OF INADMISSIBILITY AND DEPORT2 ABILITY FOR ALIEN GANG MEMBERS. 

3 (a) INADMISSIBILITY.—Section 212(a)(2) of the Im4 migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)) is 

5 amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(J) ALIENS ASSOCIATED WITH CRIMINAL

7 GANGS.—Any alien is inadmissible who a con8 sular officer, the Secretary of Homeland Secu9 rity, or the Attorney General knows or has rea10 son to believe— 

11 ‘‘(i) to be or to have been a member 

12 of a criminal gang (as defined in section 

13 101(a)(53)); or 

14 ‘‘(ii) to have participated in the activi15 ties of a criminal gang (as defined in sec16 tion 101(a)(53)), knowing or having reason 

17 to know that such activities will promote, 

18 further, aid, or support the illegal activity 

19 of the criminal gang.’’. 

20 (b) DEPORTABILITY.—Section 237(a)(2) of the Im21 migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)) is 

22 amended by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(G) ALIENS ASSOCIATED WITH CRIMINAL

24 GANGS.—Any alien is deportable who— 


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1 ‘‘(i) is or has been a member of a 

2 criminal gang (as defined in section 

3 101(a)(53)); or 

4 ‘‘(ii) has participated in the activities 

5 of a criminal gang (as so defined), knowing 

6 or having reason to know that such activi7 ties will promote, further, aid, or support 

8 the illegal activity of the criminal gang.’’. 

9 (c) DESIGNATION.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 2 of title II of the 

11 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182) is 

12 amended by inserting after section 219 the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘DESIGNATION OF CRIMINAL GANG

15 ‘‘SEC. 220. (a) DESIGNATION.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Se17 curity, in consultation with the Attorney General, may 

18 designate a group, club, organization, or association of 5 

19 or more persons as a criminal gang if the Secretary finds 

20 that their conduct is described in section 101(a)(53). 

21 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURE.— 

22 ‘‘(A) NOTIFICATION.—Seven days before mak23 ing a designation under this subsection, the Sec24 retary shall, by classified communication, notify the 

25 Speaker and minority leader of the House of Rep26 resentatives, the President pro tempore, majority 


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1 leader, and minority leader of the Senate, and the 

2 members of the relevant committees of the House of 

3 Representatives and the Senate, in writing, of the 

4 intent to designate a group, club, organization, or 

5 association of 5 or more persons under this sub6 section and the factual basis therefor. 

7 ‘‘(B) PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REG8 ISTER.—The Secretary shall publish the designation 

9 in the Federal Register seven days after providing 

10 the notification under subparagraph (A). 

11 ‘‘(3) RECORD.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In making a designation 

13 under this subsection, the Secretary shall create an 

14 administrative record. 

15 ‘‘(B) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—The Sec16 retary may consider classified information in making 

17 a designation under this subsection. Classified infor18 mation shall not be subject to disclosure for such 

19 time as it remains classified, except that such infor20 mation may be disclosed to a court ex parte and in 

21 camera for purposes of judicial review under sub22 section (c). 

23 ‘‘(4) PERIOD OF DESIGNATION.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A designation under this 

25 subsection shall be effective for all purposes until reVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:48 May 13, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1995.IH H1995

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1 voked under paragraph (5) or (6) or set aside pursu2 ant to subsection (c). 

3 ‘‘(B) REVIEW OF DESIGNATION UPON PETI4 TION.— 

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall re6 view the designation of a criminal gang under 

7 the procedures set forth in clauses (iii) and (iv) 

8 if the designated group, club, organization, or 

9 association of 5 or more persons files a petition 

10 for revocation within the petition period de11 scribed in clause (ii). 

12 ‘‘(ii) PETITION PERIOD.—For purposes of 

13 clause (i)— 

14 ‘‘(I) if the designated group, club, or15 ganization, or association of 5 or more per16 sons has not previously filed a petition for 

17 revocation under this subparagraph, the 

18 petition period begins 2 years after the 

19 date on which the designation was made; 

20 or 

21 ‘‘(II) if the designated group, club, or22 ganization, or association of 5 or more per23 sons has previously filed a petition for rev24 ocation under this subparagraph, the peti25 tion period begins 2 years after the date of 


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1 the determination made under clause (iv) 

2 on that petition. 

3 ‘‘(iii) PROCEDURES.—Any group, club, or4 ganization, or association of 5 or more persons 

5 that submits a petition for revocation under 

6 this subparagraph of its designation as a crimi7 nal gang must provide evidence in that petition 

8 that it is not described in section 101(a)(53). 

9 ‘‘(iv) DETERMINATION.— 

10 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 

11 180 days after receiving a petition for rev12 ocation submitted under this subpara13 graph, the Secretary shall make a deter14 mination as to such revocation. 

15 ‘‘(II) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.— 

16 The Secretary may consider classified in17 formation in making a determination in re18 sponse to a petition for revocation. Classi19 fied information shall not be subject to dis20 closure for such time as it remains classi21 fied, except that such information may be 

22 disclosed to a court ex parte and in camera 

23 for purposes of judicial review under sub24 section (c). 


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1 ‘‘(III) PUBLICATION OF DETERMINA2 TION.—A determination made by the Sec3 retary under this clause shall be published 

4 in the Federal Register. 

5 ‘‘(IV) PROCEDURES.—Any revocation 

6 by the Secretary shall be made in accord7 ance with paragraph (6). 

8 ‘‘(C) OTHER REVIEW OF DESIGNATION.— 

9 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If in a 5-year period no 

10 review has taken place under subparagraph (B), 

11 the Secretary shall review the designation of the 

12 criminal gang in order to determine whether 

13 such designation should be revoked pursuant to 

14 paragraph (6). 

15 ‘‘(ii) PROCEDURES.—If a review does not 

16 take place pursuant to subparagraph (B) in re17 sponse to a petition for revocation that is filed 

18 in accordance with that subparagraph, then the 

19 review shall be conducted pursuant to proce20 dures established by the Secretary. The results 

21 of such review and the applicable procedures 

22 shall not be reviewable in any court. 

23 ‘‘(iii) PUBLICATION OF RESULTS OF RE24 VIEW.—The Secretary shall publish any deterVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:48 May 13, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1995.IH H1995

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1 mination made pursuant to this subparagraph 

2 in the Federal Register. 

3 ‘‘(5) REVOCATION BY ACT OF CONGRESS.—The Con4 gress, by an Act of Congress, may block or revoke a des5 ignation made under paragraph (1). 

6 ‘‘(6) REVOCATION BASED ON CHANGE IN CIR7 CUMSTANCES.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may revoke 

9 a designation made under paragraph (1) at any 

10 time, and shall revoke a designation upon completion 

11 of a review conducted pursuant to subparagraphs 

12 (B) and (C) of paragraph (4) if the Secretary finds 

13 that— 

14 ‘‘(i) the group, club, organization, or asso15 ciation of 5 or more persons that has been des16 ignated as a criminal gang is no longer de17 scribed in section 101(a)(53); or 

18 ‘‘(ii) the national security or the law en19 forcement interests of the United States war20 rants a revocation. 

21 ‘‘(B) PROCEDURE.—The procedural require22 ments of paragraphs (2) and (3) shall apply to a 

23 revocation under this paragraph. Any revocation 

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1 tion or upon publication in the Federal Register if 

2 no effective date is specified. 

3 ‘‘(7) EFFECT OF REVOCATION.—The revocation of a 

4 designation under paragraph (5) or (6) shall not affect 

5 any action or proceeding based on conduct committed 

6 prior to the effective date of such revocation. 

7 ‘‘(8) USE OF DESIGNATION IN TRIAL OR HEAR8 ING.—If a designation under this subsection has become 

9 effective under paragraph (2) an alien in a removal pro10 ceeding shall not be permitted to raise any question con11 cerning the validity of the issuance of such designation 

12 as a defense or an objection. 

13 ‘‘(b) AMENDMENTS TO A DESIGNATION.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may amend 

15 a designation under this subsection if the Secretary 

16 finds that the group, club, organization, or associa17 tion of 5 or more persons has changed its name, 

18 adopted a new alias, dissolved and then reconsti19 tuted itself under a different name or names, or 

20 merged with another group, club, organization, or 

21 association of 5 or more persons. 

22 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURE.—Amendments made to a 

23 designation in accordance with paragraph (1) shall 

24 be effective upon publication in the Federal Register. 

25 Paragraphs (2), (4), (5), (6), (7), and (8) of subVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:48 May 13, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1995.IH H1995

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1 section (a) shall also apply to an amended designa2 tion. 

3 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD.—The adminis4 trative record shall be corrected to include the 

5 amendments as well as any additional relevant infor6 mation that supports those amendments. 

7 ‘‘(4) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—The Sec8 retary may consider classified information in amend9 ing a designation in accordance with this subsection. 

10 Classified information shall not be subject to disclo11 sure for such time as it remains classified, except 

12 that such information may be disclosed to a court ex 

13 parte and in camera for purposes of judicial review 

14 under subsection (c) of this section. 

15 ‘‘(c) JUDICIAL REVIEW OF DESIGNATION.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days 

17 after publication in the Federal Register of a des18 ignation, an amended designation, or a determina19 tion in response to a petition for revocation, the des20 ignated group, club, organization, or association of 5 

21 or more persons may seek judicial review in the 

22 United States Court of Appeals for the District of 

23 Columbia Circuit. 

24 ‘‘(2) BASIS OF REVIEW.—Review under this 

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1 tive record, except that the Government may submit, 

2 for ex parte and in camera review, classified infor3 mation used in making the designation, amended 

4 designation, or determination in response to a peti5 tion for revocation. 

6 ‘‘(3) SCOPE OF REVIEW.—The Court shall hold 

7 unlawful and set aside a designation, amended des8 ignation, or determination in response to a petition 

9 for revocation the court finds to be— 

10 ‘‘(A) arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of dis11 cretion, or otherwise not in accordance with 

12 law; 

13 ‘‘(B) contrary to constitutional right, 

14 power, privilege, or immunity; 

15 ‘‘(C) in excess of statutory jurisdiction, au16 thority, or limitation, or short of statutory 

17 right; 

18 ‘‘(D) lacking substantial support in the ad19 ministrative record taken as a whole or in clas20 sified information submitted to the court under 

21 paragraph (2); or 

22 ‘‘(E) not in accord with the procedures re23 quired by law. 

24 ‘‘(4) JUDICIAL REVIEW INVOKED.—The pend25 ency of an action for judicial review of a designation, 


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1 amended designation, or determination in response 

2 to a petition for revocation shall not affect the appli3 cation of this section, unless the court issues a final 

4 order setting aside the designation, amended des5 ignation, or determination in response to a petition 

6 for revocation. 

7 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section— 

8 ‘‘(1) the term ‘classified information’ has the 

9 meaning given that term in section 1(a) of the Clas10 sified Information Procedures Act (18 U.S.C. App.); 

11 ‘‘(2) the term ‘national security’ means the na12 tional defense, foreign relations, or economic inter13 ests of the United States; 

14 ‘‘(3) the term ‘relevant committees’ means the 

15 Committees on the Judiciary of the Senate and of 

16 the House of Representatives; and 

17 ‘‘(4) the term ‘Secretary’ means the Secretary 

18 of Homeland Security, in consultation with the At19 torney General.’’. 

20 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con21 tents for such Act is amended by inserting after the 

22 item relating to section 219 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 220. Designation.’’. 

23 (d) MANDATORY DETENTION OF CRIMINAL GANG

24 MEMBERS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 236(c)(1) of the Im2 migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1226(c)(1)) 

3 is amended— 

4 (A) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘or’’ 

5 at the end; 

6 (B) in subparagraph (D), by inserting 

7 ‘‘or’’ at the end; and 

8 (C) by inserting after subparagraph (D) 

9 the following: 

10 ‘‘(E) is inadmissible under section 

11 212(a)(2)(J) or deportable under section 

12 217(a)(2)(G),’’. 

13 (2) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than March 1 

14 of each year (beginning 1 year after the date of the 

15 enactment of this Act), the Secretary of Homeland 

16 Security, after consultation with the appropriate 

17 Federal agencies, shall submit a report to the Com18 mittees on the Judiciary of the House of Represent19 atives and of the Senate on the number of aliens de20 tained under the amendments made by paragraph 

21 (1). 

22 (e) ASYLUM CLAIMS BASED ON GANG AFFILI23 ATION.— 

24 (1) INAPPLICABILITY OF RESTRICTION ON RE25 MOVAL TO CERTAIN COUNTRIES.—Section 


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1 241(b)(3)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality 

2 Act (8 U.S.C. 1251(b)(3)(B)) is amended, in the 

3 matter preceding clause (i), by inserting ‘‘who is de4 scribed in section 212(a)(2)(J)(i) or section 

5 237(a)(2)(G)(i) or who is’’ after ‘‘to an alien’’. 

6 (2) INELIGIBILITY FOR ASYLUM.—Section 

7 208(b)(2)(A) of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1158(b)(2)(A)) 

8 (as amended by section 201 of this Act) is further 

9 amended— 

10 (A) in clause (v), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

11 end; 

12 (B) by redesignating clause (vi) as clause 

13 (vii); and 

14 (C) by inserting after clause (v) the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(vi) the alien is described in section 

17 212(a)(2)(J)(i) or section 237(a)(2)(G)(i); 

18 or’’. 

19 (f) TEMPORARY PROTECTED STATUS.—Section 244 

20 of such Act (8 U.S.C. 1254a) is amended— 

21 (1) by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ each place 

22 it appears and inserting ‘‘Secretary of Homeland Se23 curity’’; 

24 (2) in subparagraph (c)(2)(B)— 


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1 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

2 end; 

3 (B) in clause (ii), by striking the period 

4 and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(iii) the alien is, or at any time has 

7 been, described in section 212(a)(2)(J) or 

8 section 237(a)(2)(G).’’; and 

9 (3) in subsection (d)— 

10 (A) by striking paragraph (3); and 

11 (B) in paragraph (4), by adding at the end 

12 the following: ‘‘The Secretary of Homeland Se13 curity may detain an alien provided temporary 

14 protected status under this section whenever 

15 appropriate under any other provision of law.’’. 

16 (g) SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE VISAS.—Section 

17 101(a)(27)(J)(iii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

18 (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(27)(J)(iii)) is amended— 

19 (1) in subclause (I), by striking ‘‘and’’; 

20 (2) in subclause (II), by adding ‘‘and’’ at the 

21 end; and 

22 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(III) no alien who is, or at any 

24 time has been, described in section 

25 212(a)(2)(J) or section 237(a)(2)(G) 


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1 shall be eligible for any immigration 

2 benefit under this subparagraph;’’. 

3 (h) PAROLE.—An alien described in section 

4 212(a)(2)(J) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as 

5 added by subsection (b), shall not be eligible for parole 

6 under section 212(d)(5)(A) of such Act unless— 

7 (1) the alien is assisting or has assisted the 

8 United States Government in a law enforcement 

9 matter, including a criminal investigation; and 

10 (2) the alien’s presence in the United States is 

11 required by the Government with respect to such as12 sistance. 

13 SEC. 4. CRIMINAL GANG MEMBERS AND SUPPORTERS DIS14 QUALIFIED FROM GOOD MORAL CHARACTER 

15 PROVISION. 

16 Section 101(f) of the Immigration and Nationality 

17 Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(f)) is amended— 

18 (1) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

19 end; 

20 (2) in paragraph (9), by striking the period at 

21 the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 

22 (3) by inserting after paragraph (9), the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(10) one whom the Secretary of Homeland Se25 curity or the Attorney General determines, in the 


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1 unreviewable discretion of the Secretary of Home2 land Security or the Attorney General, to be an alien 

3 who— 

4 ‘‘(A) is or has ever been a member, asso5 ciate or affiliate of, or who has ever provided 

6 material support to, a criminal gang; 

7 ‘‘(B) is or has ever been a member, asso8 ciate or affiliate of, or who has ever provided 

9 material support to, a criminal street gang (as 

10 defined in section 520 of title 18, United States 

11 Code); or 

12 ‘‘(C) has been convicted of or has admitted 

13 committing the essential elements of the fol14 lowing offenses— 

15 ‘‘(i) a felony drug offense (as defined 

16 in section 102 of the Controlled Sub17 stances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)); or 

18 ‘‘(ii) has engaged in conduct punish19 able under section 274, 277, or 278; or 

20 ‘‘(iii) committed a crime of violence 

21 (as defined in section 16 of title 18, United 

22 States Code); or 

23 ‘‘(iv) committed a crime involving ob24 struction of justice, tampering with or reVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:48 May 13, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1995.IH H1995

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1 taliating against a witness, victim, or in2 formant, or burglary; or 

3 ‘‘(v) engaged in conduct punishable 

4 under section 1028 or 1029, and sections 

5 1541 through 1546 of title 18, United 

6 States Code; or 

7 ‘‘(vi) engaged in conduct punishable 

8 under sections 1581 through 1594 of title 

9 18, United States Code; or 

10 ‘‘(vii) engaged in conduct punishable 

11 under sections 1951, 1952, 1956, and 

12 1957 of title 18, United States Code; or 

13 ‘‘(viii) engaged in conduct punishable 

14 under sections 2312 through 2315 of title 

15 18, United States Code; or 

16 ‘‘(ix) attempted to engage in an of17 fense described in paragraphs (1) through 

18 (8) above, or engaged in conduct punish19 able under sections 2 through 4, and sec20 tions 371 through 373 of title 18, United 

21 States Code, in furtherance of such an of22 fense.’’; and 

23 (4) by adding at the end, at the end of the mat24 ter following paragraph (10) (as inserted in this sec25 tion), the following: ‘‘An alien shall be deemed to 


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1 have ‘admitted the essential elements of an offense’ 

2 upon an oral or written statement to such effect, or 

3 upon a conviction or formal finding by a competent 

4 Federal, State or local court, tribunal or military 

5 proceeding that said person has engaged in unlawful 

6 conduct whose essential elements include those that 

7 would be required for conviction of a disqualifying 

8 offense. A determination by the Secretary of Home9 land Security or Attorney General that an alien does 

10 not exhibit good moral character based on gang 

11 membership, association, affiliation, or provision of 

12 material support, may be based upon any relevant 

13 information or evidence, including classified, law en14 forcement sensitive, or national security information 

15 and shall be binding upon any court regardless of 

16 the applicable standard of review.’’. 

17 SEC. 5. PROHIBITION AGAINST FILING. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—No person who— 

19 (1) is or has ever been a member, associate or 

20 affiliate of, or who has ever provided material sup21 port to, a criminal gang (as defined in section 101 

22 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

23 1101)); 

24 (2) is or has ever been a member, associate or 

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1 port to, a criminal street gang (as defined in section 

2 520 of title 18, United States Code); or 

3 (3) has been convicted of or has admitted the 

4 essential elements of an offense as specified in sub5 section (b), 

6 shall be permitted to file an application or petition, or sub7 mit an affidavit of support, on behalf of an alien under 

8 any provision of the immigration laws, nor shall such per9 son be permitted to assume custodial care for an unaccom10 panied alien minor. 

11 (b) DISQUALIFYING OFFENSES.—Offenses which dis12 qualify a person under subsection (a) are— 

13 (1) a felony drug offense (as defined in section 

14 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 

15 802)); 

16 (2) conduct punishable under section 274, 277, 

17 or 278 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

18 U.S.C. 1324; 1327; 1328); 

19 (3) a crime of violence (as defined in section 16 

20 of title 18, United States Code); 

21 (4) a crime involving obstruction of justice, 

22 tampering with or retaliating against a witness, vic23 tim, or informant, or burglary; 


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1 (5) conduct punishable under section 1028 or 

2 1029, and sections 1541 through 1546 of title 18, 

3 United States Code; 

4 (6) conduct punishable under sections 1581 

5 through 1594 of title 18, United States Code; 

6 (7) sections 1951, 1952, 1956, and 1957 of 

7 title 18, United States Code; 

8 (8) sections 2312 through 2315 of title 18 of 

9 the United States Code; or 

10 (9) any attempt to engage in an offense de11 scribed in paragraphs (1) through (8) above, or con12 duct punishable under sections 2 through 4, and sec13 tions 371 through 373 of title 18, United States 

14 Code in furtherance of such an offense. 

15 (c) ADMISSION OF ESSENTIAL ELEMENTS OF AN OF16 FENSE.—A person shall be deemed to have admitted the 

17 essential elements of an offense within the meaning of sub18 section (a)(3) upon an oral or written statement to such 

19 effect, or upon a conviction or formal finding by a com20 petent Federal, State or local court, tribunal or military 

21 proceeding that said person has engaged in unlawful con22 duct whose essential elements include those that would be 

23 required for conviction of a disqualifying offense as de24 scribed in subsection (b). 


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1 SEC. 6. DENATURALIZATION OF CRIMINAL GANG MEMBERS 

2 AND SUPPORTERS. 

3 Section 340 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 

4 (8 U.S.C. 1451) is amended by striking subsection (c) and 

5 inserting the following language: 

6 ‘‘(c) MEMBERSHIP IN CERTAIN ORGANIZATIONS; 

7 PRIMA FACIE EVIDENCE.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If a person who shall have 

9 been naturalized after December 24, 1952, shall 

10 within 10 years following such naturalization become 

11 a member of or affiliated with any organization, 

12 membership in or affiliation with which at the time 

13 of naturalization would have precluded such person 

14 from naturalization under the provisions of section 

15 313, it shall be considered prima facie evidence that 

16 such person was not attached to the principles of the 

17 Constitution of the United States and was not well 

18 disposed to the good order and happiness of the 

19 United States at the time of naturalization, and, in 

20 the absence of countervailing evidence, it shall be 

21 sufficient in the proper proceeding to authorize the 

22 revocation and setting aside of the order admitting 

23 such person to citizenship and the cancellation of the 

24 certificate of naturalization as having been obtained 

25 by concealment of a material fact or by willful mis26 representation, and such revocation and setting 


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1 aside of the order admitting such person to citizen2 ship and such canceling of certificate of naturaliza3 tion shall be effective as of the original date of the 

4 order and certificate, respectively. 

5 ‘‘(2) ORGANIZATION, MEMBERSHIP IN OR AF6 FILIATION WITH WHICH AT THE TIME OF NATU7 RALIZATION WOULD HAVE PRECLUDED SUCH PER8 SON FROM NATURALIZATION.—The phrase ‘any or9 ganization, membership in or affiliation with which 

10 at the time of naturalization would have precluded 

11 such person from naturalization’ shall be deemed to 

12 include an alien who— 

13 ‘‘(A) is or has ever been a member, asso14 ciate or affiliate of, or who has ever provided 

15 material support to, a criminal gang; 

16 ‘‘(B) is or has ever been a member, asso17 ciate or affiliate of, or who has ever provided 

18 material support to, a criminal street gang as 

19 defined in section 520 of title 18 of the United 

20 States Code; or 

21 ‘‘(C) has been convicted of or has admitted 

22 committing the essential elements of the fol23 lowing offenses— 


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•HR 1995 IH

1 ‘‘(i) a felony drug offense (as defined 

2 in section 102 of the Controlled Sub3 stances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)); 

4 ‘‘(ii) has engaged in conduct punish5 able under section 274, 277, or 278; 

6 ‘‘(iii) committed a crime of violence 

7 (as defined in section 16 of title 18, United 

8 States Code); 

9 ‘‘(iv) committed a crime involving ob10 struction of justice, tampering with or re11 taliating against a witness, victim, or in12 formant, or burglary; 

13 ‘‘(v) engaged in conduct punishable 

14 under section 1028 or 1029, and sections 

15 1541 through 1546 of title 18, United 

16 States Code; 

17 ‘‘(vi) engaged in conduct punishable 

18 under sections 1581 through 1594 of title 

19 18, United States Code; or engaged in con20 duct punishable under sections 1951, 

21 1952, 1956, and 1957 of title 18, United 

22 States Code; 

23 ‘‘(vii) engaged in conduct punishable 

24 under sections 2312 through 2315 of title 

25 18, United States Code; or 


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1 ‘‘(viii) attempted to engage in an of2 fense described in clauses (i) through (viii) 

3 above, or engaged in conduct punishable 

4 under sections 2 through 4, and sections 

5 371 through 373 of title 18, United States 

6 Code in furtherance of such an offense. 

7 ‘‘(3) DEEMED TO HAVE ADMITTED.—An alien 

8 shall be deemed to have admitted the essential ele9 ments of an offense within the meaning of para10 graph (2)(C) upon an oral or written statement to 

11 such effect, or upon a conviction or formal finding 

12 by a competent Federal, State or local court, tri13 bunal or military proceeding that said person has 

14 engaged in unlawful conduct whose essential ele15 ments include those that would be required for con16 viction of a disqualifying offense.’’. 

17 SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE AND APPLICATION. 

18 The amendments made by this Act shall take effect 

19 on the date of the enactment of this Act, shall apply to 

20 any act that occurred before, on, or after such date, and 

21 shall apply to any application for naturalization or any 

22 other benefit or relief, or any other case or matter under 

23 the immigration laws, pending on, or filed after, such date. 

Æ 


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