Source: http://openjurist.org/945/f2d/288
Timestamp: 2015-10-09 03:40:49
Document Index: 642701004

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 1105', '§ 1105', '§ 1101', '§ 1251', '§ 1182', '§ 1101']

945 F2d 288 Ayala-Chavez v. US Immigration and Naturalization Service | OpenJurist
945 F. 2d 288 - Ayala-Chavez v. US Immigration and Naturalization Service HomeFederal Reporter, Second Series 945 F.2d.
945 F2d 288 Ayala-Chavez v. US Immigration and Naturalization Service 945 F.2d 288
60 USLW 2210
Antonio Raul AYALA-CHAVEZ, Petitioner,v.U.S. IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE, Respondent.
No. 91-70262.
Submitted May 14, 1991.Decided Sept. 20, 1991.
Jay W. Stansell, Northwest Immigrant Legal Services, Seattle, Wash., for petitioner Antonio Raul Ayala-Chavez.
Norah Ascoli Schwarz, U.S. Dept. of Justice, Civil Div., Washington, D.C., for respondent I.N.S.
Motion for Stay of Deportation Pending Petition for Review from the Immigration and Naturalization Service.
Before TANG, REINHARDT and THOMPSON, Circuit Judges.
Petitioner seeks a stay of deportation pending disposition of his petition for review of the Bureau of Immigration Appeals' denial of relief. Prior to 1990, petitioners in his position were ordinarily entitled to an automatic stay of deportation pending such review. See 8 U.S.C. § 1105a(a)(3) (1988).1 That year, however, Congress amended § 1105a(a)(3) to eliminate the automatic stay for aliens who have been convicted of "aggravated felonies." Immigration Act of 1990 ("1990 Act"), Pub.L. No. 101-649, sec. 513(a) (Nov. 29, 1990).2 The term "aggravated felony" was first defined in the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 ("ADAA"), Pub.L. No. 100-690, sec. 7342 (Nov. 18, 1988) (codified as amended at 8 U.S.C.A. § 1101(a)(43) (Supp.1991)). Petitioner was convicted of drug-related crimes prior to the enactment of the 1988 statute. Accordingly, we must resolve an issue of first impression: whether the 1990 amendment denying an automatic stay to aliens convicted of an aggravated felony applies to persons convicted of felonious conduct prior to November 18, 1988. We hold that it does not, and that petitioner is entitled to an automatic stay.
Petitioner is a Mexican citizen who has resided in this country as a legal permanent resident since 1972. He has lived in Washington State with his parents, siblings, and other family members since he was eight years old, and has been married to a U.S. citizen for nine years. Several of his relatives are U.S. citizens. He has three children, all of whom are U.S. citizens because they were born in this country. He has a steady employment record and has received high praise from his current employer, who testified on his behalf in the immigration proceedings. He supports his parents as well as his wife and children.
In January of 1988, petitioner was arrested on two occasions for referring a police informant to a person who sold the informant cocaine with an aggregate value of $70. In May 1988, he was convicted on two counts of complicity in the sale of cocaine. He was sentenced to 27 months in prison, of which he served 18 before his early release based on good behavior. He received high praise from the warden for his conduct in prison, where he worked as a janitor, volunteered as a translator for inmates, and served as a volunteer fire fighter.
Upon the petitioner's release from prison, the Immigration and Naturalization Service ("Service") commenced deportation proceedings against him pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1251(a)(11), based on his convictions. Petitioner conceded deportability and sought discretionary relief from deportation under 8 U.S.C. § 1182(c).3 The Immigration Judge agreed that petitioner demonstrated statutory eligibility for such relief in that he had been lawfully admitted as a permanent resident alien and had resided in this country for more than seven years. She further found that petitioner had demonstrated good character in his history of steady employment and family loyalty, and that his family, many of whom are U.S. citizens, would suffer extreme hardship if he were deported.
The Immigration Judge declined to exercise her discretion to grant relief from deportation, however, based on her finding that petitioner had not demonstrated sufficient rehabilitation since his convictions. Petitioner appealed to the Bureau of Immigration Appeals ("BIA"), which dismissed his appeal and upheld the decision of the Immigration Judge. The petition for review in this court followed.
Petitioner filed an emergency motion for a stay of deportation, arguing that the recent elimination of the automatic stay is not applicable to him because his convictions occurred prior to the enactment of the ADAA, or, in the alternative, that we should grant a discretionary stay under the standards established in Lopez v. Heckler, 713 F.2d 1432 (9th Cir.), rev'd in part on other grounds, 463 U.S. 1328, 104 S.Ct. 10, 77 L.Ed.2d 1431, 464 U.S. 879, 104 S.Ct. 221, 78 L.Ed.2d 217 (1983).4 We granted a stay pending further order of this court. We now hold that petitioner is entitled to an automatic stay pending final disposition of his petition for review.
Petitioner was convicted of drug-related offenses six months prior to the enactment of the ADAA. That statute amended the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, as amended, 8 U.S.C. § 1101 et seq., by providing, in part, that an alien convicted of an aggravated felony would be subject to various immigration-related consequences. See ADAA, secs. 7343-7349. It defined the term "aggravated felony" in a manner that included the type of conduct for which petitioner had been convicted. See ADAA, sec. 7342. In the 1990 Act, Congress added further consequences that flow from a conviction of an aggravated felony. Among them is the provision we consider here: Persons convicted of aggravated felonies are deprived of the statutory right to obtain automatic stays of deportation pending determination of their petitions for review. See 1990 Act, sec. 513(a).