Opinion ID: 788149
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Review of the Decision To Affirm Without Opinion

Text: 63 Having concluded that the decision to streamline is judicially reviewable, the correct disposition of the merits of the petition to review is clear. The issue Smriko presents is not squarely controlled by existing Board or federal court precedent. Nor, we conclude, can that issue be disregarded as legally insubstantial. As the Government acknowledges, Smirko's [proposed statutory constructions], if accepted as a correct interpretation of the statutory scheme, could upset final removal orders that have been entered against thousands of criminal aliens ..., as well as affect the outcome of thousands of proceedings yet to come. Given this fact, together with the fact that Smriko's argument is both plausible and not directly contradicted by statutory text, regulations, or relevant precedent, we have no choice but to conclude that this decision to streamline was arbitrary and capricious.