Opinion ID: 2996500
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Circuit case law

Text: Soon after the passage of IIRIRA and AEDPA, this court recognized that § 1252(a)(2)(C) did not operate as a complete bar to judicial review of BIA decisions. In LaGuerre v. Reno, 164 F.3d 1035 (7th Cir. 1998), we noted that, despite this provision, courts of appeals maintained the power to consider constitutional issues and to correct “bizarre miscarriages of justice.” Id. at 1040. We further explained this power in Lara-Ruiz v. INS, 241 F.3d 934 (7th Cir. 2001). We stated: Section 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii) provides that “[a]ny alien who is convicted of an aggravated felony at any time after admission is deportable.” Therefore, § 1252(a)(2)(C) genNo. 02-2475 21 erally eliminates our jurisdiction to review any final order of deportation against an alien convicted of an aggravated felony. However, we retain jurisdiction to determine whether we have jurisdiction—that is, to determine whether an alien’s criminal conviction is indeed an “aggravated felony” under the INA, thereby triggering the jurisdictional bar of § 1252(a)(2)(C). See, e.g., Xiong v. INS, 173 F.3d 601, 604 (7th Cir. 1999); Yang v. INS, 109 F.3d 1185, 1192 (7th Cir. 1997). Moreover, in addressing a similar jurisdictional bar announced in an earlier enacted amendment to the INA, we have held that an alien may challenge his deportability on constitutional grounds directly in the courts of appeals, provided that he raises a substantial constitutional claim. See Morales-Ramirez v. Reno, 209 F.3d 977, 980 (7th Cir. 2000); Singh v. Reno, 182 F.3d 504, 509 (7th Cir. 1999); LaGuerre v. Reno, 164 F.3d 1035, 1040 (7th Cir. 1998). Thus, while we honor Congress’ intent to curtail judicial review of final deportation orders for certain disfavored criminals, we have retained jurisdiction over any substantial constitutional claims raised as a “safety valve” to prevent “bizarre miscarriages of justice.” See LaGuerre, 164 F.3d at 1040. Id. at 939. See also Flores-Leon v. INS, 272 F.3d 433, 437-38 (7th Cir. 2001). We then set out the path a court must follow to determine whether it could address a petitioner’s claims: [W]e must first determine whether the BIA correctly concluded that Lara-Ruiz was “an alien deportable by reason of having committed an aggravated felony.” If we answer this question in the affirmative, we must then consider whether Lara-Ruiz has nevertheless raised substantial constitutional claims, and we may assert jurisdiction over Lara-Ruiz’ claims only if we find that he has. 22 No. 02-2475 Lara-Ruiz, 241 F.3d at 939. After determining that the petitioner was, in fact, an aggravated felon, we went on to address and reject his claims that his due process and equal protection rights had been violated. It is true that this court’s recognition of “safety valve” review in the courts of appeals, in cases such as LaGuerre and Lara-Ruiz, coincided with our conclusion that IIRIRA and AEDPA had abolished habeas review for certain categories of aliens. See LaGuerre, 164 F.3d at 1038-40. However, the Supreme Court’s decision in St. Cyr, reaching the opposite conclusion with respect to IIRIRA’s and AEDPA’s effect on habeas review, has not altered our view that the courts of appeals still play a role in reviewing substantial constitutional questions arising in the immigration context. See, e.g., Gomez-Chavez v. Perryman, 308 F.3d 796, 800-01 (7th Cir. 2002), petition for cert. filed, 71 USLW 3680 (U.S. Mar. 10, 2003) (No. 02-1529); Sharif v. Ashcroft, 280 F.3d 786, 788 (7th Cir. 2002). Specifically in Gomez-Chavez, this court stated: Although § 1252(g) bars Gomez-Chavez from obtaining an order commanding the INS to adjust his status or precluding his removal, this does not mean that the courts have ceased to exist for cases in which a true miscarriage of justice may be occurring. LaGuerre v. Reno, 164 F.3d at 1040. For example, the Supreme Court held in INS v. St. Cyr, 533 U.S. 289 (2001), that the district courts continue to have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 to entertain habeas corpus petitions based on pure questions of law. Furthermore, the observation in this court’s decision in Yang v. INS, 109 F.3d 1185 (7th Cir. 1997), remains true: the review-preclusion provisions in the 1996 amendments to the immigration laws do not preclude the court of appeals from determining whether the alien is being removed for a permissible reason. Thus, the agency does not have the “final say on No. 02-2475 23 constitutional matters”; instead, that power rests with the courts. Singh [v. Reno, 182 F.3d 504, 510 (7th Cir. 1999)]. 308 F.3d at 800 (parallel citations omitted); see also Brooks v. Ashcroft, 283 F.3d 1268, 1273 (11th Cir. 2002) (stating that the court of appeals is not “foreclosed from consideration of Brooks’ Petition [for review] if he has raised substantial constitutional issues”). In sum, this court repeatedly has acknowledged its authority to review substantial constitutional questions presented through a petition for review of a final order of the BIA. Furthermore, this court has continued to assert its jurisdiction to review substantial constitutional questions even after the Supreme Court’s decision in St. Cyr. Finally, the Supreme Court has not held that the ability of the district courts to entertain an alien’s habeas action negates the authority of the courts of appeals to consider substantial constitutional questions when presented through a petition for review of a decision of the BIA. See Calcano-Martinez, 533 U.S. at 350 n.2. Consequently, because Mr. Robledo-Gonzales raises a constitutional challenge to the BIA’s application of its regulation in the denial of his motion to reopen, we believe that the district court properly determined that review of the equal protection issue should have been directed to 10 this court. 10 This court’s decision in Bosede v. Ashcroft, 309 F.3d 441 (7th Cir. 2002), does not alter the above analysis. In Bosede, the petitioner had applied for both asylum and withholding of deportation. Bosede initially had argued that he was eligible for asylum and that he was denied due process because his counsel had not challenged the convictions upon which the deportation proceedings were based and which rendered him ineligible for asylum. (continued...) 24 No. 02-2475 10 (...continued) The INS claimed that this court did not have jurisdiction to consider Bosede’s claims on appeal. This court stated: Bosede’s claim is governed by the rules of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA), Pub. L. No. 104-208, 110 Stat. 3009 (Sept. 30, 1996). Before proceeding to the merits we address the INS’s contention that we do not have jurisdiction to hear Bosede’s appeal because Bosede is removable as a criminal alien. 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(C) (“[N]o court shall have jurisdiction to review any final order of removal against an alien who is removable by reason of having committed a criminal offense. . . .”). Although the INS has accurately quoted the statute, matters are more complex than it is willing to admit. At a minimum, this court retains jurisdiction to determine its own jurisdiction. Flores-Leon v. INS, 272 F.3d 433, 437 (7th Cir. 2001). We have held before on a number of occasions that the review-preclusion provisions in the 1996 amendments to the immigration laws do not prevent us from determining whether the alien is being removed for a permissible reason. Sandoval v. INS, 240 F.3d 577, 580 (7th Cir. 2001); Yang v. INS, 109 F.3d 1185, 1192 (7th Cir. 1997). Under the Supreme Court’s decisions in Calcano-Martinez v. INS, 533 U.S. 348 (2001), and INS v. St. Cyr, 533 U.S. 289 (2001), it is also clear that Bosede may not raise other constitutional or statutory challenges in a direct review petition, but that habeas corpus under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 remains available for some such claims. See Calcano-Martinez, 533 U.S. at 351. We are therefore precluded from considering in the present appeal Bosede’s claim that his Fifth Amendment due process rights were violated in the proceedings before the IJ, and we express no opinion on that argument. Id. at 445-46 (parallel citations omitted). However, on appeal, Bosede conceded that he was ineligible for asylum. The court “therefore [was] concerned only with the BIA’s finding that he (continued...) No. 02-2475 25 Despite circuit case law establishing the right of aliens to present substantial constitutional questions to this court through a petition for review of a final order of the BIA, Mr. Robledo-Gonzales did not seek direct review of the BIA’s denial of the motion to reopen in this court. Consequently, Mr. Robledo-Gonzales’ constitutional challenges concerning the BIA’s failure to reopen are not properly before this court. 10 (...continued) was ineligible for withholding of removal and deferral under [the Convention Against Torture] because of the 1993 felony conviction.” Id. at 446. With respect to his appeal of this claim, Bosede had submitted evidence that the 1993 conviction was not a “particularly serious” crime that rendered him ineligible for withholding of removal. Id. at 447. The court concluded, however, that “[t]his is the kind of argument Bosede must submit first to the agency . . .”; “the law entitles the INS to an initial opportunity to consider the evidence and correct its error.” Id. Consequently, the court did not need to reach the question whether Bosede was entitled to statutory relief or whether he had suffered a constitutional deprivation. Therefore, the court’s earlier commentary on the availability of review for constitutional and statutory-interpretation questions was dicta. Finally, we note that the Bosede decision was not circulated pursuant to Circuit Rule 40(e) and, therefore, cannot overrule this court’s prior decisions concerning the availability or scope of appellate review of final orders of the BIA. See Brooks v. Walls, 279 F.3d 518, 522 (7th Cir. 2002) (“One panel of this court cannot overrule another implicitly. Overruling requires recognition of the decision to be undone and circulation to the full court under Circuit Rule 40(e).”), cert. denied, 123 S. Ct. 1899 (2003). 26 No. 02-2475