Immigration – Removal

Listen to this article

7^TH Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Julio Estrada-Hernandez v. Loretta E. Lynch

Case No.: 15-2336

Officials: WOOD, Chief Judge, and BAUER and KANNE, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Immigration – Removal

Appellant petition for review of removal denied

“The Board rejected all of Estrada-Hernandez’s arguments and upheld the removal order. It concluded that Estrada-Hernandez was afforded due process because the IJ fully complied with the statutory requirement to inform him of his right to obtain counsel, 8 U.S.C. § 1229a(b)(4), and offered repeatedly to continue the case to allow Estrada Hernandez to obtain representation. The Board dismissed any suggestion that the IJ shifted the burden of proof regarding the charges set forth in the Notice to Appear; the government properly supported its charges with evidence of each conviction. As for the question whether Estrada Hernandez’s firearms conviction was an aggravated felony for immigration purposes, the Board observed that this court already had resolved the question in the government’s favor. Negrete Rodriguez v. Mukasey, 518 F.3d 497 (7th Cir. 2008). The Board rejected Estrada-Hernandez’s contention that he was not removable under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(iii) because he was never “admitted” at a border; it held that Abdelqadar v. Gonzales, 413 F.3d 668 (7th Cir. 2005), establishes that adjustment of status qualifies as an admission for purposes of § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii).”

Petition for Review Denied

Full Text

Attorney Derek A. Hawkins is the managing partner at Hawkins Law Offices LLC, where he heads up the firm’s startup law practice. He specializes in business formation, corporate governance, intellectual property protection, private equity and venture capital funding and mergers & acquisitions. Check out the website at www.hawkins-lawoffices.com or contact them at 262-737-8825.