Immigration and Nationality Act-Governor Pardon

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Eugeniusz Wojciechowicz v. Merrick B. Garland

Case No.: 22-2280

Officials: Ripple, Scudder, and Lee, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Immigration and Nationality Act-Governor Pardon

Wojciechowicz arrived in the United States during the 1980s. In 1999, he entered into matrimony with a U.S. citizen, with whom he shares two children. Subsequently, he attained lawful permanent resident status in 2004. In connection with window installation jobs, Wojciechowicz engaged in the embezzlement of funds exceeding $100,000. In 2011, he pled guilty to state charges related to his actions, leading to a sentence of two years probation and a requirement for restitution. In 2019, while in Poland for his sister’s funeral, Customs officials ascertained that his convictions constituted crimes involving moral turpitude, rendering him inadmissible upon his attempt to reenter the U.S., as stipulated in 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)(A)(i)(I). Throughout removal proceedings, Wojciechowicz pursued an unsuccessful waiver of inadmissibility. An Immigration Judge (IJ) concluded that he had not demonstrated extreme hardship and that the gravity of his previous offenses weighed against granting a discretionary waiver. The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) affirmed this decision, and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed a petition for review due to a lack of jurisdiction.

Just before his scheduled removal date, Wojciechowicz received a pardon from Governor Pritzker for his convictions. Despite the pardon leading to a stay in his removal, the BIA chose not to reopen the removal proceedings. In defiance of this stay and with no explanation provided, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) proceeded to deport Wojciechowicz to Poland. The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals rejects a second petition for review. As per the Immigration and Nationality Act, a pardon does not transform an otherwise inadmissible noncitizen into an admissible one, although it can potentially prevent a resident noncitizen from being subjected to removal.

Petition denied

Decided 08/08/23

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