Flores-Rodriguez v. Garland, No. 19-70177 (9th Cir. 2021)
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Flores-Rodriguez, a Mexican citizen, entered the U.S. without inspection in 1989 when he was two years old. Arrested by DHS in 2010, he stated that he was a citizen and had a U.S. birth certificate. He later sought adjustment of status based on his marriage to a U.S. citizen and claimed he never knowingly made a false claim, having been raised to believe he was a citizen. At a 2012 hearing, the IJ stated that, if DHS pursued a false claim of citizenship charge, and that charge was sustained, Flores-Rodriguez would not be eligible for adjustment. At a 2014 hearing, the IJ recommended that Flores-Rodriguez testify on that issue. Flores-Rodriguez did so; Flores-Rodriguez’s wife and brother also testified. The IJ and BIA concluded that Flores-Rodriguez was ineligible for adjustment.
The Ninth Circuit granted a petition for review. Flores-Rodriguez was not put on notice that his alleged false claim of citizenship would be at issue in his 2014 hearing. By then, his alleged false claim of citizenship had not been raised by the IJ for two years; the last time it had been discussed the IJ implied it would only be dispositive if DHS sustained a charge against him, but no charge was ever brought. Because Flores-Rodriguez was not given notice, his attorney was not prepared to discuss it; he was unable to submit testimony from his purported midwife, a copy of his U.S. birth certificate, or his parents’ testimony.
Court Description: Immigration. Granting Guadalupe Flores-Rodriguez’s petition for review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals, and remanding, the panel held that the immigration judge (“IJ”) failed to put Flores-Rodriguez on notice that his alleged false claim of United States citizenship would be at issue during his hearing, and that such failure violated due process by denying Flores-Rodriguez a full and fair hearing. Flores-Rodriguez, a Mexican citizen, entered the United States with his parents without inspection in 1989 when he was around two years old. When he was later arrested by the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) in 2010, he stated that he was a United States citizen and had a United States birth certificate. In immigration proceedings, he sought adjustment of status based on his marriage to a United States citizen, and claimed he never knowingly made a false claim to citizenship because he was raised to believe he was a citizen. At a 2012 hearing, the IJ stated that, if DHS pursued a false claim of citizenship charge, and that charge were sustained, Flores-Rodriguez would not be eligible for adjustment. At a 2014 hearing, the IJ recommended that Flores- Rodriguez testify on the false claim issue. Flores-Rodriguez did so, emphasizing that up until his immigration proceedings, he always believed that he was born in the FLORES-RODRIGUEZ V. GARLAND 3 United States. Flores-Rodriguez’s wife and brother also testified to that effect. However, the IJ and BIA concluded that Flores-Rodriguez was ineligible for adjustment on the ground that he was inadmissible for making a false claim to citizenship. The panel held that Flores-Rodriguez was not put on notice that his alleged false claim of citizenship would be at issue in his 2014 hearing. Rather, by that time, his alleged false claim of citizenship had not been raised by the IJ for two years, and the last time it had been discussed the IJ implied it would only be dispositive if DHS sustained a false claim of citizenship charge against him, but such a charge was never brought. Further, the panel explained that, because Flores-Rodriguez was not given notice, he did not brief the issue before the 2014 hearing, his attorney was not prepared to discuss it in detail, he was unable to provide witnesses or evidence on the matter, and the available witnesses were not prepared to discuss the issue. Specifically, he was unable to submit testimony from his purported midwife, a copy of his United States birth certificate, or his parents’ testimony. The panel further concluded that Flores-Rodriguez had suffered prejudice, explaining that the midwife’s testimony alone may have affected the outcome of the case. The panel observed that, if Flores-Rodriguez had been given the chance to present the midwife’s testimony, and the IJ found her credible regarding either the actual circumstances of Flores-Rodriguez’s birth or the consistency of the story he had been told, the IJ may have reconsidered his determination that Flores-Rodriguez could not and did not believe he was a United States citizen in 2010. 4 FLORES-RODRIGUEZ V. GARLAND The panel remanded to the BIA with instructions that it hold whatever future proceedings are necessary to ensure due process is given to Flores-Rodriguez before decision is made.
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