Matter of Gabriel Almanza-Arenas, 24 I. & N. Dec. 771 (BIA. Apr. 13, 2009) (noncitizen who has been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude has been "convicted of an offense under" INA 237(a)(2), 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(2006), and is therefore ineligible for cancellation of removal under INA 240A(b)(1)(C), regardless of his status as an arriving alien or his eligibility for a petty offense exception under INA 212(a)(2)(A)(ii)(II), 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)(A)(ii)(II)).



NOTE: This is a bad decision, contrary to earlier BIA precedent. Counsel should argue that this case applies only within the Ninth Circuit, as it relies upon a Ninth Circuit decision from 2004. Gonzalez-Gonzalez v. Ashcroft, 390 F.3d 649 (9th Cir. 2004) found that the plain language of 240A(b)(1)(C) required a noncitizen in inadmissibility proceedings be denied non-LPR cancellation because hed been convicted of a DV offense. This holding was based upon the "plain language" of the statute, thus no Chevron deference owed to the BIA cases to the contrary.



Under Matter of Garcia-Hernandez, such a person is not ineligible because the petty offense exception of 212(a) is incorporated into the moral character and specified offense bars of 240A(b)(1)(c) . This was recently reaffirmed in Matter of Gonzalez-Zoquiapan, 24 I&N Dec. 549, 554 (BIA 2008).



The BIA didnt address whether Almanza-Arenas had committed the CMT more than five years after his entry into the U.S. Arguably (see Moran v. Ashcroft, 395 F.3d 1089 (9th Cir. 2005)), a noncitizen with a CMT conviction is still ok if the offense falls within the petty offense exception AND was committed more than five years after entry to the U.S. INA 237(a)(2)(A)(i). Gonzalez v. Gonzalez didnt address the issue that a DV offense must be committed after admission to trigger removal. Counsel can argue that for purposes of 240A(b), the "admission" language is (somehow) deemed irrelevant in light of Gonzalez-Gonzalez, but the rest of the 237 language remains, including the five year requirement to trigger removal.