(A)  Immigration Effects.  A conviction for a crime involving moral turpitude will be eliminated for immigration purposes if the noncitizen has been granted “a full and unconditional pardon by the President of the United States or by the Governor of any of the several states.”[225]  The deportation statute expressly provides that a pardon protects a noncitizen convicted of one or more CMTs from deportation on account of those convictions.[226]  This protection has been extended to encompass, in addition, those noncitizens who would have been deportable, on account of having been inadmissible at entry, because of one or more convictions of crimes involving moral turpitude.[227]  A pardon also eliminates a conviction of a crime of moral turpitude for inadmissibility purposes.[228]

 

While the BIA has held that the new IIRAIRA definition of “conviction” eliminated relief under “state rehabilitative statutes,”[229] and there is some question whether the statutes allowing for state executive pardons would be considered “state rehabilitative statutes” under this authority, the effectiveness of pardons is grounded on specific federal legislation, so they remain effective to eliminate the adverse immigration consequences specified in the statute.[230]

[225] INA § 237(a)(2)(A)(vi), 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(vi), formerly INA § 241(a)(2)(A)(iv), 8 U.S.C. § 1231(a)(2)(A)(iv), created by Immigration Act of 1990, Pub. L. No. 101-649, § 602, 104 Stat. 4978, 5081.  The predecessor statute, prior to 1990, was INA § 241(b).  The current statute also provides a pardon eliminates deportability on account of two or more CMT convictions, or any aggravated felony convictions, or convictions of high speed border chase under 18 U.S.C. § 758.  Matter of H, 7 I. & N. Dec. 249 (BIA 1956) (pardon eliminates confinement for purposes of 180-day good-moral-character requirement).  See Annot., What Constitutes Full and Unconditional Pardon Under § 241(B) Of Immigration And Nationality Act of 1952 . . ., 101 A.L.R. Fed. 668 (1991); D. Kesselbrenner & L. Rosenberg, Immigration Law and Crimes § 4:23 (2007).  By analogy, the Ninth Circuit has held that an unqualified state court restoration of rights bars a federal felon-with-gun conviction.  United States v. Herron, 45 F.3d 340 (9th Cir. 1995).

[226] INA § 237(a)(2)(A)(vi), 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(vi).

[227] Matter of H, 6 I. & N. Dec. 90 (BIA 1954) (interpreting former statute).

[228] Rasmussen v. Robinson, 163 F.2d 732 (3d Cir. 1947); Matter of H, 6 I. & N. Dec. 90 (BIA 1954); Matter of EV, 5 I. & N. Dec. 194 (BIA 1953).

[229] Matter of Salazar-Regino, 23 I. & N. Dec. 223 (BIA 2002) (en banc).

[230] INA § 237(a)(2)(A)(vi), 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(vi).

CRIMINAL DEFENSE OF IMMIGRANTS - P. 668, AFTER END OF FIRST PARTIAL PARAGRAPH INSERT:
A pardon, however, will not nullify a deportation ground based on a controlled substances conviction, firearms conviction, domestic violence conviction or protective order violation, or any other conviction not listed in the statute. FN1: Matter of Suh, 23 I. & N. Dec. 626 (BIA 2003) (presidential or gubernatorial pardon waives only the grounds of removal specifically set forth in INA 237(a)(2)(A)(v), 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(A)(v) (2000); no implicit waivers may be read into statute; pardon of conviction of crime of domestic violence under INA 237(a)(2)(E)(i), ineffective, as not specifically included in INA 237(a)(2)(A)(v)). See N. Tooby, Criminal Defense of Immigrants, Appendix E (2003), for a complete list of conviction-based grounds of deportation.

Ninth Circuit

POST CON RELIEF - PARDON - INADMISSIBILITY - PARDON DOES NOT CURE INADMISSIBILITY
Aguilera-Montero v. Mukasey, 548 F.3d 1248, 1252 (9th Cir. Dec. 1, 2008) (denial of adjustment of status is affirmed where petitioner is inadmissible and no statutory basis exists to waive inadmissibility, since neither a state pardon nor an equal protection claim could overcome the fact that Congress has expressly declined to provide a waiver for an inadmissible alien convicted of a crime relating to a controlled substance: "We have not extensively addressed the dichotomy between inadmissible and deportable aliens in the context of a state pardon. However, the Eleventh Circuit explicitly explored this issue at length in Balogun v. United States Attorney General, 425 F.3d 1356, 1358 (11th Cir. 2005), where the petitioner asserted that his "full and unconditional" state pardon entitled him to waiver of inadmissibility pursuant to 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(A)(v). ... We agree with the Eleventh Circuit that the basic tenets of statutory construction preclude us from inferring a waiver under the provisions of 8 U.S.C. 1182(a).").

Eleventh Circuit

POST CON RELIEF " PARDON " FULL PARDON REQUIRED
Castillo v. U.S. Atty Gen., ___ F.3d ___, ___, 2014 WL 2915918 (11th Cir. Jun. 27, 2014) (aggravated felony conviction continues to trigger deportation, under INA 237(a)(2)(A)(iii), 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii), even though the Georgia State Board of Pardons and Paroles had earlier pardoned noncitizen for the conviction that rendered him removable: Under the plain meaning of 1227(a)(2)(A)(vi), a pardon is only full when it restores the totality of rights abrogated by the underlying conviction. Here, Castillo's pardon did not reinstate his Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, a privilege he lost under Georgia law as a result of his conviction. Thus, Castillo did not receive a full pardon, and 1227(a)(2)(A)(vi) does not apply.).

Other

CAL POST CON " GOVERNORS PARDON POST CON RELIEF " PARDON " CALIFORNIA
Governor Jerry Brown granted a full and unconditional governors pardon of 1984 convictions of crimes of moral turpitude in Apr., 2012. Thanks to Mathew Millen.

POST CON RELIEF - PARDON - NEW YORK
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 23, 2008 GOVERNOR PATERSON ANNOUNCES PARDON OF RICKY "SLICK RICK" WALTERS On May 23, 2008, Governor David A. Paterson granted Ricky Walters a full and unconditional pardon of his 1991 attempted murder and weapon convictions, in order to allow Walters to seek relief from deportation from the federal immigration courts. "Mr. Walters has fully served the sentence imposed upon him for his convictions, had an exemplary disciplinary record while in prison and on parole, and has been living without incident in the community for more than 10 years," said Governor Paterson. "In that time, he has volunteered at youth outreach programs to counsel youth against violence, and has become a symbol of rehabilitation for many young people. Given these demonstrated rehabilitative efforts, I urge federal immigration officials to once again grant Mr. Walters relief from deportation, so that he is not separated from his many family members who are United States citizens, including his two teenage children."

POST CON RELIEF - FEDERAL - PRESIDENTIAL PARDON
http://www.justice.gov/pardon/