Gibson Dunn Secures Ninth Circuit Victory for Pro Bono Client

On April 9, 2018, the Ninth Circuit granted pro bono client Jose Garcia-Martinez’s petition for review of an order from the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”). The BIA had found Mr. Garcia removable from the United States for his Oregon-state theft convictions, concluding that they were “crimes involving moral turpitude.” (“CIMT”)

Mr. Garcia argued that the convictions were not CIMTs because Oregon defines “theft” to include non-permanent takings, and the BIA had long held that theft convictions qualified as a CIMT only if the defendant intended a literally permanent deprivation. The government argued that the BIA had recently changed its CIMT definition to include theft convictions for less-than-permanent takings, and that the Ninth Circuit should apply this new rule to Mr. Garcia.

The Ninth Circuit rejected the government’s arguments, agreeing with Mr. Garcia that the BIA may not apply its new CIMT definition retroactively. Accordingly, the court granted Mr. Garcia’s petition, holding that “basic fairness” prevented applying the new rule to Mr. Garcia, and ordering Mr. Garcia’s removal order to be “set aside.”

The team consisted of Lochlan F. Shelfer and Jeremy C. Christiansen, and was supervised by Thomas H. Dupree, Jr.