Summary
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reviews a Board of Immigration Appeals decision ordering the petitioner's removal based on a Virginia arson conviction qualifying as an aggravated felony under the Immigration and Nationality Act. Applying the categorical approach, the court compares the elements of the Virginia arson statute with the federal arson statute to determine if they categorically align. The court concludes that differences in aiding-and-abetting language are merely technical and do not make the state statute broader than the federal definition. Consequently, the court denies the petition for review.
Topics
Practice areas
Questions Presented
- Whether Mohammed’s Virginia arson conviction qualifies as an “aggravated felony” under 8 U.S.C. §1227(a)(2)(A)(iii)
Holdings
- The Virginia arson conviction categorically fits within the federal arson statute and therefore is an aggravated felony.
Key quotations
“Because the INA specifies a “conviction, not conduct, as the trigger for immigration consequences,” we employ the categorical approach.”
“The federal arson statute’s silence about accomplice liability and the INA’s failure to expressly reference § 2 represents nothing more than a technical consideration that has no place in our application of the categorical approach.”
Factual background
Shenisa Mohammed, a citizen of Trinidad and Tobago, became a lawful permanent resident in 2010. Ten years later she pleaded guilty to arson under Virginia Code §18.2-77. The conviction was used to order her removal as an aggravated felony under the INA.
Procedural history
Mohammed, a lawful permanent resident, pleaded guilty to a Virginia arson conviction. The immigration judge held the conviction was an aggravated felony and ordered removal. The BIA affirmed. Mohammed filed a petition for review with the Sixth Circuit.