Morales-Buelvas v. Warden, Richwood Correctional Center, et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana denied Otella Morales-Buelvas’s emergency motion for immediate relief after she was removed to Colombia pursuant to an immigration judge’s voluntary-departure order. The court found that the hearing transcript raised questions about whether she knowingly and voluntarily waived her right to appeal, but concluded that she could present that issue to the Board of Immigration Appeals and potentially seek further review. The court also denied her request to be returned to the United States.

Holdings

1. Emergency interim relief was denied because Petitioner had a pending appeal before the BIA, was represented by counsel in the United States, and had not shown that she was precluded from presenting her appeal-waiver argument to the BIA or that immediate judicial relief was necessary.
2. The court did not finally resolve the validity of the waiver, but held that the transcript raised a substantial question because the Immigration Judge's statements were contradictory and Petitioner affirmatively stated that she wished to reserve her right to appeal.
3. Petitioner was not entitled at that stage to an order requiring her return to the United States.

Questions Presented

1. Whether Petitioner knowingly and voluntarily waived her right to appeal the Immigration Judge's voluntary-departure order.
2. Whether the district court should grant emergency interim relief based on an alleged automatic stay of removal and due-process violation.
3. Whether Petitioner was entitled to an order requiring her return to the United States while her BIA appeal was pending.

Disposition

other