Golicov v. Lynch

837 F.3d 1065, 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 17121, 2016 WL 4988012
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
DecidedSeptember 19, 2016
Docket16-9530
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 837 F.3d 1065 (Golicov v. Lynch) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Golicov v. Lynch, 837 F.3d 1065, 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 17121, 2016 WL 4988012 (10th Cir. 2016).

Opinion

BRISCOE, Circuit Judge.

Petitioner Constantine Fedor Golicov, a lawful permanent resident of the United States, seeks review of an order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) concluding that his Utah state conviction for failing to stop at a police officer’s command renders him removable under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii). That provision of the INA requires the removal of “[a]ny alien who is convicted of an aggravated felony at any time after admission.” 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii). The INA de *1067 fines the term “aggravated felony” to include “a crime of violence (as defined in section 16 of Title 18, but not including a purely political offense) for which the term of imprisonment [is] at least one year.” 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(43)(F).

Golicov argues, as he did before the BIA, that the INA’s definition of “crime of violence,” which expressly incorporates 18 U.S.C. § 16(b)’s definition of “crime of violence,” is unconstitutionally vague. In support, he points to the Supreme Court’s decision in Johnson v. United States, — U.S. —, 135 S.Ct. 2551, 192 L.Ed.2d 569 (2015). In Johnson, the Court held that the Armed Career Criminal Act’s residual definition of the term “violent felony,” 18 U.S.C. § 924(e)(2)(B), was void for vagueness.

Exercising jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1252, we agree with Golicov, grant his petition for review, vacate the order of removal, and remand the case to the BIA for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

I.

Golicov was born on March 12, 1986, in the Eastern European country of Moldova. On August 15, 2001, he became a lawful permanent resident of the United States.

On November 9, 2010, Golicov was convicted in Utah state court of the third-degree felony of failing to stop at a police officer’s command, in violation of Utah Code Ann. § 41-6a-210(l)(a)(I), and sentenced to five years’ imprisonment. The statute of conviction reads as follows:

An operator who receives a visual or audible signal from a peace officer to bring the vehicle to a stop may not:
(i) operate the vehicle in willful or wanton disregard of the signal so as to interfere with or endanger the operation of any vehicle or person....

Utah Code Ann. § 41-6a-210(l)(a)(I).

On December 4, 2012, while Golicov was still serving his prison sentence, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) served Golicov with a Notice to Appear (NTA), charging that he was removable under § 227(a)(2)(A)(iii) of the INA, 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii), because his Utah conviction constituted an aggravated felony under the INA.

The INA outlines several “classes of de-portable aliens,” all of which “shall, upon the order of the Attorney General, be removed.” 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a). Of relevance here, one such class includes “[a]ny alien who is convicted of an aggravated felony at any time after admission.” 8 U.S.C. §' 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii).

The term. “aggravated felony” is expressly defined in the INA and includes, among other things, “a crime of violence (as defined in section 16 of Title 18, but not including a purely political offense) for which the term of imprisonment [is] at least one year.” 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(43)(F). In turn, a “crime of violence” is defined in 18 U.S.C. § 16 to include:

(b) any other offense that is a felony and that, by its nature, involves a substantial risk that physical force against the person or property of another may be used in the course of committing the offense.

18 U.S.C. § 16(b).

Golicov denied the DHS’s charge and moved to terminate the removal proceedings. On February 8, 2013, the immigration judge (IJ) issued a decision dismissing the sole charge of removability and terminating the proceedings against Golicov. DHS appealed from that decision.

On July 27, 2015, the BIA sustained DHS’s appeal and reversed the IJ’s deci *1068 sion. The BIA concluded that Golicov’s Utah state conviction was “a categorical crime of violence under 18 U.S.C. § 16(b) and an aggravated felony as defined by section 101(a)(43)(F) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(43)(F).” ROA at 3. The BIA remanded the record to the IJ, pursuant to the DHS’s request, “to explore [Golicov’s] potential eligibility for relief.” Id. at 3.

On remand to the IJ, Golicov moved to terminate the proceedings on the grounds that the Supreme Court’s decision in Johnson effectively rendered unconstitutional and improper for use in immigration proceedings the definition of “crime of violence” contained in 18 U.S.C. § 16(b). On January 11, 2016, the IJ issued a decision and order rejecting Golicov’s argument and denying his motion to terminate. Goli-cov appealed to the BIA. On May 5, 2016, the BIA issued a written decision agreeing with the IJ’s legal conclusions and dismissing Golicov’s appeal.

Golicov subsequently filed a petition for review with this court.

II.

The central question posed by Goli-cov in this appeal is whether the INA’s definition of “crime of violence,” 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(43)(F), which expressly incorporates 18 U.S.C. § 16(b)’s definition of that same term, is unconstitutionally vague in light of the Supreme Court’s decision in Johnson. The BIA answered this question in the negative. We review the BIA’s decision de novo. Mena-Flores v.

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Bluebook (online)
837 F.3d 1065, 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 17121, 2016 WL 4988012, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/golicov-v-lynch-ca10-2016.