Sanchez-Rivera v. Matuszewski

CourtDistrict Court, S.D. California
DecidedJanuary 9, 2023
Docket3:22-cv-01357
StatusUnknown

This text of Sanchez-Rivera v. Matuszewski (Sanchez-Rivera v. Matuszewski) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. California primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sanchez-Rivera v. Matuszewski, (S.D. Cal. 2023).

Opinion

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 9 SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 10 11 JUAN SANCHEZ-RIVERA, Case No.: 22-cv-1357-MMA (JLB) A# 073-830-803, 12 ORDER GRANTING IN PART AND Petitioner, 13 DENYING IN PART PETITION FOR v. WRIT OF HABEAS CORPUS 14

JAMISON MATUSZEWSKI, et al., 15 [Doc. No. 1] Respondents. 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 On September 6, 2022, Petitioner Juan Sanchez-Rivera (“Petitioner”), a federal 23 immigration detainee in the custody of the Department of Homeland Security, Bureau of 24 Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) at the Imperial Regional Detention 25 Facility (“IRDF”), proceeding pro se, filed a Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus pursuant 26 to 28 U.S.C. § 2241. Doc. No. 1 (the “Petition”). On October 12, 2022, Respondents 27 Jamison Matuszewski, Joseph Suazo, William Derevere, Matthew Allen, and Alejandro 28 Mayorkas (“Respondents”) filed a return in opposition to the Petition (the “Return”). 1 Doc. No. 6. On November 14, 2022, Petitioner filed a reply. Doc. No. 10. Upon due 2 consideration and for the reasons set forth below, the Court GRANTS in part and 3 DENIES in part the Petition. 4 I. RELEVANT FACTUAL BACKGROUND 5 Petitioner is a native and citizen of Mexico. Doc. No. 6-1 at 20, 24. Petitioner 6 became a lawful permanent resident of the United States in 2000. Id. at 20, 24. On 7 December 7, 2017, Petitioner was convicted of assault upon a peace officer and 8 possession for sale of a controlled substance, specifically, methamphetamine. Id. at 24, 9 29. Petitioner was sentenced to a total imprisonment term of two years. Id. at 24. Upon 10 Petitioner’s release from prison, ICE detained Petitioner on December 12, 2019. Id. at 11 20–22. That same day, ICE filed a Notice to Appear (“NTA”) with the immigration court 12 and initiated removal proceedings, charging Petitioner with being removable from the 13 United States as an aggravated felon under 8 U.S.C. §§ 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii), 14 1101(a)(43)(F), and 1101(a)(43)(B). Id. at 18–24. Petitioner was also charged with 15 being removable under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(B)(i) in relation to his drug charge. Id. at 16 24. 17 On January 9, 2020, Petitioner first appeared before an immigration judge and 18 requested additional time to obtain counsel. Id. at 28–29. The immigration court 19 subsequently granted Petitioner twelve more continuances. Id. at 31. On December 29, 20 2020, Petitioner requested voluntary departure in lieu of removal at a hearing before an 21 immigration judge. Id. at 31. That same day, the immigration judge found Petitioner 22 ineligible for voluntary departure as a result of his criminal convictions, and ordered 23 Petitioner removed to Mexico. Id. at 32, 36–37. On January 6, 2021, ICE conducted a 24 25

26 1 Petitioner initially filed a timely reply on October 17, 2022. See Doc. No. 8. However, Petitioner 27 indicated that he had not received a copy of the Return, and therefore, did not address the substance Respondents’ arguments. Id. After the Court directed the Clerk of Court to send Petitioner an 28 1 custody determination and concluded that Petitioner should remain in custody because he 2 was a threat to public safety and a flight risk. Id. at 38–39. 3 Petitioner appealed the immigration judge’s December 29, 2020 decision, and on 4 April 9, 2021, retroactively changed his pleas in the underlying state criminal 5 convictions. Id. at 44. On July 8, 2021, the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) 6 remanded the matter to the immigration judge in light of Petitioner’s change of plea and 7 consequently amended conviction history. Id. at 44–45. On August 23, 2021, the 8 immigration judge held a master calendar hearing and continued the matter to October 7, 9 2021. Id. at 80. ICE filed updated conviction records and a brief. Id. at 46–79. On 10 October 7, 2021, December 1, 2021, January 3, 2022, and January 31, 2022, the 11 immigration judge granted Petitioner continuances for someone to file a Petition for 12 Alien Relative (“Form I-130”) with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on 13 Petitioner’s behalf. Id. at 84–87. 14 At the hearing on January 31, 2022, Petitioner had yet to file a Form I-130. Id. at 15 88, 93–97. The Court addressed ICE’s amended NTA and Petitioner admitted the first 16 seven allegations, but denied the drug charge (8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(B)(i)). Id. at 95. 17 The immigration judge sustained the aggravated felony charge (8 U.S.C. § 18 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii)) and did not address the drug charge at that time. Id. The immigration 19 judge gave Petitioner another chance to show that a Form I-130 had been filed on his 20 behalf, and continued the matter to February 28, 2022. Id. at 88–89. At the final hearing 21 on February 28, 2022, no Form I-130 had been filed. Id. at 90–99. The immigration 22 judge deemed all immigration applications abandoned and ordered Petitioner removed to 23 Mexico. Id. at 90, 99. 24 On or about March 1, 2022, Petitioner filed a Notice of Appeal with the BIA. Id. 25 at 100–04. The BIA dismissed Petitioner’s appeal on June 29, 2022. Id. at 100–07. On 26 July 6, 2022, Petitioner filed a petition for review with the Ninth Circuit, which has been 27 held in abeyance since September 20, 2022. Id. at 108–09; see also Doc. No. 8 at 4. 28 Petitioner commenced this case on September 6, 2022. See Doc. No. 1. 1 Based on the record, it appears that Petitioner has not received an initial bond 2 hearing or any individualized determination of whether his continued detention is 3 necessary to ensure the safety of the community or his availability for removal from the 4 United States. 5 II. RELEVANT LEGAL BACKGROUND 6 Federal law has long allowed immigration officials to detain non-citizens (which 7 the governing statutes refer to as “aliens”) in a variety of circumstances. See generally 8 Hillel R. Smith, Cong. Rsch. Serv., R45915, Immigration Detention: A Legal Overview 9 (Sept. 16, 2019). This case concerns one such circumstance: detention during the 10 pendency of an alien’s removal proceedings. In that context, one of two statutory 11 provisions applies. The first provision, which sets out the general rule, places the alien’s 12 detention within the Attorney General’s discretion. See 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). In other 13 words, the Attorney General “may” detain the alien for the duration of removal 14 proceedings, or he “may” release the alien on bond or conditional parole. Id. 15 § 1226(a)(1)–(2). Regulations allow an alien detained under § 1226(a) to seek a bond 16 hearing, first before an officer from the Department of Homeland Security and then 17 before an immigration judge. 8 C.F.R. §§ 236.1(c)(8) and (d)(1), 1003.19, 1236.1(c)(8) 18 and (d)(1); see Nielsen v. Preap, 139 S. Ct. 954, 959–60 (2019). The alien can request a 19 bond hearing “at any time before” receiving a final order of removal. 8 C.F.R. 20 § 1003.19(a), 1236.1(d)(1). 21 The second provision, which is an exception to the general rule, makes detention 22 during removal proceedings mandatory when the alien is “inadmissible” or “deportable” 23 for specified reasons—usually because the alien has been convicted of a qualifying 24 criminal offense. 8 U.S.C.

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Bluebook (online)
Sanchez-Rivera v. Matuszewski, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sanchez-rivera-v-matuszewski-casd-2023.