Rosa Pena v. Sessions
Opinion
This petition for review presents the question of whether the Board of Immigration Appeals' ("BIA") decision is sustainable on the reasoning it used to conclude that a violation of
I.
Rosa, a native and citizen of the Dominican Republic, entered the United States in 1972 as a lawful permanent resident. His wife and four children, all U.S. citizens, reside in the United States. In 2001, Rosa was convicted of the crime of Massachusetts Arson
1
for burning down his grocery store. When Rosa returned from a trip abroad in September 2013 and sought admission to the United States, the Department of Homeland Security ("DHS") detained him
2
and initiated removal proceedings against him based on that conviction. DHS charged that Rosa was removable under
The Immigration Judge ("IJ") denied Rosa's motion on November 7, 2013. The IJ found the Massachusetts Arson statute divisible, in that it punishes not only "conduct that would fall within the generic definition of arson" but also "conduct that may not be deemed reprehensible ..., such as an owner setting fire to some of the contents in his building." Applying a modified categorical approach, the IJ reviewed Rosa's record of conviction and concluded that his actual crime, "willfully and maliciously setting fire to and burning a building," was categorically a CIMT. The IJ also found Rosa ineligible for relief from removal on the basis that he failed to prove that his conviction was not an aggravated felony.
The BIA dismissed Rosa's appeal in an opinion dated March 21, 2014, which replicated the IJ's reasoning. The BIA agreed with the IJ that the Massachusetts Arson statute was divisible "in that it also includes conduct that may not be deemed morally reprehensible, ... such as an owner setting fire to the contents in his buildings." The BIA also agreed that Rosa's actual crime qualified as a CIMT, rendering Rosa removable, and as an aggravated felony, rendering him ineligible for relief from removal.
Rosa petitioned this court for review; however, the respondent filed an unopposed motion to remand for the BIA to consider what effect (if any) its intervening decision in
Matter of Chairez-Castrejon
,
The BIA did not address the Massachusetts Arson statute's divisibility, but rather concluded, "the conviction is categorically a crime involving moral turpitude." The BIA listed the statute's elements-willfully and maliciously burning a building or structure or contents thereof-and noted that under Massachusetts law, "malice" means "willfully engag[ing] in an unlawful act," citing
Commonwealth
v.
McLaughlin
,
*287 II.
The government first argues that we lack jurisdiction over this petition because Rosa is removable as a result of his commission of a CIMT.
See
"Where, as here, 'the BIA has rendered a decision with its own analysis of the question at issue, our review focuses on the BIA's decision, not the IJ's.' "
Patel
v.
Holder
,
The INA does not define "moral turpitude." Absent guidance from Congress, we have adopted the BIA's definition:
"conduct that shocks the public conscience as being inherently base, vile, or depraved, and contrary to the accepted rules of morality and the duties owed between persons or to society in general," or, in other words, "an act which is per se morally reprehensible and intrinsically wrong" and is "accompanied by a vicious motive or a corrupt mind."
Da Silva Neto
,
Importantly, to ascertain whether a crime categorically involves moral turpitude, the focus must be on the " 'least of th[e] acts' criminalized" under the statute.
Coelho
,
In its post-remand opinion, the BIA concluded, relying on
Matter of S
, that Massachusetts Arson is categorically a CIMT. The BIA's opinion must be remanded because it provides inadequate reasoning on two points. First, both the IJ and the BIA in its pre-remand decision opined that the Massachusetts Arson statute reaches "conduct that may not be deemed morally reprehensible, ... such as an owner setting fire to the contents in his building." The BIA has not addressed the moral reprehensibility of the least culpable conduct criminalized under the statute, an
*288
issue which it had recognized in its first opinion. It does not articulate what it is about the least culpable conduct covered by the statute that is "per se morally reprehensible and intrinsically wrong," nor does it explicate why such behavior necessarily evinces a "vicious motive or a corrupt mind," as required for a finding of moral turpitude.
Da Silva Neto
,
Second, the BIA has not adequately discussed the specialized meaning of "malice" under the Massachusetts Arson statute, or why
Matter of S
is dispositive in light of that term's definition.
5
Matter of S
held that attempted arson under a Canadian statute is categorically a CIMT.
That the Massachusetts Arson statute requires neither "evil intent" nor a "corrupt" mindset
7
may be significant for the CIMT determination. In
Da Silva Neto
, this court upheld the BIA's conclusion that Massachusetts "malicious destruction of property" is a CIMT, emphasizing that the statute required "an act 'by design hostile to the owner ... of the property,' meaning ... motivated by 'cruelty, hostility, or revenge' toward an individual, not just an
*289
inanimate object."
III.
We grant the petition for review, vacate the BIA's February 27, 2017 opinion, and remand for further proceedings consistent with our opinion.
For ease of reference, we use the term "Massachusetts Arson" to refer specifically to
It appears that Rosa was initially detained at that time and was released from detention after this court granted him a stay of removal when we allowed the government's motion to remand to the BIA, in December 2014.
In his petition, Rosa does not challenge the BIA's finding that his crime qualifies as an aggravated felony. Nor has the government suggested in its responsive brief that the aggravated felony finding may render moot the CIMT determination. We do not address any such possible issues.
The government argues in its brief that deliberately burning property unlawfully is intrinsically reprehensible conduct because of its inherent dangerousness and unpredictable consequences: fire can spread to non-targeted property, and, in cases where a burning building is occupied, there is a risk of deadly harm to occupants as well as to firefighters. This argument may be potent, but the BIA did not make it. The BIA's CIMT determination must be upheld, if at all, on the basis articulated in the decision itself.
See
Mejia
,
The other case cited by the BIA,
Vuksanovic
, does not bind the BIA in this circuit. Moreover, we note that the Eleventh Circuit reached its conclusion-that arson "evinces a certain baseness,"
Vuksanovic
,
The Canadian arson statute also differs from its Massachusetts counterpart in that, rather than prohibit burning
any
property, it specifically targets setting fire to combustible substances that one would expect to cause widespread damage.
Matter of S
,
The government conceded at oral argument that the Massachusetts Arson statute, unlike its counterpart in Matter of S , does not require the perpetrator to act with a "corrupt mind."
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Domingo Antonio ROSA PENA, Petitioner, v. Jefferson B. SESSIONS, III, Attorney General, Respondent.
- Status
- Published