Adnan Shroff v. Jefferson Sessions, III
Opinion
Adnan Shroff petitions for review of an order of the Board of Immigration Appeals ("BIA") deciding that his conviction of online solicitation of a minor is an aggravated felony that subjects him to removal. Because
Esquivel-Quintana v. Sessions
, --- U.S. ----,
I.
Shroff was admitted to the United States as a lawful permanent resident in September 2009. In June 2016, he pleaded guilty of online solicitation of a minor in violation of Texas Penal Code § 33.021(c)
1
and was given deferred adjudication with ten years of community supervision. The Department of Homeland Security initiated removal proceedings in July 2016, stating that his offense rendered him removable under the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 ("INA"),
*544
Finding that Shroff's offense (1) involved a minor, (2) was sexual in nature, and (3) was abusive, the BIA determined that his conviction qualified as sexual abuse of a minor under
Contreras v. Holder
,
II.
We have no jurisdiction to review "any final order of removal against an alien who is removable by reason of having committed" an aggravated felony.
III.
To determine whether a conviction under Texas Penal Code § 33.021(c) qualifies as sexual abuse of a minor, we apply the categorical approach, looking to the statute of conviction and comparing the elements to those of the generic federal offense.
Moncrieffe v. Holder
,
Shroff contends that
Mathis v. United States
, --- U.S. ----,
IV.
When the BIA issued its decision, the Supreme Court had not yet decided *545 Esquivel-Quintana . Based on Esquivel-Quintana , Shroff contends that the generic definition in Zavala-Sustaita and Najera-Najera is abrogated because Esquivel-Quintana provided a generic definition of sexual abuse of a minor requiring actual sexual contact and that the minor be under sixteen.
Examining a California statutory-rape provision, the Court found overbroad the definition of a minor as anyone under the age of eighteen.
Esquivel-Quintana
,
The decision in
Esquivel-Quintana
does, however, establish an age requirement that renders Shroff's statute of conviction overbroad. An unpublished decision has already recognized that
Esquivel-Quintana
abrogated
Rodriguez
's holding that for purposes of statutory rape, a minor is anyone under eighteen.
5
The government proffers that
Esquivel-Quintana
has no impact on this case, however, because it is limited to "statutory rape offenses that criminalize sexual intercourse based solely on the age of the participants."
Esquivel-Quintana
,
That distinction, though colorable, is ultimately untenable. The government is correct that Esquivel-Quintana did not rule broadly on the generic definition of sexual abuse of a minor, but the opinion demonstrates that its holding applies to online solicitation of a minor.
First, the Court found that the statute of conviction must "prohibit certain sexual acts based at least in part on the age of the victim" and that "[s]tatutory rape laws are one example of this category of crimes."
Second,
Esquivel-Quintana
looked to the INA. Sexual abuse of a minor is categorized as an " 'aggravated' offense" listed alongside murder and rape,
The Court drew a distinction for statutes criminalizing sexual intercourse with a minor by someone who occupies a special relationship of trust. For those offenses, the age of consent can be higher than sixteen.
The petition for review is GRANTED. The decision of the BIA is REVERSED. This matter is REMANDED to the BIA for proceedings as needed.
The statute defines online solicitation of a minor as follows:
A person commits an offense if the person, over the Internet, by electronic mail or text message or other electronic message service or system, or through a commercial online service, knowingly solicits a minor to meet another person, including the actor, with the intent that the minor will engage in sexual contact, sexual intercourse, or deviate sexual intercourse with the actor or another person.
Tex. Penal Code § 33.021(c).
United States v. Najera-Najera
,
See, e.g.
,
Contreras
,
A conviction under prong two of § 33.021(a)(1)(B) -when a defendant
believes
the victim is younger than seventeen-amounts to an attempt to commit sexual abuse of a minor for purposes of the INA.
Cf.
United States v. Rivas
,
See
United States v. Galvan
,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Adnan Asgar SHROFF, Petitioner, v. Jefferson B. SESSIONS, III, U.S. Attorney General, Respondent.
- Cited By
- 17 cases
- Status
- Published