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Keywords

appealcitizenshipnaturalization

jurisdictionappealcitizenshipnaturalization

Related Cases

Romero-Mendoza v. Holder

Facts

Romero entered the United States in 1993 and was born in El Salvador in 1979 out of wedlock. His birth certificate lists both parents, and his mother was naturalized in 1997 when Romero was 17. Romero was served with a notice of removability in 2008 due to convictions for a drug offense and a crime of violence. He argued that he obtained derivative citizenship through his mother's naturalization, but the Immigration Judge found that his paternity was legitimated under Salvadoran law, leading to his removability.

Romero entered the United States through Houston, Texas in October, 1993, and was subsequently admitted as a lawful permanent resident (LPR). He was born in El Salvador, out of wedlock, in August, 1979. His birth certificate lists the names of both parents: Oscar Armando Romero-Rivera (Romero-Rivera), father, and Nora Julia Mendoza-Galdamez (Mendoza), mother. Romero's mother was naturalized in Los Angeles on February 14, 1997, when Romero was seventeen.

Issue

Whether Romero's paternity was legitimated under Salvadoran law, which would defeat his claim of derivative citizenship.

The sole issue on appeal is whether Romero's paternity was legitimated under Salvadoran law, which would defeat his claim of derivative citizenship.

Rule

Derivative citizenship is determined under the law in effect at the time the critical events giving rise to the eligibility occurred, specifically under 8 U.S.C. 1432.

Derivative citizenship is determined under the law in effect at time the critical events giving rise to the eligibility occurred.

Analysis

The court applied the rule by examining the legitimacy of Romero's paternity under Salvadoran law, noting that his parents' subsequent marriage prior to his mother's naturalization established his paternity by legitimation. The court referenced the Ayala-Villanueva decision, which indicated that the marriage of parents legitimated a child born out of wedlock, thus precluding a claim of derivative citizenship. The court found that Romero's arguments regarding the change in Salvadoran law did not negate his legitimation.

Although Romero was born out of wedlock, his parents' subsequent marriage prior to his mother's naturalization established Romero's paternity by legitimation. In Ayala-Villanueva v. Holder, 572 F.3d 736 (9th Cir. 2009), we considered a Salvadoran petitioner's claim of derivative citizenship. The petitioner was born out of wedlock, but his mother married his putative father prior to the mother's naturalization.

Conclusion

The court affirmed the BIA's decision, concluding that Romero was removable under 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii) due to his crime of violence and failure to establish entitlement to relief from removability.

We have jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. 1252, and we affirm the BIA's decision.

Who won?

The Board of Immigration Appeals prevailed because Romero failed to demonstrate that he was entitled to derivative citizenship, as his paternity was legitimated under Salvadoran law.

The BIA affirmed the IJ's decision, holding that because Romero failed to adequately refute his legitimation by operation of Salvadoran law, he had failed to 'rebut the presumption of alienage that arises by virtue of his foreign birth.'

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