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Keywords

statutepleafelonymisdemeanornaturalization
statutepleafelonymisdemeanor

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Trung Thanh Hoang v. Holder

Facts

Trung Thanh Hoang, a native and citizen of Vietnam, was admitted to the U.S. as a refugee in 1994 and became a lawful permanent resident in 1997. In 2000, he pleaded guilty to rendering criminal assistance in the second degree, a misdemeanor under Washington law, for providing transportation to a person who had committed a felony. His application for naturalization was denied in 2006 due to this conviction, leading to the INS charging him with being removable as an aggravated felon.

Hoang is a native and citizen of Vietnam who was admitted to the United States as a refugee in 1994. He became a lawful permanent resident in 1997. In 2000, Hoang pleaded guilty to rendering criminal assistance in the second degree, a misdemeanor in violation of Washington Revised Code 9A.76.080. Hoang's plea agreement admits that he '[d]id unlawfully render criminal assistance to a person who has committed a class B Felony (Drive by shooting) by providing such person transportation.'

Issue

Whether Hoang's state misdemeanor conviction for rendering criminal assistance is a crime related to obstruction of justice and thus constitutes an aggravated felony under the Immigration and Nationality Act 101(a)(43)(S).

Whether Hoang's state misdemeanor conviction for rendering criminal assistance is a crime related to obstruction of justice and thus constitutes an aggravated felony under the Immigration and Nationality Act 101(a)(43)(S).

Rule

The INA defines 'aggravated felony' to include offenses related to obstruction of justice, which require an affirmative and intentional attempt to interfere with the process of justice.

The INA defines the term 'aggravated felony' to include, as relevant here, 'an offense related to [**4] obstruction of justice' for which the term of imprisonment is at least one year.

Analysis

The court applied the categorical approach to compare the elements of Hoang's conviction with the federal definition of obstruction of justice. It found that Washington's statute did not require active interference with judicial proceedings or investigations, which is necessary to meet the federal definition. Therefore, Hoang's conviction did not qualify as an aggravated felony under the INA.

Under the categorical approach, we compare 'the elements of the statute of conviction with the federal definition of the crime to determine whether conduct proscribed [*1160] by the [state] statute is broader than the generic federal definition.' Fregozo v. Holder, 576 F.3d 1030, 1035 (9th Cir. 2009) (alteration and citation omitted).

Conclusion

The court granted Hoang's petition and remanded the case for further proceedings, concluding that his conviction did not meet the criteria for obstruction of justice as defined under federal law.

The petition was granted, and the case was remanded for further proceedings.

Who won?

Trung Thanh Hoang prevailed in the case because the court determined that his misdemeanor conviction did not constitute an aggravated felony under the Immigration and Nationality Act.

Trung Thanh Hoang prevailed in the case because the court determined that his misdemeanor conviction did not constitute an aggravated felony under the Immigration and Nationality Act.

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