Jang v. Garland, No. 19-4289 (2d Cir. 2022)
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Petitioner a native and citizen of South Korea, sought review of a Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) decision affirming an Immigration Judge’s denial of Petitioner’s application for cancellation of removal. The BIA found Jang ineligible for cancellation because of her state conviction for attempted second-degree money laundering which it deemed a “crime involving moral turpitude” (“CIMT”) under the Immigration and Nationality Act.
The Second Circuit granted Petitioner’s petition for review and remanded the case to the agency for further consideration. The court held that Petitioner’s offense of conviction lacks the scienter required to qualify as a CIMT. The court explained that the BIA’s reliance on Section 470.10(1) to determine that Petitioner’s crime was a CIMT was indisputably misplaced, either as a reference to the Tejwani provision that had been superseded by Section 470.15(1)(b)(ii)(A) before Petitioner’s offense conduct or as a reference to the current Section 470.10(1), which defines money laundering in the third, not second, degree. Further, the knowledge required for conviction under Section 470.15(1)(b)(ii)(A) falls well short of the depravity described by the BIA as requisite for a CIMT. The BIA, therefore, erred in treating Petitioner’s conviction for attempted money laundering in the second degree as a CIMT and on that basis denying her application for cancellation of removal.
This opinion or order relates to an opinion or order originally issued on May 9, 2022.
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