Next week, we expect to receive the Solicitor General’s response to our petition to the Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari in Esquivel-Quintana v. Lynch. And, we expect that in October, the Supreme Court will be considering whether or not to accept the case for review.
Meanwhile, David Feder has posted about the case in the Yale Journal on Regulation.
Mr. Feder was one of the attorneys representing the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in an amicus brief to the Supreme Court regarding our case.
In his post, Mr. Feder argues that if the Supreme Court decides to hear the case, the Court should take the approach that Chevron deference is not appropriate in this case because the statute at issue is a hybrid statute – a civil statute that has criminal law applications. If the Court takes this approach, then the Court could conclude that the rule of lenity applies, which would mean that if the statute at issue is ambiguous, then my client’s conviction should not be considered to be an “aggravated felony” for purposes of immigration law.
We will continue to provide updates regarding this case.