Lopez v. Gonzales & Toledo-Flores v. United States: State Felony Drug Convictions Not Necessarily Aggravated Felonies Requiring Deportation

Authors

Ryan Wagner

Document Type

Supreme Court Commentaries

Publication Date

1-25-2007

Keywords

General

Subject Category

Constitutional Law | Law

Abstract

The United States Courts of Appeals split over whether state felony drug convictions, which were punishable only as misdemeanors under federal law, constituted aggravated felonies under immigration law. The controversy was based upon the interpretation of the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”). Under the Act, an alien who is convicted of an “aggravated felony” is automatically deported from the United States. According to the INA, an aggravated felony includes “illicit trafficking in a controlled substance . . . including a drug trafficking crime (as defined in section 924(c) of Title 18).” Although the INA does not define “illicit trafficking,” Title 18 of the U.S. Code defines “the term ‘drug trafficking crime’ [as] any felony punishable under the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. [§] 801 et seq.).” While the Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”) is a federal statute, the INA’s definition of aggravated felonies expressly includes crimes “whether in violation of state and federal law.” Since the INA was intended to include state convictions, the Court needed to clarify whether an “aggravated felony” under the INA included a felony conviction by state court that under federal law would be classified only as a misdemeanor.

Recommended Citation

Ryan Wagner, Lopez v. Gonzales & Toledo-Flores v. United States: State Felony Drug Convictions Not Necessarily Aggravated Felonies Requiring Deportation, 2 Duke Journal of Constitutional Law & Public Policy Sidebar 1-9 (2007)