Fourth Circuit Rejects Decades-Old Framework on Vacated Convictions and Inadmissibility

The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit has made a landmark decision in Yanez Piedra v. Blanche, ruling that a vacated criminal conviction cannot render a noncitizen inadmissible under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). This decision marks a departure from decades of agency practice and positions the Fourth Circuit as the first federal appellate court to reject the Board of Immigration Appeals' long-standing framework in the post-Matter of Chevron era.

The case involves Lizbeyde Yanez Piedra, a native and citizen of Mexico who was convicted of possession of marijuana and two counts of common-law forgery in North Carolina. Her conviction was later vacated by a state court, but she was still found inadmissible as an 'alien convicted of' a controlled-substance offense and a crime involving moral turpitude.

The Fourth Circuit's analysis relied on the Supreme Court's decision in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo (2024), which overruled Chevron and held that courts must exercise their own independent judgment in interpreting statutes rather than deferring to agency interpretations. The court concluded that 'any alien convicted of' an offense is best read as a present-status inquiry, asking whether the person currently stands convicted, not a historical-fact inquiry into whether the person was ever convicted.

The decision has significant implications for noncitizens in the Fourth Circuit (Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina), who now have a strong incentive to pursue post-conviction relief in state court. A successful vacatur can eliminate the conviction that triggers inadmissibility or bars relief from removal.