Strange Appellate Opinion of the Day
November 30, 2005
Today a three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit addressed with this issue: "[W]hether it is possible to convict a previously deported alien for attempted illegal reentry into the United States under 8 U.S.C. § 1326 when he crosses the border with the intent only to be imprisoned." U.S. v. Lombera-Valdovino (here). A 2-1 panel said, No. "We conclude that it is not, because attempted illegal reentry is a specific intent crime that requires proof of intent to enter the country free from official restraint." So the person who illegally re-enters the country with the intent to go to prison will not be allowed to go to prison, because illegal re-entry for the purpose of going to prison is not a crime. How bizarre!