Flores-Torres

I. FACTUAL & PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

Torres was born out of wedlock in El Salvador in 1978. In 1986, he came to the United States to join his mother, who had already moved here. He obtained lawful permanent resi- dent status in 1993, and his mother became a naturalized United States citizen in 1995 when he was seventeen years old.

In 2005, Torres was convicted of possession of a firearm by a felon with two priors, in violation of California Penal Code § 12021(a)(1).1 The government then charged Torres with 1 Torres was convicted of two prior felonies in 2002 and placed in removal proceedings, but was granted cancellation of removal. FLORES-TORRES v. MUKASEY 15499 being removable as an alien with a conviction for an aggra- vated felony under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii), and placed him in immigration custody under the mandatory detention statute, 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c). Section 1226(c) requires the Attorney General to detain “any alien” who is inadmissible or deportable for having committed certain offenses.

Torres filed a motion to terminate proceedings, arguing that under the former 8 U.S.C. § 1432, he automatically derived citizenship from his mother…