United States v. Mauro Delmendo

Delmendo appeals from a judgment denaturalizing him pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1451 (d). The issue is whether the evidence supported the district court’s determination that Delmendo lacked intention to reside permanently in the United States when he filed his petition for naturalization. We conclude that the evidence was insufficient and that the district court’s contrary conclusion was based on a misapplication of 8 U.S.C. § 1451 (d).

Under section 1451(d), proof that a naturalized citizen established a permanent residence abroad within five years from his naturalization is “considered prima facie evidence of a lack of intention on the part of such person to reside permanently in the United States at the time of filing his petition for naturalization . . . . ” In absence of countervailing evidence, the prima facie evidence is “sufficient ... to authorize . . . the cancellation of the certificate of naturalization as having been obtained by concealment of a material fact or by willful misrepresentation ff

We are of the view that the evidence was inadequate to sustain a finding that Delmendo established a permanent residence abroad and that even if he did so, the…