Lopez

MEMORANDUM ***

Miguel Angel Lopez appeals his conviction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1326 . We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and we affirm.

It is well settled that an alien may not collaterally challenge the deportation that forms the basis of a § 1326 prosecution “if he validly waived the right to appeal that order during the underlying deportation proceedings.” United States v. Muro-Inclan, 249 F.3d 1180, 1182 (9th Cir.2001) (internal quotation marks omitted). A waiver of the right to appeal a deportation is not valid when “the record contains an inference that the petitioner is eligible for relief from deportation, but the Immigration Judge fails to advise the alien of this possibility and give him the opportunity to develop the issue.” Id. (internal quotation marks omitted).

Lopez’s waiver of the right to appeal his deportation was valid, as the record before the Immigration Judge (“IJ”) did not raise a reasonable possibility of relief from deportation. Lopez’s conviction for possession of cocaine rendered him ineligible for a § 212(h) waiver — regardless of whether that conviction was characterized as an aggravated felony, a felony or a misdemeanor — because…