Martinez-Pulido

MEMORANDUM **

Alejandro Martinez-Pulido appeals the denial of his habeas petition challenging a final order of deportation. After his habeas petition was denied, section 106 of the REAL ID Act of 2005 removed jurisdiction over habeas petitions of this sort, directed the transfer of any petition pending in the district court to the courts of appeal, and directed the courts of appeal to treat them as direct petitions for review from the agency. 1 Martinez-Pulido’s petition had already been decided by the district court but no notice of appeal had yet been filed, but we have elected to exercise jurisdiction in similar cases and treated the petitions as direct petitions for review. 2 We thus have jurisdiction to review Martinez-Pulido’s case and treat it as a petition for review from the BIA.

Martinez-Pulido relies on the unconscionability rule set forth in Singh v. INS, 3 *435 but the government argues that the relief was a certainty in Singh and the hearing was only a formality. 4 The government argues that Martinez-Pulido’s failure to appear at his hearing is thus fatal because he cannot show “exceptional circumstances.” 5

But this is not a failure to appear case.…