United States Court of Appeals For the Eighth Circuit ___________________________ No. 20-2422 ___________________________ J.M.O. lllllllllllllllllllllPlaintiff - Appellant v. United States of America; U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services; Michael Paul lllllllllllllllllllllDefendants - Appellees ____________ Appeal from United States District Court for the District of Minnesota ____________ Submitted: June 14, 2021 Filed: July 7, 2021 ____________ Before LOKEN, WOLLMAN, and ERICKSON, Circuit Judges. ____________ LOKEN, Circuit Judge. J.M.O., a citizen of Mexico, entered the United States unlawfully in the 1990's and re-entered unlawfully in 2003. In 2012, he submitted an application for “U” nonimmigrant status (I-918) and an application for waiver of inadmissibility (I-192) to the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”), which approved the applications in December 2015. In March 2019, he filed an I-485 application for adjustment of status to lawful permanent resident under 8 U.S.C. § 1255(m). After USCIS denied the § 1255(m) application in January 2020, J.M.O. brought this action in the District of Minnesota and filed a motion for a preliminary injunction setting aside the effective date of the denial. The district court1 denied the motion, concluding that 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i) deprived the court of subject matter jurisdiction to review the agency’s denial of discretionary adjustment of status relief. J.M.O. appeals. Reviewing the jurisdictional decision de novo, we affirm. U-visa is a nonimmigrant classification granted to victims of qualifying crimes who cooperate with law enforcement in the investigation or prosecution of those crimes. See 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(15)(U). Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regulations give USCIS sole jurisdiction over U-visa petitions. See 8 C.F.R. § 214.14(c)(1). If the petition is approved, a petitioner present in the United States receives lawful nonimmigrant status and employment authorization for up to four years. See 8 U.S.C. §§ 1184(p)(3)(B), (p)(6); 8 C.F.R. § 274a.12(a)(19). Additionally, 8 U.S.C. § 1255(m) gives the Secretary of DHS authority to grant a U- nonimmigrant’s I-485 application to adjust his status to lawful permanent resident. The Immigration and Nationality Act’s judicial review provisions are found in 8 U.S.C. § 1252. Subparagraph 1252(a)(2)(B) provides in relevant part: Notwithstanding any other provision of law . . . except as provided in subparagraph (D), and regardless of whether the judgment, decision, or action is made in removal proceedings, no court shall have jurisdiction to review -- (i) any judgment regarding the granting of relief under section[] . . . 1255 of this title. 1 The Honorable Nancy E. Brasel, United States District Judge for the District of Minnesota. -2- The U-nonimmigrant statute, 8 U.S.C. § 1255(m), provides in relevant part: (1) The Secretary of Homeland Security may adjust the status of an alien admitted into the United States (or otherwise provided nonimmigrant status) under section 1101(a)(15)(U) of this title to that of an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence if [he satisfies other criteria not here at issue and] * * * * * (B) in the opinion of the Secretary of Homeland Security, the alien’s continued presence in the United States is justified on humanitarian grounds, …
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