NOT PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT ____________ No. 17-2287 ____________ SAMUEL DEEMI, Petitioner v. ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Respondent On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (Agency No. A078-495-330) Immigration Judge: Daniel A. Morris Argued on January 22, 2020 Before: AMBRO, MATEY and ROTH, Circuit Judges (Opinion filed: January 12, 2021) Stephen L. Wohlgemuth (ARGUED) Williams & Connolly 725 12th Street, N.W. Washington, DC 20005 Counsel for Petitioner Victoria M. Braga (ARGUED) Sunah Lee United States Department of Justice Office of Immigration Litigation P.O. Box 878 Ben Franklin Station Washington, DC 20044 Counsel for Respondent O P I N I O N* ROTH, Circuit Judge: Samuel Deemi was convicted of second-degree sexual assault under New Jersey law for having sex with a patient formerly under his care at a mental health facility. On his release from prison, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) sought to remove him to Liberia, his country of origin, on two grounds: under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(1)(D)(i) as an alien whose conditional permanent residence was terminated and under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii) as an alien who was convicted of an aggravated felony. Deemi denied that he had committed an aggravated felony but conceded that he was removable based on the termination of his permanent residence. Deemi then applied for an adjustment of status and a waiver of inadmissibility. His application was denied by the Immigration Judge (IJ), and the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) dismissed his * This disposition is not an opinion of the full Court and pursuant to I.O.P. 5.7 does not constitute binding precedent. 2 appeal. For the reasons that follow, we hold that the BIA erred in categorizing Deemi’s offense as a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT) because the BIA failed to explain its departure from established precedent. We will vacate the BIA’s removal order and remand this case for further proceedings on Deemi’s petition for relief from removal under section 1227(a)(1)(D)(i). I. BACKGROUND AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY Deemi is a native of Liberia. He entered the United States in 2000 as a nonimmigrant visitor and became a conditional permanent resident in 2007 after marrying a United States citizen. In 2002, he began working as a caregiver at the Arc of Hunterdon County, a mental health facility, where he was responsible for supervising higher-functioning patients. One of his patients was K.S., a woman with an I.Q. between 52 and 64 and the judgment level of a seven- or eight-year-old. 1 One night in February 2009, Deemi went to visit a friend at an apartment complex where the New Jersey Division of Developmental Disabilities had placed K.S. Deemi encountered K.S. there and recognized her from the time when she was under his care. He knew that she suffered from bipolar disorder. The two spoke and then had sex in Deemi’s car. The encounter had a profound effect on K.S. According to personnel at the Arc, K.S. was left “increasingly ...
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