Opinion
Civil No. JFM-09-231.
August 19, 2009
MEMORANDUM
Plaintiff seeks an order from this court requiring the United States Department of Homeland Security and the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services to adjudicate naturalization applications filed by plaintiff. Defendants have filed a motion to dismiss. The motion will be granted.
Plaintiff has filed two applications for naturalization. Immigration and Customs enforcement has initiated removal proceedings against plaintiff. In light of that fact, consideration of plaintiff's applications for naturalization have been stayed pending the outcome of the removal proceedings. See 8 U.S.C. § 1429.
Respondents are clearly correct that the plain language of § 1429 prohibits the Attorney General from acting on a naturalization application while removal proceedings are pending. Therefore, this court is precluded from granting the relief plaintiff seeks. Plaintiff's reliance upon this court's decision in the Matter of Ngwana, 40 F. Supp. 2d 319 (D. Md. 1999) is misplaced. Ngwana may no longer be good law. See, e.g., Ajlani v. Chertoff, 545 F.3d 229 (2d Cir. 2008). In any event, Ngwana is clearly distinguishable from the instant case in that there the plaintiff was not seeking, as is plaintiff here, an order requiring defendants to adjudicate plaintiff's naturalization application. Rather, plaintiff was seeking de novo review of a decision that had already been made to deny his naturalization application.
I also note that on the merits plaintiff's naturalization applications are of dubious merit in light of the fact that the record establishes that plaintiff has pled guilty to child abuse (having sexual intercourse with his step daughter when she was twelve years old) and that he did not disclose the conviction to immigration authorities.
A separate order effecting the ruling made in this memorandum is being entered herewith.