A federal appellate court heard oral arguments Wednesday about whether immigration judges must consider whether deportation amounts to disproportional punishment for a legal permanent resident following a criminal conviction.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit weighed that question in Hinds v. Holder. Rogelio Blackman Hinds, 59, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, is fighting an August 2013 Board of Immigration Appeals ruling upholding his removal. U.S. Immigration Judge Steven Day ordered Hinds removed to Panama in March 2013 because of drug and firearms convictions for which he served 18 years in prison.
