Nanje v. Chavez
| Decision Date | 28 September 2015 |
| Docket Number | CIVIL ACTION NO. 14-12216-JGD |
| Citation | 134 F.Supp.3d 544 |
| Parties | Janarius Elanjwe Nanje, Plaintiff, v. Luis A. Chavez, et al., Defendants |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts |
Todd C. Pomerleau, Rubin Pomerleau PC, Boston, MA, for Plaintiff.
Christine J. Wichers, United States Attorney's Office, Boston, MA, for Defendants.
The plaintiff, Janarius Elanjwe Nanje ("Nanje"), is a citizen of Cameroon and a lawful permanent resident of the United States. He is married to a United States citizen, and has four minor children, all of whom are United States citizens as well. On May 19, 2014, Nanje initiated this action, pursuant to Section 310(c) of the Immigration & Nationality Act ("INA"), 8 U.S.C. § 1421(c)
, against the defendants, Luis A. Chaves, the Lawrence Field Office Director for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service ("USCIS"), Jeh Johnson, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and Alejandro Mayorkas, the Director of USCIS. By his Petition for Review of Denial of Naturalization, Nanje is seeking a de novo review of the defendants' denial of his application for naturalization, and an order allowing him to become a naturalized citizen of the United States.
The matter is presently before the court on the "Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment" (Docket No. 19) and on the "Plaintiff's Cross-Motion for Summary Judgment" (Docket No. 26). By their motions, each of the parties contends that it is entitled to judgment as a matter of law in this case. The critical issue that has been raised by the parties' motions is whether Nanje's 2006 conviction for filing a false health care claim constituted a conviction for an "aggravated felony." Under the relevant provision of the INA, an "aggravated felony" is defined to include "an offense that ... involves fraud or deceit in which the loss to the victim or victims exceeds $10,000." 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(43)(M)(i)
. There is no dispute that Nanje was convicted of a crime involving fraud or deceit. Consequently, the only question at issue is whether the plaintiff can prove, by a preponderance of the evidence, that the loss incurred by the victim was $10,000 or less.
Pursuant to the relevant authority established by the Supreme Court, the loss to the victim must be determined based on the factual circumstances surrounding the commission of the crime on a specific occasion. Because the facts and circumstances underlying the conviction at issue in this case demonstrate that the loss to the victim exceeded $10,000, this court has no choice but to conclude that Nanje cannot make the requisite showing. Therefore, and for all the reasons detailed below, the defendant's motion for summary judgment is ALLOWED and the plaintiff's cross-motion is DENIED.
The following facts are undisputed for purposes of summary judgment.
The plaintiff, Nanje, is a native and citizen of the Central African country of Cameroon. (DF ¶ 1). However, he attended college in the United States, and has been a lawful permanent resident of this country since 2002. (Id. ¶ 2; Def. Ex. J at 7 of 24). In addition, all of Nanje's close family members reside in the United States, and both his wife and four minor children are United States citizens. (Def. Ex. J at 7 of 24). In this action, Nanje is challenging the USCIS' denial of his application for naturalization.
The plaintiff's eligibility for naturalization depends upon whether his prior conviction for filing a false health care claim constitutes an "aggravated felony" under the INA, which in turn depends upon whether his offense involved fraud or deceit and a loss of more than $10,000 to the victim. The undisputed facts demonstrate that Nanje's conviction arose out of a criminal complaint that was issued against him on March 15, 2005 in Boston Municipal Court ("BMC"). (See DF ¶ 13). The complaint charged Nanje with two counts of filing a false health care claim, in violation of Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 175H, § 2
; one count of larceny over $250, in violation of Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 266, § 30(1) ; and one count of attempted larceny, in violation of Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 274, § 6. (Id. ¶ 14). A "Statement of Probable Cause," which was attached to the criminal complaint, described the circumstances leading up to the charges as follows:
Janarius Nanje submitted a claim to Harvard Pilgrim Health Care (HPHC) in Quincy, MA in July 2003 for treatment of malaria
and typhoid fever he alleged he received at District Hospital Nkondjock in Cameroon (Africa) from June 15 through July 7, 2003. HPHC paid the $11,965 claim without requesting further documentation from Mr. Nanje .
On June 23, 2004, Mr. Nanje submitted another claim to HPHC. This claim totaled $29,150 for malaria treatment he alleged he received between April 4 and April 29, 2004 in Cameroon. This claim raised concerns at HPHC. HPHC Member Services spoke to Mr. Nanje in order to clarify whether the bill had been paid. Mr. Nanje reported he paid in cash. An investigator from HPHC contacted Mr. Nanje to ask him for documentation showing where he got the cash. The HPHC investigator asked for bank statements to show cash withdrawals or anything else that would show that he had that much cash with him for his trip to Cameroon. Over the telephone, Mr. Nanje reported that he only paid a portion of the bill in US currency. He stated that he paid less than $10,000 in USD and his father paid the rest in Cameroon francs. The investigator asked to see documentation of that; he again asked to see his bank statement. Mr. Nanje stated he would send it to him. On October 20, 2004, Mr. Nanje sent a letter to HPHC stating that his father paid the entire claim in cash in Cameroon francs so there was no record.
The HPHC contacted Mr. Nanje requesting documents to support his claim before HPHC would pay the claim. Mr. Nanje delivered original medical records to the Quincy office of HPHC on September 30, 2004. The entire medical record which covers over two weeks appears to be written in the same handwriting.
The Attorney General's office contacted a federal agent stationed in Cameroon who investigated the claim. The hospital administrator in Cameroon reported that Mr. Nanje had never been treated at the District Hospital Nkondjock. After seeing this documentation, Mr. Nanje admitted that he never received treatment for malaria and typhoid fever at the District Hospital Nkondjock in Cameroon.
(Def. Ex. D at 4 of 5 (emphasis added)).
On May 20, 2005, Nanje, who was represented by counsel, offered to tender an admission to facts sufficient to support a finding of guilty on each of the charges, on the condition that the matter be continued without a finding for eleven months, and that Nanje be placed on probation and ordered to pay $20,000 in restitution to HPHC. (DF ¶ 17; Def. Ex. G). The Commonwealth agreed that Nanje should pay $20,000 in restitution to HPHC, but it recommended that he plead guilty to three counts of the four-count complaint, be placed on probation for two years, and complete 100 hours of community service. (DF ¶ 18; Def. Ex. K at 6 of 8). The proposed $20,000 payment was based on the nearly "$12,000 [that Nanje had] obtained from the first fraudulent claim and, as permitted by statute, $8,000 in expenses [that HPHC had] incurred in investigation of the fraudulent health care claims." (DF ¶ 19 (quoting Def. Ex. K at 6 of 8)).
The court agreed to accept Nanje's tender, and to reduce the amount of restitution to $12,000 if Nanje agreed to make an immediate payment in full. (DF ¶ 20). The plaintiff agreed, and the court accepted the terms of his proposal. (Id. ¶ 21). Accordingly, on July 15, 2005, Nanje made the $12,000 payment and admitted to facts sufficient to support a finding of guilty on one count of filing a false health care claim, one count of larceny over $250, and one count of attempt to commit a crime. . The matter was then continued without a finding for a period of nine months. (DF ¶ 23; Def. Ex. H).
The plaintiff's plea agreement is documented on a form from the BMC entitled "Tender of Plea or Admission to Sufficient Facts Waiver of Rights." (Def. Ex. H). The "Dispositional Terms" set forth on the form show that Nanje agreed to pay a total of $12,000 in restitution in connection with each of the three counts for which he admitted facts. (Id. ). Thus, the form lists each of the counts separately, along with a notation indicating that the count was continued without a finding for nine months, and the statement "$12,000.00 Restitution" next to it. (Id. ). It also contains a Judge's Certification, which was signed by the presiding judge on July 15, 2005. (Id. ). The Certification provides in relevant part as follows:
I further certify that the defendant [Nanje] was informed and advised that if the defendant is not a citizen of the United States, a conviction of the offense with which the defendant is charged may have the consequences of deportation, exclusion from admission to the United States, or denial of naturalization pursuant to the laws of the United States .
(Id. (emphasis added)). Therefore, the record indicates that Nanje should have been on notice that his plea might adversely affect his ability to become a naturalized citizen.
Nanje complied with all of the terms and conditions of his probation, and the criminal matter was dismissed on or about April 20, 2006. (DF ¶ 24). For purposes of his Petition in this case, there is no dispute that Nanje was convicted in Massachusetts state court of a crime involving fraud or deceit. (Id. ¶ 3).
The record demonstrates that in the years following his conviction, Nanje attempted to revise his criminal record so that it would not threaten his immigration status. For instance, on October...
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