The Ninth Circuit has declined to apply the retroactive reduction of the maximum misdemeanor sentence in California in immigration proceedings. “It is clear that federal statutes can specify when removal is permissible and also when a cancellation of removal is warranted. We hold that those federal law standards cannot be altered or contradicted retroactively by state law actions, and cannot be manipulated after the fact by state laws modifying sentences that at the time of conviction permitted removal or that precluded cancellation. We hold that California’s amendment to § 18.5 of the California Penal Code, which retroactively reduces the maximum misdemeanor sentence to 364 days for purposes of state law, cannot be applied retroactively for purposes of § 1227(a)(2)(A)(i).”
The full text of Velasquez-Rios v. Barr can be found here:
https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2020/10/28/18-72990.pdf