Moisés Eduardo Morales-Garda (“Morales”) petitions for review of a final order of removal based on the Immigration Judge’s (“IJ”) and Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) determination that his conviction under California Penal Code § 273.5(a) is categorically a crime involving moral turpitude (“CIMT”), precluding cancellation of removal under § 240A(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”), 8 U.S.C. § 1229b(b). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(1) (providing for judicial review of a final order of removal) and 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(D) (providing for judicial review of constitutional and legal questions raised by individuals found removable based on criminal activity).
See Galeana-Mendoza v. Gonzales,
BACKGROUND
Morales, a native and citizen of Mexico, entered the United States without inspection near San Ysidro, California, in September, 1986. In 2006, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) served a Notice to Appear (“NTA”) on Morales, alleging that he was subject to removal on two grounds: first, for being an alien present in the United States without being admitted or paroled, see 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(6)(A)(i), and second, for having been convicted of a CIMT, see id. § 1182(a)(2)(A)(i)(I). The NTA alleged that on April 10, 2003, Morales was eonvicted in California Superior Court “for the offense of corporal injury to spouse/ cohabitant/former cohabitant/child’s parent, a Felony, in violation of Section 273.5(a) of the California Penal Code for which the term of imprisonment was two ... years.... ”
At his hearing before the IJ, Morales conceded removability; however, he denied the fact of his conviction under Cal.Penal Code § 273.5. The government adduced a certified copy of an abstract of judgment and prison commitment order, showing both that Morales was convicted of the offense and that he was sentenced to two years’ imprisonment. According to those documents, Morales pleaded guilty to a violation of § 273.5(a), and the court imposed a low term of 2 years, doubled to 4 years, under California’s habitual offender statute, CaLPenal Code § 667(b)-(i) 1 The record also contains a copy of the criminal complaint, which alleges:
On or about the 23rd day of March, 2003, in the County of El Dorado, the crime of CORPORAL INJURY TO SPOUSE/COHABITANT/FORMER COHABITANT/CHILD’S PARENT, in violation of PENAL CODE SECTION 273.5(a), a felony, was committed by MOISES EDUARDO .MORALES, who did willfully and unlawfully inflict corporal injury resulting in a traumatic condition upon Martha Adriana Salazar, who was cohabiting with defendant.
The IJ sustained the factual allegations in the NTA and, based on that determination, the IJ also sustained the charge of removability on the ground that Morales had been convicted of a CIMT.
At the hearing, Morales also l’aised the possibility that he was eligible for a waiver of inadmissibility under INA § 212(h), 8 *1061 U.S.C. § 1182(h). Instead of simply requesting a § 212(h) waiver, however, Morales’ asserted that the waiver, if granted, would make him eligible for cancellation of removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1229b(b). The IJ clarified this argument for the government in the following exchange:
DHS: Well, I’m not sure where the respondent’s counsel is going with this in regards to the [conviction under Cal.Penal Code § ] 273.5.
IJ: That’s why I assume it was, that’s why I assumed you would like to brief concurrently. What he’s saying is he can tender cancellation with a 212(h) waiver....
Following briefing on the issue by both parties, the IJ denied Morales’ request for cancellation of removal based on a waiver of inadmissibility. The IJ then entered an order of removal.
Morales timely appealed to the BIA, which dismissed the appeal in a per curiam order. On the issue of whether § 273.5(a) qualified as a CIMT, the BIA affirmed the IJ’s reliance on
Grageda v. INS,
STANDARD OF REVIEW
“[W]e review
de novo
the BIA’s determination of questions of law, except to the extent that deference is owed to its interpretation of the governing statutes and regulations.”
Garcia-Quintero v. Gonzales,
*1062 DISCUSSION
Morales contends that the BIA erred in affirming the IJ’s determination that his conviction under Cal.Penal Code § 278.5(a) qualifies as a CIMT, both for purposes of determining his inadmissibility, see 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(2)(A)(i)(I), and his ineligibility for cancellation of removal, see
id.
§ 1229b(b)(l)(C). An alien convicted of a CIMT is ineligible for cancellation of removal by virtue of the conviction itself,
see id.
§ 1229b(b)(l)(C), and because such a conviction precludes a finding of good moral character required by § 1229b(b)(l)(B).
See Galeanar-Mendoza,
1. Categorical Approach
A. Definition of crimes involving moral turpitude
“Whether a crime involves moral turpitude is determined by the statutory definition or by the nature of the crime and not by the specific conduct that resulted in the conviction.”
Id.
at 1070 (citation and quotation marks omitted). The categorical approach requires that we “compare the elements of the statute of conviction to the generic definition [of moral turpitude], and decide whether the conduct proscribed ... is broader than, and so does not categorically fall within, this generic definition.”
Fernandez-Ruiz v. Gonzales,
*1063 B. CaLPenal Code § 273.5(a)
When determining the reach of the state criminal statute at issue, we consider not only the text of the statute, but also state court interpretations of the statutory language.
See Galeana-Mendoza,
The statute provides, in relevant part:
(a) Any person who willfully inflicts upon a person who is his or her spouse, former spouse, cohabitant, former cohabitant, or the mother or father of his or her child, corporal injury resulting in a traumatic condition, is guilty of a felony, and upon conviction thereof shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for two, three, or four years, or in a county jail for not more than one year, or by a fíne of up to six thousand dollars ($6,000) or by both that fíne and imprisonment.
(c) As used in this section, “traumatic condition” means a condition of the body, such as a wound or external or internal injury, whether of a minor or serious nature, caused by physical force.
Cal.Penal Code § 273.5. In accord with the California courts’ interpretation of this statute, the standard California jury instruction lists the following three elements of the offense:
1. A person inflicted bodily injury upon [[his][her] [former] spouse] [a [former] cohabitant] [the [mother] [or] [father] of [his] [her] child];
2. The infliction of bodily injury was willful [and unlawful]; and
3. The bodily injury resulted in a traumatic condition.
CALJIC 9.35, Cal. Jury Instructions— Criminal (2008).
“The term ‘cohabitant’ has been interpreted ‘broadly’ to refer to those living together in a substantial relationship — one manifested, minimally, by permanence and sexual or amorous intimacy.”
People v. Taylor,
C. Categorical analysis of § 273.5(a)
We now compare the elements of § 273.5(a) to the generic definition of moral turpitude provided above. We have previously held that spousal abuse under § 273.5(a) is a crime involving moral turpitude.
See Grageda,
1. Grageda
First, we explain why we are not bound by the
Grageda
decision. We recognize, as a general matter, that “a three-judge panel may not overrule a prior decision of the court.”
Miller v. Gammie,
Grageda
resolved the following issue: “whether spousal abuse is a crime of moral turpitude upon the basis of which an alien can be deported.”
Grageda,
2. Applying the categorical analysis
Section 273.5(a) includes in its list of covered victims a “former cohabitant.” This factor alone makes the offense virtu
*1065
ally indistinguishable from the run-of-the-mill assault. Few would argue that former cohabitants — however transitory that cohabitation — are in a special relationship of trust such as to make an assault by one on the other a CIMT. Our past decisions make clear that assault and battery, without more, do not qualify as CIMTs.
See Femandez-Ruiz,
Otherwise non-morally turpitudinous conduct targeted at a victim with whom the defendant has a special relationship may transform a crime into one involving moral turpitude. In
Grageda,
for example, we held that “when a person willfully beats his or her spouse severely enough to cause ‘a traumatic condition,’ he or she has committed an act of baseness or depravity contrary to accepted moral standards.”
Grageda,
Grageda
reasoned that it is particularly morally objectionable to beat a person “[1] committed to a [2] relationship of trust with, and ... [3] dependent upon, the perpetrator.”
Grageda,
Because the victims covered by § 273.5(a), as interpreted by the state courts, is overly-broad, we need not examine petitioner’s other contentions respecting the statute’s “evil intent” requirement, 5 or extent-of-injury requirement. 6
II. Modified Categorical Approach
As we indicated at the outset of our discussion, even if a statutory offense fails to qualify as a CIMT under the categorical approach, in most cases, it is still possible that the crime of conviction at issue can qualify as a CIMT under the modified categorical approach.
See Quintero-Salazar,
CONCLUSION
We hold that Morales’ conviction under CaLPenal Code § 273.5(a) for abuse of a cohabitant is not categorically a CIMT within the meaning of 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(2)(A)(i)(I) and § 1229b(b)(l)(C). We therefore grant Morales’ petition for review, 7 reverse the decision of the BIA, and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. 8
PETITION GRANTED and REMANDED.
Notes
. The court also imposed a $500 parole restitution fine under Cal.Penal Code § 1202.45, a domestic violence fee of $200, and a $100 payment to the Women's Shelter.
. Courts have also consistently held that crimes involving fraud are morally turpitudinous.
See Nicanor-Romero,
. We recently held, in the context of determining whether a state conviction was a crime of violence under U.S.S.G. § 4B 1.2(a)(1), that courts may rely on an opinion rendered by an intermediate state appellate court to determine the reach of the state statute.
See United States v. Taylor,
. We recently clarified that “once the elements of the petitioner’s offense are established, our review of the BIA’s determination that such offense constitutes a 'crime of moral turpitude’ is governed by the same traditional principles of administrative deference we apply to the Board's interpretation of other ambiguous terms in the INA." Marmolejo-Campos, 558 F.3d at *911 (emphasis added). Relying heavily on Grageda, In re Tran holds that “infliction of bodily harm upon a person with whom one has such a familial relationship is an act of depravity which is contrary to accepted moral standards.” In re Tran, 21 I. & N. Dec. at 294 (emphasis added). Because In re Tran incorrectly identifies the elements of § 273.5(a) in at least one significant respect, we do not defer to the BIA’s holding in In re Tran.
.
Grageda
interpreted the statute to require that the defendant "intended to cause the harm,”
. Even in cases involving crimes committed against those in a special relationship with the perpetrator, we have required that the offending conduct result in injury to the victim.
Galeana-Mendoza,
. We therefore do not reach the issue, briefed and argued by the parties, of whether a waiver of inadmissibility under 8 U.S.C. § 1182(h) may render a petitioner convicted of a CIMT eligible for cancellation of removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1229b(b).
. We do not resolve the issue raised by the government that Morales' conviction under Cal.Penal Code § 273.5 would qualify as a crime of domestic violence under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(E) because that was not a basis of the BIA’s decision.
See SEC v. Chenery Corp.,
