The Ninth Circuit held that a guilty plea to possessing a controlled substance with intent to distribute may be considered in determining whether there is reason to believe the noncitizen is a drug trafficker--even if the conviction is later overturned, at least if the conviction is overturned for a reason unrelated to the voluntariness of the plea.
Here, the noncitizen's conviction was overturned because the police did not have reasonable suspicion to conduct the traffic stop that led to his arrest. Nonetheless, the court held the plea--along with circumstantial evidence in the case--could be considered to establish the noncitizen's inadmissibility for reason to believe he had engaged in drug trafficking.