Criminal Defense of Immigrants

Chapter

§10.1 I. Introduction
§10.2 II. Roles of Court and Counsel
§10.3 III. Goals of Sentencing
§10.4 A. Criminal Goals of Sentence
§10.5 B. Immigration-Related Goals of Sentence
§10.6 C. Balancing Immigration with Criminal Goals
§10.7 D. Relationship to Plea Bargaining
§10.8 IV. Preparation
§10.9 A. Avoiding Damaging Admissions
§10.10 B. Defense Sentencing Materials
§10.11 C. Probation Interview
§10.12 D. Preparing for Allocution
§10.13 V. Sentence Hearing
§10.14 A. Specific Tactics
§10.15 1. Tactics to Avoid Conviction
§10.16 2. Avoiding Service of Sentence
§10.17 3. Neutralizing Probation Report as Part of Record
§10.18 4. Tactics to Avoid Sentence Imposed
§10.19 5. Tactics to Minimize Maximum Sentence
§10.20 6. Tactics to Minimize Restitution Order
§10.21 7. Tactics to Minimize Level of Offense
§10.22 8. Qualifying Client for Post-Conviction Relief
§10.23 B. Arguments in Mitigation
§10.24 1. Prosecution Policy Not To Favor Immigrants
§10.25 2. Judicial Policy to Consider Collateral Impact of Sentence
§10.26 3. Equities
§10.27 4. Immigration Status or Hold
§10.28 5. Cultural Mitigation Issues
§10.29 6. Persecution and Torture of Client if Deported
§10.30 7. Other Arguments
§10.31 C. Federal Sentencing Issues
§10.32 D. State Sentencing Issues
§10.33 E. Evidentiary Hearing
§10.34 VI. Post-Conviction Relief at Sentencing
§10.35 A. Current Case
§10.36 B. Prior Convictions
§10.37 VII. Special Immigration-Related Proceedings
§10.38 A. Special Proceedings At Sentence
§10.39 1. Former Judicial Recommendation Against Deportation
§10.40 2. Judicial Deportation Proceedings at Federal Sentence
§10.41 B. Special Proceedings After Sentence
§10.42 1. Early Release to Removal
§10.43 2. Prisoner Transfer Treaties
§10.44 VIII. Probation Violation Proceedings
§10.45 A. Immigration Effects
§10.46 1. Probation Violations and Convictions
§10.47 2. Avoiding Damaging Admissions
§10.48 3. Probation Violation Sentences
§10.49 B. Negotiating Probation Violations
§10.50 IX. Concluding the Representation
§10.51 A. Saying Goodbye
§10.52 B. Documenting the Disposition
§10.53 C. Immigration Advice
§10.54 X. Effect of Sentence on Nature of Offense
§10.55 A. Sentence As Part of "Record of Conviction"
§10.56 B. Sentence Enhancements
§10.57 1. Effects of Sentence Enhancements
§10.58 2. Recidivist Enhancements
§10.59 3. Firearm Enhancements
§10.60 4. Other Conduct-Based Enhancements
§10.61 C. Finality
§10.62 XI. Immigration Consequences of Sentence
§10.63 A. "Sentence Imposed"
§10.64 B. Type of Confinement
§10.65 C. Sentence Ordered by the Court
§10.66 1. Aggravated Felonies
§10.67 2. Crime of Moral Turpitude
§10.68 3. Mandatory Detention
§10.69 4. Petty Offense Exception to Inadmissibility
§10.70 D. Aggregate Sentences Imposed
§10.71 1. Multiple Conviction Ground of Inadmissibility
§10.72 2. Withholding of Deportation (Restriction on Removal)
§10.73 E. Actual Confinement
§10.74 1. Good Moral Character 180-Day Bar
§10.75 2. INA §212(c) Waiver 5-Year Bar
§10.76 F. Maximum Potential Confinement
§10.77 1. Definition
§10.78 2. Aggravated Felonies
§10.79 3. Crime of Moral Turpitude Deportation Ground
§10.80 4. Petty Offense Exception to Inadmissibility
§10.81 G. Probation or Parole
§10.82 H. Restitution Orders and Loss to the Victim(s)
§10.83 1. Fraud Offenses
§10.84 2. Tax Evasion Offenses
§10.85 3. Money Laundering Offenses
§10.86 I. Level of Offense
§10.87 1. Felony Conviction
§10.88 2. Immigration Consequences
§10.89 a. Aggravated Felonies Drug Trafficking
§10.90 b. Aggravated Felony Crimes of Violence Under 18 U.S.C. 16(b)
§10.91 c. Disqualification from Relief
§10.92 3. Misdemeanor Conviction
§10.93 4. Very Minor Offenses
§10.94 J. Immigration Holds and Detention

§ 10.52 (B)

For more text, click "Next Page>"

(B) Correcting FBI Records. Since the FBI is not the source of the records it compiles, a challenge to the correctness of its records, or a request to correct the contents of the records, will be referred to the source agency. If the conviction is a state conviction, that source is the state bureau of criminal identification or its equivalent.

Direct a request to correct the FBI criminal history report to:

Assistant Director of the FBI

Identification Division

Washington, D.C. 20537

The FBI will forward the request to the state agency that submitted the data and make a correction or not as indicated by the source agency.

Obtain certified copies of records from the court of origin documenting the correct state of affairs, and submit them directly to the FBI. The FBI has been quite willing to correct its records promptly when an error is shown by satisfactory evidence.