If you've never been in criminal trouble before, your first contact with the court system can be confusing and frightening. Police officers may have threatened you with jail or prison. Some official has probably read off the maximum punishment possible for the crime you are charged with. You're afraid of being locked up and losing your job or housing.
Then, like a miracle, the prosecutor or judge offers you probation or a treatment program if you just admit your guilt. Before you jump at this offer, you need to know what such an admission may mean to you.
In the last 20 years, Congress has greatly expanded the list of crimes that can get you deported or denied citizenship or re-entry into the United States. At the same time, it has eliminated most of the remedies for even long-time residents with families in the United States.
If you are convicted of any offense classified as an aggravated felony, you will be deported. (8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(43).) There is no appeal or grounds for relief from deportation under this statute, no matter what hardship it might impose on you or your family. Even political asylum is generally not available to you. You will also be denied re-entry into the country.
Conviction includes any guilty plea or admission, even if you go through a diversion or drug court program that results in dismissal. Where the law specifies that the sentence must be over a certain length, INS will look at the sentence given by the court, even if that sentence is suspended and you get probation, so a plea bargain for probation won't necessarily keep it from finding that your charge was an aggravated felony. Expungement of your conviction will not prevent its use to deport you.
Aggravated felonies include:
Even if the charge against you isn't an aggravated felony, it may still result in deportation. There are a number of other offenses which are classified as deportable, including :
Local courts in many areas have become very aggressive about reporting deportable offenses to the INS. Don't count on a conviction being ignored if it is reported by the court or officer. If your offense is not an aggravated felony, or a domestic violence or drug charge, you may be eligible for a hardship waiver.
If you have family in the country who depend on you, and they are citizens or lawful permanent residents, you can petition the court not to deport you due to the hardship your deportation would impose on your family members. This remedy is not available if your offense is an aggravated felony or involves family violence or drugs.
Before you accept a plea bargain or admit your guilt in any criminal court, you should be sure you fully understand the possible and/or mandatory consequences of such a plea or admission. Talk to a criminal defense attorney or ask the court for a public defender if you can't afford a lawyer.