Are You Facing Deportation Due to a Minor Crime? Contact Us Today to Evaluate Your Case

Each year, many United States immigrants encounter removal proceedings or deportation. Before an immigrant is removed or deported, they are given a chance to present their case before an immigration judge, who decides whether they can stay or not. If you find yourself in such a situation, the best thing would be to find a deportation defense lawyer in Los Angeles to guide you through the proceedings. So, what are the grounds for extradition from the United States of America?

Deportable Crimes That Could Lead to Negative Immigration Consequences

An individual can be sent back to their country of origin even if they hold a green card or a valid visa. Below are categories of crimes that could lead to deportation.
1. Crimes of Moral Turpitude
Crimes of moral turpitude (CMTs) include conducts that are contrary to morality rules and those said to be committed with evil intentions. Since there is no statutory definition of these crimes under the criminal law, the courts have a list of some criminal offenses considered CMTs. They include the following:

• Rape
• Premeditated manslaughter
• Child abuse
• Spousal abuse
• Fraud
• Conspiring with persons committing CMTs
• Incest
• Kidnapping
• Causing havoc
• Handling stolen property
• Arson
• Attacks causing bodily harm

Executing a crime categorized under crimes of moral turpitude can make you deportable, especially if you commit it within your first half-decade of admission in the United States. Also, you could face deportation for committing two or more misdemeanors at any time of your stay in the US. However, the criminal offenses you are accused of shouldn’t occur out of one plot of a misdemeanor.

If the immigration tries to deport you for a criminal offense you feel might not be under CMT, you can request the immigration judge to allow you to find a lawyer to assist you throughout the process.

When you seek legal immigration help, the first thing your attorney will do is to find out when you executed the crimes. Usually, they start counting from the date you carried out the crimes and backdate five years. If they find that you got admitted within those years, they will have to figure out how to defend you before the immigration judge makes the ruling.
2. Aggravated Felonies
The immigration law lists some crimes under “aggravated felonies,” and they consider them the most serious offenses. If convicted of any of these criminal offenses, you might be removed from the US unless your attorney demonstrates that you would get harassed upon returning to your country of origin. If you get deported, you may be permanently inadmissible in the United States.

The secret is to find a lawyer to help you avert an aggravated felony sentence. Some of the commonly aggravated felonies include the following:

• Drug trafficking
• Manslaughter
• Minors pornography
• Ransom-related crimes
• Alien smuggling
• Document swindling
• Defrauding over $10,000
• Sexual abuse of minors
• Serving as a secret agent or a spy
• Theft or handling stolen property
• Gambling
• Unlawful reentry after removal inclined to aggravated felonies
• Evading tax worth above $10,000
• Bribing witnesses and lying under oath
• Conspiring to execute crimes listed under aggravated felonies

Mostly it is the immigration authorities that classify criminal offenses, and they may never tell you whether it falls under aggravated felonies or crimes of moral turpitude. After analyzing your misdemeanors, they decide whether or not it makes you deportable.
3. Drug Conviction
Some cases of drug convictions can make you deportable, except for the conviction of having marijuana for medical use in legalized states. However, the drug should be 30 grams or less, or else you would probably get convicted. The immigration officials will also initiate removal proceedings on you if you are a drug addict or abuser, regardless of whether or not you have a conviction. However, some drug offenses could still allow you to seek legal immigration help.
4. Firearms Crimes
Unauthorized possession of a gun could make you deportable, with or without violent conviction. Also, an immigrant is considered deportable if they get sentenced for purchasing, selling, ferrying, or possessing any harmful accessory. Therefore, if you are an immigrant in the United States, it is not advisable to transport, buy, sell, or hold a firearm or any destructive weapon without legal authorization. Persons with criminal convictions should not be in possession of firearms whatsoever.

Additional Reasons for Deportation

The state has many reasons for setting up removal proceedings against an immigrant. They include when:

• A foreigner may have overstayed and run out of their status
• An immigrant may have entered the country illegally without checkups at the immigration centers or without a visa
• A green card holder may be at loggerheads with the law, probably due to criminal sentences
• An immigrant’s application may have been denied by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
• A foreigner may have changed address without informing USCIS

Appealing Deportation Orders
No immigrant gets deported when their criminal conviction is on appeal. Therefore, in case of a misdemeanor conviction, you can ask your defense attorney to assist you in appealing. In that case, you should file an appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) within the first 30 days from the ruling date.

Should the BIA also make an unfavorable decision, your removal proceedings lawyer may further help you file an appeal with the United States Court of Appeals.

In the event that an individual gets deported, they would have to wait between five to ten years for them to seek readmission. However, when deported for a second time, you might have to wait for more than twenty years to apply for readmission. Unfortunately, persons removed because of aggravated felonies may never be allowed to come back to the United States. As an immigrant, if you commit a crime in any of the above categories, it is advisable to hire a licensed and reputable immigration attorney. The professional should represent you before the immigration judge and offer you guidelines to minimize the risk of deportation.

To evaluate your case, contact our immigration lawyer in Los Angeles today!