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Federal Government To Increase Prosecution of Immigration Related Crimes

Published on: April 12, 2017 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

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Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a memorandum (see bottom of this post to read the memorandum in full) to all federal prosecutors today demanding prioritization of immigration related prosecutions. Specifically, he calls for the increased prosecution of 8 U.S.C. 1324 (Bringing in or Harboring Certain Aliens), 8 U.S.C. 1325 (Improper Entry by Alien), 8 U.S.C. 1326 (Reentry of Removed Aliens), 18 U.S.C. 1028A (Aggravated Identity Theft), and 18 U.S.C. 111 (Assaulting, Resisting or Impeding Officers). It remains to be seen what practical effect this memorandum and future memorandums will have on increasing prosecutions. Many critics of this policy fear that increased focus on immigration related offenses will result in decreased focus on other serious federal law violations, including large-scale drug offenses, firearms offenses, and other types of crimes.

There also is no indication that increased prosecution of immigration related offenses will decrease the number of people who come into the United States without authorization. Those detained by ICE or CBP already face long terms of detention. Charging those individuals with federal offenses will not necessary increase the amount of time those individuals are incarcerated. The cost of prosecution to the taxpayer will far exceed any positive result relating to enforcing immigration laws.

The problem lies in prioritization memorandums like this one. Assistant United States Attorneys across the nation will now not focus on individuals that pose the greatest risk of future immigration violations or future criminal conduct. They will rather use a shotgun approach of prioritizing everyone, which is not only inefficient and costly, but impossible. The government does not have the resources to implement the policies that AG Sessions has implemented.

What Will Happen At My Immigration Interview? Some Helpful Tips.

Published on: March 30, 2017 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Don’t Always Believe Your Criminal Defense Lawyer (Especially About Immigration)

Published on: March 27, 2017 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

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Criminal defense lawyers don’t typically know anything about immigration law. Immigration law is federal. Most criminal defense attorneys practice only state law in state courts. Even if they do practice in federal criminal courtrooms, it is a completely different area of law from immigration. Asking a criminal lawyer about immigration law is kind of like asking a podiatrist about cataracts. That is unless the lawyer practices in both fields, which is becoming more common. The problem is that when you ask a lawyer about an area of law they don’t know anything about, they may give you an answer. “Uh, I’m sure this conviction won’t hurt you. You’ve been here 30 years. You have a greencard. Don’t worry about it.” And that answer may not only be wrong; it may be dead wrong with deadly consequences.

Case in point – Jae Lee is going before the United States Supreme Court because his criminal defense attorney told him that his plea to Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to Distribute would not make him deportable. Not only did it make him deportable, it is considered an aggravated felony and he has no form of relief to prevent his deportation. His criminal defense attorney’s nonchalant dismissal of such a critical issue has led to a lifetime of catastrophic consequences for Mr. Lee, including being incarcerated for seven years while he fights his deportation. If you’d like to learn more about Mr. Lee’s case, check out this wonderful article written by Manny Vargas from the Immigrant Defense Project. Mr. Vargas provides a very detailed history of Mr. Lee’s case and discusses exactly how Mr. Lee went from thinking his criminal conviction would not lead to deportation to realizing he would not only be deported, but would be detained for many years while fighting that deportation.

Don’t get me wrong. Many criminal defense attorneys do an amazing job of actually looking at the immigration statutes, calling up immigration lawyers, and sending their clients to immigration lawyers. But many do not. So, you should trust your criminal defense attorney, but verify. Trust, but verify. Ask your lawyer if they have any experience in immigration law. Go seek the advice of an immigration lawyer. The consequences are too severe for you to leave it in the hands of an attorney who may view the immigration consequences as a collateral consequence of the plea, rather than a potential life shattering experience.

How Does President Obama’s Changes To Cuban Immigration Policy Affect Cuban Nationals With A Final Order of Removal Or Deportation?

Published on: January 25, 2017 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

President’s Obama’s January 12, 2017 announcement about Cuban immigration policy changed the landscape for Cuban nationals. Along with all the official changes announced on January 12, 2017 on this subject, there was another document that contains two very important, but often overlooked paragraphs. The United States and Cuba released a “Joint Statement of the United States and Cuba on Changes to Migration Relationship with Cuba.” This statement contained two very interesting paragraphs that will effect not only Cubans coming to the U.S. on or after January 12, 2017, but Cubans who may have been in the U.S. for decades and already have a final order of removal/deportation, or will receive one in the future. This first paragraph is number 5 and it talks about the infamous Cuban “Repat List” that ICE keeps locked up in a safe somewhere in South Florida:

The Republic of Cuba shall accept that individuals included in the list of 2,746 to be returned in accordance with the Joint Communiqué of December 14, 1984, may be replaced by others and returned to Cuba, provided that they are Cuban nationals who departed for the United States of America via the Port of Mariel in 1980 and were found by the competent authorities of the United States to have tried to irregularly enter or remain in that country in violation of United States law. The Parties shall agree on the specific list of these individuals and the procedure for their return.

When I worked for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, I spoke to ICE officers who swore the list actually exists and it is kept in a safe in a location I will not disclose. When ICE had a final order Cuban national in custody who was a “Marielito,” they would check the list to see if the person could be deported or “repatriated,” to Cuba. Obviously, not every Cuban national who came to Florida in the Summer of 1980 is on that list, and there are hundreds, if not thousands of Cubans who left the Port of Mariel in 1980 who are currently in the U.S. with a final order of removal or deportation.

I am Married to a United States Citizen, how do I get my Green Card?

Published on: October 3, 2016 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Congratulations! You recently got married and your new spouse is a U.S. citizen, but you are not. One of the first questions on your mind may be: how do I get my green card now that I am married to a citizen? The answer could be fairly simple—or quite complex. No matter what your situation, if you marry a U.S. citizen and want to adjust your status (become a lawful permanent resident) go see an experienced and trusted immigration attorney for a consultation. https://www.slgattorneysflorida.com/john-gihon.html

Many experienced and knowledgeable immigration attorneys may charge you a nominal fee for the consultation, but it is definitely worth it. Remember the old saying, “you get what you pay for,” well that is usually the case with free advice from attorneys. An attorney who charges you a consultation fee will likely spend more time preparing for and with you during the consultation. An attorney who gives you a free consultation may not want to spend anymore time with you or talking to you then they have too, remember, an attorney’s time and knowledge is their money.

Now back to how to try and get your green card now that you are married to a U.S. citizen. My guidance will start with the premise that you and your new spouse married for love and not solely for an immigration benefit—this is not a “how to engage in marriage fraud” piece. Still, be sure to document your new life together, or as we say in the field, gather evidence that you have “co-mingled” your lives. That means if you have not already open a joint bank account that you will put money into and use for marital expenses, do it now. Add each other to car insurance, life insurance, health, dental, vision insurance and retirement accounts. If you buy a house or apartment or condo, make sure both of your names are on the deed and mortgage. If you rent, make sure your existing lease is amended to add your spouse and any new lease has both of your names on it. Add your spouse to your credit cards or open new ones in both names. If you have utility, cable, and cell phone bills, add your spouse’s name. Every piece of paper, bill, or invoice that you can produce, post-marriage, that has both of your names and your marital address on it, will go a long way to convincing the immigration officers that your marriage is real and not solely for immigration purposes.

I am not a U.S. citizen, What are the Immigration Consequences of my Criminal Case?

Published on: May 19, 2016 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

The scary truth for most immigrants is that until you become a citizen, there are serious and negative immigration consequences for every criminal arrest or prosecution, the only question is, how serious and how negative. Once a non-citizen immigrant is arrested for any crime, there will be negative consequences; some are more immediate and direct than others. The only thing that you can do after your arrest is find the best attorneys to help you mitigate the negative immigration consequences associated with every criminal arrest.

I provide trainings to criminal defense attorneys and public defender’s across the state of Florida on this exact issue. They all want to know the immigration consequences for a client charged with a specific crime and what charges to try and plead them to or what sentence to get them to keep them from being deported. The quick and dirty answer is always, “it depends.” Some questions are easy, “my client has a green card and he is facing a DUI, will he get deported?” The answer is, no not for the DUI, but that same DUI may get his citizenship application denied in the future.

Some questions are more complicated; for instance, “my client has a work permit, will this grand theft plea with no jail time get her deported?” That one is much more complicated . . .why does she have a work permit, what is her immigration status, does she have any other convictions and if so, for what? There are so many variables that no criminal defense attorney can possibly be expected to know or be able to find all of them. That is why we are here to help (check out our dedicated crimmigration consultation page for more information: http://www.floridacrimmigration.com)

Summaries of Recent Published Board of Immigration Appeals Decisions and More

Published on: November 16, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Normally, I would begin with the BIA decisions and put the bonus case at the end, but this one is too important to miss. I blogged before about how the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Johnson v. United States, 135 S. Ct. 2551 (2015), could be monumental in destroying the ordinary case analysis used by the Board in cases involving crimes of violence under 18 U.S.C. § 16(b). This case from the Ninth Circuit has proven me correct:

Dimaya v. Lynch, 2015 WL 6123546 (9th Cir. Oct. 19, 2015); In the first Federal Circuit Court published opinion of its kind, the Ninth Circuit held that the U.S. Supreme Court’s reasoning in Johnson v. United States, 135 S. Ct. 2551 (2015), is applicable in immigration cases. In Johnson (a federal criminal sentencing case) the U.S. Supreme Court found the residual clause of the ACCA and the corresponding ordinary case analysis unconstitutional and void for vagueness. The Ninth Circuit in Dimaya found that the problematic language and analysis in the ACCA is substantially the same as 18 U.S.C. § 16(b). Therefore, the ordinary case analysis and 18 U.S.C. § 16(b), suffer from the same constitutional defects brought to light in Johnson and are therefore void for vagueness. This means that we finally have a case to support the argument that the Immigration Courts cannot use 18 U.S.C. § 16(b) to sustain a crime of violence charge under INA § 101(a)(43)(F).

Recent Published BIA Decisions:

Lasnetski Gihon Law Adds Former Immigration Prosecutor to the Firm

Published on: May 5, 2014 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Lasnetski Gihon Law is pleased to announce the upcoming addition of John Gihon to the firm. The newly named Law Offices of Lasnetski Gihon Law will open an office in Orlando to further serve clients in the southern Georgia, northeast Florida, and central Florida locations in all matters related to criminal, immigration and personal injury.

John is currently employed as an immigration prosecutor under the Department of Homeland Security. His duties include representing the government in deportation cases and instructing other lawyers, ICE agents, USCIS officers and other government officials on immigration law. We are excited to add his immigration experience and knowledge to our team at Lasnetski Gihon Law.

John is also a former prosecutor at the State Attorney’s Office in Jacksonville. As a criminal trial attorney, he tried many criminal cases, including homicides. His unique experience in both criminal and immigration law is a perfect fit for our firm.

Know your Aggravated Felonies

Published on: January 24, 2013 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

The term “aggravated felony” for immigration purposes is a much misunderstood term. One of the reasons is that an “aggravated felony” need not be aggravated, nor a felony. But it is important to understand what constitutes an aggravated felony for immigration purposes, because a conviction for an aggravated felony comes with serious immigration consequences.

An “aggravated felony” is defined in the Immigration and Nationality Act, under Section 101(a)(43) and includes:

Murder, rape, or sexual abuse of a minor;

United States Grants Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to Syria

Published on: April 2, 2012 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

On March 29th, 2012, the Secretary of Homeland Security designated Syria for Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Syrian nationals that have been continuously residing in and physically present in the United States since March 29th, 2012 are eligible to apply for TPS.

The registration period for TPS is from March 29th, 2012 through September 25th, 2012.

This applies to Syrian nationals who are in the United States, whether you have a valid visa or have overstayed your visa.