Criminal Convictions

I have been Detained in an Immigration Detention Facility, Am I Eligible for Bond?

Published on: July 4, 2014 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

If the immigration officers decide to detain someone, they first determine if the person is eligible for an immigration bond, and if so, they will decide how much the bond will be. An immigration bond can range anywhere from $1500 to $25000 or more. If an immigration officer determines that you are not eligible for a bond, then you will be held in immigration detention until your immigration case is over, or an immigration judge gives you a bond.

Sometimes immigration officers will decide you are not eligible for a bond because you are subject to mandatory detention under Section 236(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). If you are subject to mandatory detention during your immigration hearings, even the immigration judge has no authority under the law to release you from custody. If immigration officers determine that you are an arriving alien, that is, immigration officers stopped you at a land/sea/air port or border and detained you there or during deferred inspection, then you are not eligible for a bond and an even an immigration judge cannot give you one. If you already have a final order of removal/deportation (an order that is not on appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals) then you are also not eligible for a bond and an immigration judge cannot give you one. There are a few other categories of people who are not eligible for bond, but those three categories cover the vast majority of people who are not eligible for an immigration bond.

How will you know if you are subject to mandatory detention under INA § 236(c)? You must look at your Form I-862, Notice to Appear (NTA) to determine if you are subject to mandatory detention under this section. If you are being detained and placed in removal/deportation proceedings, you should be served with an NTA within a few days of being detained. If you are charged with any criminal ground of removability under INA § 212(a)(2) (which include controlled substance offenses, crimes involving moral turpitude (CIMT), and controlled substance trafficking offenses) then you are not eligible for a bond. If you are charged under one of the criminal grounds of removability under INA § 237(a)(2), then you may also be subject to mandatory detention. These grounds of removability include any aggravated felony, any firearms offense, any controlled substance offense and any offenses involving two CIMTs. There are only two grounds of criminal removability under INA § 237(a)(2) that do not make you subject to mandatory detention. One of those sections is INA § 237(a)(2)(E), which involves crimes of domestic violence, child abuse, stalking, child neglect and violations of protective orders. The second is a conviction for one CIMT within five years of admission for which you were not sentenced to more than a year in prison.

My loved one has been detained by immigration officers, what can an attorney do for us?

Published on: June 30, 2014 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

When U.S. immigration officers arrest someone, the hours, days and weeks that follow can be some of the most confusing, frightening but important times of their lives. The decisions that someone makes during this time can possibly mean the difference between staying in the U.S. with your loved ones or being deported and possibly never seeing them again.

When immigration officers encounter someone who they believe is in the U.S. in violation of the immigration laws, one of the first decisions they make is whether or not to detain the person in an immigration detention facility. If immigration officers decide not to detain the person, then this fortunate non-citizen is given an order of recognizance, or an Oreck (O-Reck) as the officers call it. When someone is on an ORec, they have to report periodically to immigration officers while their case is pending in immigration court.

If the immigration officers decide to detain someone, they first determine if the person is eligible for an immigration bond, and if so, they will decide how much the bond will be. An immigration bond can range anywhere from $1500 to $25,000 or more. If an immigration officer determines that you are not eligible for a bond, then you will be held in immigration detention until your cases is over, an immigration officer decides to release you or an immigration judge gives you a bond.

The Orlando Immigration Court handles cases for people detained at the Baker County Jail

Published on: June 23, 2014 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

The Orlando Immigration Court handles immigration cases for almost every non-citizen who lives in 57 of Florida’s 67 counties. Every person in removal proceedings who lives north of Charlotte County on the west coast of Florida and Martin County on the east coast, will likely have their immigration hearing in the Orlando Court. The Orlando Immigration Court is located at 3535 Lawton Road, Suite 200, Orlando, Florida. The Court is just north and east of downtown Orlando, near the Fashion Square Mall.

The Orlando Immigration Court currently has six Immigration Judges who each handle non-detained removal cases. Judge Rafael Ortiz-Segura is the senior judge, and there are five other judges in Orlando. They are, Victoria Ghartey, Daniel Lippman, Kevin Chapman, James Grim and Stuart Karden. Only one Immigration Judge currently handles detained immigration cases, that is, senior judge, Ortiz-Segura.

The Orlando Immigration Court handles primarily non-detained immigration cases, however, the Court handles detained immigration cases for people detained at the Baker County Jail, in MacClenny, Florida. The Baker County Jail is located about 30 minutes west of Jacksonville, Florida. The Baker county jail holds only non-citizens who have been arrested for, or convicted of crimes. The Orlando Immigration Court holds televideo hearings with detainees from the Baker County Jail appearing on a television screen in the courtroom in Orlando. Detainees at the Baker County Jail can have attorneys appear at the jail with them for all but the final individual hearing on any application for relief from removal. If a detainee has an individual hearing on an application for relief, their attorney and witnesses will need to appear live at the Orlando Immigration Court.

My Spouse, Parent, Child, or Employee was arrested by ICE; What do I do now?

Published on: June 18, 2014 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

This is a common question for tens of thousands of people every year in the United States whose loved ones or employees are arrested by immigration officers. The question can come up in many different contexts: “my son was arrested for grand theft, but now he is detained by Immigration,” or “my dad was pulled over for not having a license, now Immigration has him,” or “my husband went to his immigration interview and ICE arrested him,” or “my employee was coming back from a short trip out of the country and they arrested him at the port.”

In Florida, if your loved one was arrested by Immigration Officers, they can be detained in one of multiple ICE detention facilities across the state. If ICE detainees the person in Central or North Florida, they will likely be detained in the Wakulla County Jail just south of Tallahassee or the Baker County Jail just west of Jacksonville. If your loved one was detained in South Florida, they will likely be sent to the Broward Transitional Center (BTC) just north of Ft. Lauderdale, the Kreme Service Processing Center (Krome SPC), west of Miami, or the Glades County Jail, southwest of Lake Okeechobee.

One way to find out where your loved one is detained by ICE is to check the ICE Online Detainee Locator System at https://locator.ice.gov/odls/homePage.do

Possession of Ammunition By a Convicted Felon is an Aggravated Felony

Published on: November 4, 2013 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

One of the more controversial laws on the books in both federal jurisdictions and many state jurisdictions is the crime of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon. Under Federal law and here in the State of Florida, it is a felony for a convicted felon to possess ammunition. It is a crime whether there is a firearm involved or not. Therefore, a 75 year old man who was convicted 40 years ago for a tendering a worthless check who is pulled over and found in possession of an old bullet that someone else left in his vehicle could be convicted of Possession of Ammunition by a Convicted Felon if the prosecution can prove knowledge and possession (whether actual or constructive. A person can be sentenced up to 10 years in federal court, and in the State of Florida, can be sentenced to up to 15 years. The law provides for some very harsh consequences to often times benign behavior. Although the law is designed to keep guns and ammunition out of the hands of convicted felons, the wide net often catches those not specifically intended to be caught, like our 75 year old worthless check felon.

So those are the criminal consequences of possession of even one bullet (without a gun to make it dangerous). But what are the immigration consequences? The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) recently answered that question in Matter of Oppedisano. The BIA held that a conviction for Possession of Ammunition by a Convicted Felon is an Aggravated Felony for immigration purposes. Aggravated felonies have extremely harsh consequences for immigrants. No matter how long you’ve lived in the United States, and no matter how long you’ve had a green card, an aggravated felony conviction will almost inevitably result in deportation, with very few exceptions.

This case serves as another warning to those who have been convicted of a felony and who are not U.S. citizens. Most cases of possession of ammunition by a convicted felon arise when a group of individuals are stopped in a car and there is a gun and/or ammunition in the car and everyone is arrested for constructive possession. This is commonly referred to as guilt by association. Convicted felons who are not U.S. citizens must be ever more vigilant in ensuring that the people they spend their time with are not in possession of illicit or illegal items.

I Pled Guilty to a Criminal Charge. Now What?

Published on: October 5, 2013 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

I often get calls from people who are not U.S. citizens, and who have pled guilty or no contest to a criminal charge. Unfortunately, for many of these people, it is too late to do anything about the immigration consequences of the criminal conviction. In the State of Florida, there are deadlines for going back and challenging a previous criminal conviction. So, for example, if you pled guilty four years ago to a domestic battery, and now you want to go visit your family in Germany, upon reentry to the United States, you would likely be placed in deportation proceedings, because a domestic violence conviction makes you inadmissible and deportable.

Now, you may tell me that your criminal lawyer did not properly advise you that a domestic battery conviction, or even a withhold of adjudication, would result in you being inadmissible and deportable. If that prior conviction was within the last two years, you may be able to go back and reopen your criminal case. However, if it is more than two years old, the law in the State of Florida would not allow you to challenge the prior conviction on the grounds that you were not properly advised of the immigration consequences.

Criminal convictions have serious and long lasting immigration consequences. Whether you are here without any lawful status, or whether you have had a greencard for decades, even a very old and minor criminal conviction can make you deportable. If you have any (and I mean any) criminal charge at any time in the past, it is extremely important to consult an immigration attorney before you leave the country or have any contact with any immigration official (i.e. USCIS, ICE, CBP).