Policy

U.S. Supreme Court rules that a conviction for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia may no longer make your Deportable.

Published on: June 3, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

In a long-awaiting ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court this week issued its decision in the case of Mellouli v. Lynch, 575 U.S. ____ (2015). This is the infamous case I blogged about months ago asking “When can a sock get you deported?”

https://www.floridaimmigrationlawyerblog.com/2015/02/when_can_a_sock_get_your_depor.html

The Supreme Court decided that the Board of Immigration Appeals and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eight Circuit were both wrong and in the case of Mr. Mellouli, his sock will not subject him to deportation.

New Published Administrative Appeals Office Decision Regarding Immigration Cases

Published on: May 26, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Recent Published AAO Decisions:

Matter of Leacheng International, INC., 26 I&N Dec. 532 (AAO 2015); In the context of an I-140 Petition for a multinational manager or executive, there is no requirement that the beneficiary has been “doing business” with an outside third party pursuant to 8 C.F.R. § 204.5(j()2) for at least one year immediately preceding the petition. The AAO found that it was sufficient that the beneficiary was “doing business” within an affiliated multinational organization.

Matter of Christo’s INC., 26 I&N Dec. 537 (AAO 2015); In an odd context for this issue to arise, the AAO found that the INA § 204(c) marriage fraud bar does not apply to completely fabricated marriages, that is, marriages that never actually existed in the first place. The AAO found that in order for the bar to apply the alleged perpetrator must have at least attempted or conspired to enter into a fraudulent marriage. Where there is evidence that the alien submitted false documents regarding a fictitious marriage, but did not actually enter into a marriage or attempt or conspire to do so, the bar does not apply.

Summary of Recent Attorney General, Board of Immigration Appeals Decisions and Immigration-Related Decisions from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit

Published on: May 20, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Recent Published AG Decision:

Matter of Silva-Trevino, 26 I&N Dec. 550 (AG 2015); Attorney General Holder (now former) completely vacated former AG Mukasey’s decision in 2008’s landmark decision, Matter of Silva-Trevino, 24 I&N Dec. 687 (AG 2008)-please hold your applause to the end. AG Holder recognized that five of the seven Federal Circuits that have ruled on the issue have overturned at least the third prong of the Silva-Trevino analysis which allowed Immigration Judges to go beyond the categorical and modified categorical analyses and use evidence outside the record of conviction. This is one of two recent decisions that spend quite a bit of time focusing on the needed for a unitary Federal policy on Immigration. This may be an indication that the Board may be looking for additional areas of immigration jurisprudence where there is a conflict in the Circuits and attempt to rectify the conflicts through BIA or AG decisions.

Recent Published BIA Decisions:

Judge’s Ruling Could Pave the Way for the Release of Thousands of Immigrant Women and Children

Published on: March 2, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

A Federal Court Judge recently banned the U.S. Government from using deterrence as a basis for denying the release of women and children from immigration detention facilities.

Article about the Decision:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/20/immigration-detention-injunction_n_6724662.html

Coptic Christians Across the Middle East and North Africa face Unspeakable Violence

Published on: February 18, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Whatever you call the Islamic State, ISIL, IS, or ISIS, everyone can agree that they commit horrible atrocities and brutal terroristic acts in multiple countries across the Middle East and North Africa. Their beheadings of Western and Asian Journalists on video were bad enough. Then they burned a Jordanian pilot alive as if we were still living in the middle ages. But their most recent despicable horror captured on video in an effort to scare the West and recruit more murderers was the torture and throat-slitting of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christians kidnapped in Libya.

Anyone who has seen or heard of this horrid tale should be appalled that these innocent men were clearly targeted, tortured and killed because of their Christian faith. Thankfully, Pope Francis spoke out to decry these despicable acts of religious persecution and torture. However, it is clear that no one of Christian faith is safe in any country in the Middle East or Northern Africa.

The United States has very strong immigration laws that prevent anyone from being deported to a country where they will be tortured or killed. In many circumstances, the U.S. will grant religious refugees lawful immigration status in the United States and even provide them with lawful permanent residence. Christians living in the Middle East and North Africa and more importantly, Christians in the United States who are from countries in the Middle East and North Africa have a very strong claim that if they return to their home countries they will be harmed, persecuted, tortured or killed because of their religion.

Cuban-American politicians from both parties want to see changes to the Cuban Adjustment Act.

Published on: February 13, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

President Obama has been all over the news recently talking about how the U.S. has begun normalizing relations with Cuba and the communist Castro regime. Many people in the U.S. think that decision is long over due, but many Cuban-Americans on both sides of the political aisle do not support the President’s Actions.

I have blogged before about the immigration changes that may come about with a full normalization of diplomatic relations with Cuba, and these changes are not good for Cuban immigrants. See https://www.floridaimmigrationlawyerblog.com/2014/12/normalizing_diplomatic_relatio.html

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When can a sock get you deported?

Published on: February 11, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Moones Mellouli came to the United States legally and became a lawful permanent resident. He went to college and attained multiple advanced educational degrees and became a professor. In 2009 he was arrested for DUI and the police found Adderall pills in his sock. Adderall is a drug that requires a prescription and is a federally controlled substance.

Professor Mellouli managed to avoid a conviction for illegally possessing the Adderall, which, given his immigration status, would have definitely made him removable under INA § 237(a)(2)(B)(i) for having been convicted of an offense relating to a controlled substance. Rather than a conviction for possessing the Adderall illegally, he managed to plead to a lesser offense, possession of drug paraphernalia, more specifically, the sock in which he illegally stored and concealed the Adderall.

Yes, you read that correctly, not only is it a crime to illegally possess a controlled substance, but in most states, it is also illegal to possess any object that a person uses or intends to use to:

Two big reasons why you need both a criminal defense attorney and an immigration attorney in criminal court.

Published on: February 3, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Every day thousands of people find themselves in criminal court having been accused of committing a crime. While criminal court can be a scary, intimidating and rough place to find oneself, it is particularly troublesome for criminal defendants who are not U.S. citizens. In addition to facing prison time or probation, non-U.S. citizens face something potentially much worse-deportation. In criminal court, defendants have a constitutional right to an attorney, so even poor criminal defendants will have counsel representing them–if they cannot afford to hire their own attorney. Regardless of whether a non-citizen defendant hires their own defense attorney or has one appointed, one of the first questions you should ask your lawyer is: what do you know about immigration law? If the answer is nothing or something close, you should immediately contact an experienced and qualified immigration attorney to help with your criminal case.

A non-citizen has so much more to worry about during their criminal case then does a U.S. citizen. There are so many more complications in a criminal case for a non-U.S. citizen, that one should not risk deportation by failing to consult with and hire an experienced immigration attorney who can advise you and your criminal defense attorney regarding your criminal case.

Here are some important reasons why every non-citizen criminal defendant should consult with and hire an experienced immigration attorney to assist in their criminal defense:

Push and Pull: the Forces that Drive Immigrants to Risk Everything to Come to the United States Part Three

Published on: January 29, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

In my first blog in this series, I explained that there are multiple causes to our immigration dilemma here in the United States. Some of these causes have their genesis in the U.S., and encourage people to risk it all to come here; I have coined these causes, pull factors. There are also strong influences present in almost every country in the world that encourage residents of those nations to want to leave, these are push factors. So in countries where there are strong push factors and similarly strong pull factors to the U.S., we see the largest migration of people seeking to enter the United States legally or otherwise.

Last time out I covered the strong push and pull factors that combined in Honduras, El Salvador & Guatemala to create the immigration and humanitarian crisis that we saw at the Southwest Border last summer.

This time I will cover two of our Caribbean neighbors where immigration to the U.S. is relatively very high. Cuba and Haiti send thousands of immigrants to the U.S. every year both with proper documents and without. Those who come over with authorization are usually coming to follow family members who are in the U.S. and have petitioned to bring their relatives here–pull factors. Those who are coming without authorization are usually fleeing poverty, persecution or violence–push factors.

Push and Pull: the Forces that Drive Immigrants to Risk Everything to Come to the United States Part Two

Published on: January 27, 2015 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

In my last blog I explained that there are multiple causes to our immigration dilemma here in the United States. Some of these causes have their genesis in the U.S., and encourage people to risk it all to come here, I have coined these causes, pull factors. There are also strong influences present in almost every country in the world that encourage residents of those nations to want to leave, these are push factors. So in countries where there are strong push factors and similarly strong pull factors to the U.S., we see the largest migration of people seeking to enter the United States legally or otherwise.

Here is a prime example of where strong push and pull factors combine to create the immigration and humanitarian crisis that we saw at the Southwest Border last summer.

Murder rates in three Central American countries, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras are outrageously high relative to the rest of the world. Accordingly, personal and financial security are extremely low in these three places. Those are very strong push factors; if you don’t know if you or your family has a future because you could be killed or kidnapped tomorrow, why go to school, why get an education, why go to work, why save up money just to lose it all to violence? People in these three countries have a strong incentive to want to leave and find a better life somewhere else. In addition to those strong push factors, there are multiple equally strong pull factors that encourage those fleeing Central America to choose to come to the U.S. rather than seeking safety and security in different country.