Could A Drug Arrest Get Me Deported?
Today’s media enjoys painting the U.S. immigration system as soft and porous, arguing that ‘anyone’ can enter and remain in the country without legal authorization to do so. In reality, the immigration system is extremely overextended, with an extensive backlog of cases, but the laws governing crimes committed by non-citizens are quite harsh. Nowhere is this more obvious than in dealing with drug offenses; while a drug arrest will generally not result in immigration consequences, a conviction can and will.
Crimes Against Society Are Deportable
Non-citizen residents of the U.S. have most of the same rights as citizens do, but not all of them. Non-citizens cannot vote, work certain jobs, or hold federal office, and their status in the country is contingent on their maintaining what immigration laws call good moral character. Essentially, this means that if a non-citizen is convicted of a crime, immigration issues may follow because their claim to good moral character is now suspect.
This is particularly true of drug offenses. The laws of Florida and the U.S. as a whole see most drug offenses as crimes against society, and classify them as aggravated felonies (AgFs). AgF is a label used in the immigration system, though its true definition is vague. It includes any offense which appears to exhibit poor moral character and/or reckless disregard for morality. A conviction of any AgF is generally always grounds for deportation – and drug trafficking and sales are explicitly listed as aggravated felonies.
Know Your Rights
If you have been charged with a drug offense other than simple possession of cannabis under 30 grams, it is a good idea to act quickly on the immigration front even while your criminal case may still be pending. If a person is undocumented, they are considered inadmissible upon conviction, which is slightly different than being considered deportable, and the two have different consequences (generally, different periods of time in which one may not enter the United States) – but both require legal assistance to manage.
Keep in mind that while a plea-bargain or pretrial diversion agreement may keep you out of jail, it may still be considered a conviction for the purposes of the U.S. Immigration & Nationality Act (INA). A conviction will, at the very least, place an individual in removal proceedings, if not render them immediately deportable, so it is crucial to know what Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) considers a conviction for their purposes.
Call A West Palm Beach Drug Offenses Attorney
The stakes of a drug conviction in Florida are high – but they are much higher when tied to immigration consequences. A West Palm Beach drug offenses attorney from Perlet & Shiner, P.A. can work with you to ensure that handling your drug case does not immediately give immigration authorities cause to strike. Contact our office today to speak to an attorney.
Source:
tracreports.org/immigration/quickfacts/eoir.html
