Deportation Emergency Hot Line:
Supreme Court Decision Opens the Possibility for Deportation Relief for Immigrants with a Criminal Conviction from Years Ago. Decision May Also Apply to Those Already Deported! Call the Baurkot Deportation Team NOW for More Information.
Deported Because of an Old Conviction? Facing Deportation Because of an Old Conviction? Have a Deportation Order Because of an Old Conviction? A New Supreme Court Case May Help You, But We Must File Before January 10, 2012.
In a recent Supreme Court decision, hundreds of thousands of already deported aliens (immigrants) or those currently in removal proceedings due to criminal convictions (guilty pleas or, quite possibly, convictions that resulted following a trial), may have the opportunity to either return to the United States and seek immigration relief or to seek an otherwise unavailable form of immigration relief if already in deportation proceedings.
In Judulang v. Holder, No. 10–694, December 12, 2011, the Supreme Court listened to the case of a Lawful Permanent Resident who had lived in the United States since 1974. The Legal Immigrant pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in 1988, over ten years after his first entry into the United States. In 2005, the United States’ Department of Homeland Security initiated removal/deportation proceedings against the immigrant after he was convicted of another crime.
The Government charged the permanent resident as being deportable for having committed an “aggravated felony,” as defined in immigration law, a body of law commonly referred to as the Immigration & Nationality Act or the “INA.” Federal immigration authorities argued that the immigrant was an aggravated felon because his 1988 voluntary manslaughter conviction fell within the definition of a “crime of violence,” as written in the aggravated felony provision of the immigration law.
The hard working and long term permanent resident was facing deportation for a crime he had committed nearly fifteen years ago. The Immigration Judge denied the permanent resident any immigration relief, refusing him the opportunity to apply for deportation relief under Section 212(c) of the Immigration & Nationality Act. The Board of Immigration Appeals dismissed the immigrant’s appeal and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with the Immigration Judge and the Board of Immigration Appeals.
The Supreme Court, however, decided to hear the legal immigrant’s story and took a stand that shocked many. The Supreme Court broke new ground in holding that a class (composed of, possibly, hundreds of thousands of otherwise deportable aliens ((or aliens currently in deportation/removal proceeding or already ordered deported/removed)), who were deported as a result of a criminal conviction that is years old, have the opportunity to return to the United States and reargue their immigration case or, if the alien is currently in removal proceedings, the immigrant may now be able to assert a form of relief that was not otherwise available.
The basic requirements for 212(c) relief are that the alien who is in deportation proceedings (1) had resided as a Lawful Permanent Resident for seven years calculated in reverse of either the date of the conviction or prior to the date that the immigrant applies for 212(c) relief; (2) be deportable as a result of a guilty plea or a conviction following a trial where the plea agreement or the conviction occurred before a certain date in the mid-1990s; and (3) where the good things in the alien’s life outweigh the bad things in the individual alien’s life.
“The Supreme Court essentially ruled that those who were not eligible for a certain form of easily available relief from deportation are now eligible for it. Also, if someone is now facing deportation because of a crime they committed years ago, a new avenue is now open for the person who is facing deportation to save him or herself from being forced to return to the country that person immigrated from,” said Raymond Lahoud, an immigration law and deportation defense attorney from the Pennsylvania-based law firm Baurkot & Baurkot.
A person who has already been deported may file a Motion to Reopen his or her deportation proceedings and have another day before an immigration court. Immigrants who are now in removal proceedings may have the opportunity to ask the Immigration Judge for another, easier to secure, form of relief.
“Timing is important here as any motions related to this excellent Supreme Court decision,” said Lahoud, “must be filed within a month of the decision. It is imperative that those who are facing deportation or have been already deported to contact an experienced deportation defense attorney.”
If you, a family member or a friend are facing deportation or already have been deported as a result of a criminal conviction from years ago, contact the Law Offices of Baurkot & Baurkot at (484) 544-0022 for a free evaluation of your case.
Immigration Law Blogs:
- Get the latest updates on immigration law by visiting Baurkot & Baurkot’s Immigration Law Blog. Simply click here.
- Visit Immigration Attorney Raymond Lahoud’s Blog at alawyertalks.com for his discussion on the American Immigration system.
Check the Status of your Application with United States Citizenship and Immigration Services:
- Click here to check the status of your immigration application with the Department of Homeland Security. Your application status is updated daily by Immigration Authorities. Once you click on the link, enter your receipt number for the Immigration application you submitted and the click on the “check status” button. Your status will then be displayed.
- Haga clic aquí para verificar el estado de su solicitud de inmigración con el Departamento de Seguridad Nacional. El estado de su aplicación se actualiza a diario por las autoridades de inmigración. Una vez que haga clic en el enlace, introduzca su número de recibo de la solicitud de inmigración que ha enviado y el clic en “comprobar estado” botón. Su estado se mostrará.
Leading Immigration & Deportation Law Firm:
With over 75 years of combined legal experience, the attorneys at Baurkot & Baurkot are some of the most respected attorneys in the New York, Pennsylvania and New Jersey region.
While the Firm is full-service, its Immigration Practice area is one of the largest and most respected. For decades, the Attorneys who are a part of Baurkot & Baurkot have represented individuals, families, small business & large corporations from around the world in all types of Immigration related matters, especially deportation cases.
We provide our Clients with unparalleled service and results in an expeditious and professional manner. We offer full Immigration services, from naturalization applications to the most complex of deportation proceedings or corporate employee immigration issues. Our firm offers all Clients with the resources necessary to provide efficient, cost-effective legal services. Our team specializes in complex immigration matters and obtaining approvals for “difficult” or “impossible” cases.
We have successfully reversed many denied petitions on legal grounds. Our immigration and deportation emphasis includes but is not limited to citizenship, U.S. Non-Immigration Visas, E Visas, E-3 Visas, H-1B Visas, H-2B Visas, L Visas, O Visas, P Visas, Q Visas, R Visas, TN Visas, U.S. Immigration Visas, EB5 Investor Visas, Exceptional Ability Immigrant Visas, Extraordinary Ability Immigrant Visas, K-1 Visas, K-3 Visas, Multinational Manager/Executive Immigrant Visas, Outstanding Professor/Researcher Immigrant Visas, PERM Labor Certification, Family Petitions, Adjustment of Status, Marriage Petitions, Asylum, VAWA applications, business, investment and artistic based petitions, waivers, Board of Immigration appeals, Motions to Re-open and Reconsider, Federal Court Appeals, deportation and removal proceedings, criminal post conviction relief appeals of convictions with serious immigration consequences. We also offer a full range of Canadian, European and Australian Immigration options.
The Law Firm takes pride in its integrity, honesty, hard work and its ability to find solutions to complex issues. We constantly modernize our knowledge base and research system, so that we always have the most updated and relevant Immigration Laws and changes.
The Firm was founded in Easton, Pennsylvania (by serving those in Easton, Allentown & Bethlehem), but has grown into serving others across the nation. In addition to offices in Easton and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the Firm has offices in New York and New Jersey. Firm attorneys will travel to any immigration court, whether it be York, Pennsylvania or Miami Florida.
The Firm also has an Immigration Advisor located a Sydney, Australia office who specializes in Australian, European and South Pacific Immigration matters.
Don’t Fight Alone:
Don’t fall victim to assuming you can fight your own immigration or deportation battle alone. An immigration lawyer does more than just fill out immigration forms. Often, applicants do not realize this and complicate or ruin their cases by attempting to handle things by alone. An experienced immigration lawyer understands the complex immigration laws and how they will be applied by immigration or consular officials to a particular case. Red flags or complexities discovered during the immigration attorney’s case work-up would be missed by a self-represented applicant as the immigration forms themselves rarely point out potential pitfalls or problems.
