Green Card Renewal previous felony

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stress_out

New Member
I have been a legal permanent resident for 25 years. I came to the United States before I turned two years old. The time to renew my green card has come because it is expireing in a couple of months. I am afraid because 7 years ago I was charged with a felony(larceny). I was told at the time that I should accept a CWOF and the case would be dismissed after a year. They told me that it wasnt a conviction.

I recently found out that a CWOF is a conviction for immigration purposses. I am afraid that if I try to renew my green card I would be placed in deportation.

The felony that I plead CWOF is not a aggrevated felony because I didnt recieve a jail scentence. I recieved a year probation while the case was continued and the case was dismissed after the year was over.

Can someone help me out. Am I likey to be facing deportation for this felony even though it is not considered an aggravated felony. Should I just not renew my green card. :(
 
I have been a legal permanent resident for 25 years. I came to the United States before I turned two years old.
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Are you sure you're not a citizen? Did one or both of your parents become citizens before you turned 18?
 
I am sure that I am not a citizen neither of my parents are citizens. I was planning on becoming a citizen when I turned 18 and before I got a chance to I got charged with the crime.
 
I thought the permanent residency is only for 20 years and one has to either obtain citizenship or leave the country after that.

I am wondering how the OP has been in the US for 25 years as a PR!
 
howdy_howdy said:
I thought the permanent residency is only for 20 years and one has to either obtain citizenship or leave the country after that.

I am wondering how the OP has been in the US for 25 years as a PR!
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NO. permanent means PERMANENT. One needs to renew LPR card every 10 years just to have a valid card in hand.

I am sorry for the OP. His/her parents did not obtain citizenship for him when he was below 18. That really sucks. OP needs urgent attorney advise who specializes in both immigration and criminal cases.

I have heard a story recently a Cambodian guy (who entered when he was 1 year old or something) and his mother never took citizenship and he never new he had to obtain himself when he turned 18. He got into trouble with the law like this and the ICE deported him to Cambodia .... the ICE and DHS are not kidding around and they show no sympathy just because some one grew up in USA.
 
howdy_howdy said:
I thought the permanent residency is only for 20 years and one has to either obtain citizenship or leave the country after that.

I am wondering how the OP has been in the US for 25 years as a PR!
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how did they let you be a moderator with such poor knowledge.
 
Background checks for green card renewal are less comprehensive than with naturalization. The case was dismissed, and you don't have to bring court dispositions for green card renewal (but for naturalization you do), so that incident probably won't stop you from renewing your green card.

If you were told by the lawyer or judge that CWOF was not a conviction for immigration purposes, and the judge did not warn you that CWOF can result in possible deportation, you can use that in your defense if they somehow seek to deport you for the incident.
The felony that I plead CWOF is not a aggrevated felony because I didnt recieve a jail scentence. I recieved a year probation while the case was continued and the case was dismissed after the year was over.
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There doesn't have to be actual jail time for it to be an aggravated felony. You need to check with an experienced immigration lawyer to look at the details of the case to determine if it is an aggravated felony.
 
Please see below the definition of aggrevated felony.

The Immigration and Nationality Act §101(a)(43), defines what constitutes an aggravated felony. Under the Act, an aggravated felony includes but is not limited to the following types of crimes:

Murder
Rape
Sexual abuse of a minor
Illicit trafficking of a controlled substance
Money laundering, tax evasion or crimes involving fraud or deceit involving more than $10,000
Crimes of violent offense, for which the term of imprisonment imposed is at least one year
Theft or burglary offense, for which the term of imprisonment imposed is at least one year

Since the felony I plead to is a theft crime there has to be a term of imprisonment of at least a year.
 
I want to be certain. I am just going by the research that I have been doing online. I am looking for someone that can confirm my research. Are there any lawyers on this board or individuals with knowledge on this subject that can clarify this for me.

I admitted sufficient facts to larceny which is a theft crime so it is on the one year list of crimes which scentence imposed is a year or more. My case was continued for a year and then dismissed(CWOF). I never recieved a scentence to the house of correction to be served or suspended. So to the best of my knowledge this is not an aggravated felony.

Can someone confirm this for me. Any lawyers please.
 
Jackolantern said:
If you were told by the lawyer or judge that CWOF was not a conviction for immigration purposes, and the judge did not warn you that CWOF can result in possible deportation, you can use that in your defense if they somehow seek to deport you for the incident.
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I truly doubt that the judge or the ADA told him it was not a conviction for immigration purposes, and he did not say so. Although this may vary from one jurisdiction to another, in my experience judges and prosecutors do not discuss immigration issues, and are under no obligation to do so. That would be the responsibility of the defense attorney, and if he got bad advice from a defense attorney, he might have a malpractice claim but it probably won't help much with USCIS. It could be a good defense if a judge or prosecutor made a false promise about immigration, but I doubt that happened. He would probably need a transcript to prove it, too.

There doesn't have to be actual jail time for it to be an aggravated felony. You need to check with an experienced immigration lawyer to look at the details of the case to determine if it is an aggravated felony.
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Very true!
 
aosing said:
I truly doubt that the judge or the ADA told him it was not a conviction for immigration purposes, and he did not say so. Although this may vary from one jurisdiction to another, in my experience judges and prosecutors do not discuss immigration issues, and are under no obligation to do so.
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Under the laws of some states, they are required to inform the defendant of the possible immigration consequences. And their failure to do so, especially if they specifically said the plea would NOT lead to deportation, has been successfully used as a defense against deportation, and/or to vacate the original case (which also effectively voids the deportation, if the deportation was based on that conviction).
 
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I am afraid because 7 years ago I was charged with a felony(larceny). I was told at the time that I should accept a CWOF and the case would be dismissed after a year. They told me that it wasnt a conviction.
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I can't give you a clear answer, but one thing I know, based on my experience, is 'one year sentence' is the key. If it is less than 'one year sentence', you may be ok, but, if not, the outcome might be serious. Anyway, you may want to hire a lawyer for your case.

cheers!
 
stress_out said:
I have been a legal permanent resident for 25 years. I came to the United States before I turned two years old. The time to renew my green card has come because it is expireing in a couple of months. I am afraid because 7 years ago I was charged with a felony(larceny). I was told at the time that I should accept a CWOF and the case would be dismissed after a year. They told me that it wasnt a conviction.

I recently found out that a CWOF is a conviction for immigration purposses. I am afraid that if I try to renew my green card I would be placed in deportation.

The felony that I plead CWOF is not a aggrevated felony because I didnt recieve a jail scentence. I recieved a year probation while the case was continued and the case was dismissed after the year was over.

Can someone help me out. Am I likey to be facing deportation for this felony even though it is not considered an aggravated felony. Should I just not renew my green card. :(
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First thing to do. Go to the court where this was decided and get the certificate of disposition and all other papers related to your case.

I just read that you basically have to plead "no contest" to get a CWOF. So you need to take those papers to a good criminal attorney and see what can be done in terms of changing the plea.

Then before you apply for the renewal you need to see a good immigration attorney. You should shop around and get different opinions because some of them are real crooks.

Then you need to tell us or rather your attorney (and I suppose so from your age) if you have been in the US for 7 years before the incident. Then you may qualify for a waiver.

Make no mistake you better be calling or visiting some attorneys or a local immigration law clinic. I personally would see some of the clinics where law students practice since sometimes they are more helpful. Then after you get the knowledge you need you should visit an experienced attorney because experience and case results are very important. Don't hesitate to ask if they have handled cases like yours and what their success rate was. If you think he is lying - run. The last thing you need is an attorney that lies to you.

One other thing, you will need to renew the GC if you ever want a job in the US. Some employers (usually universities) are okay taking your SS card and ID card, but others will want to see proof of your valid GC.

Good luck with your case, but my thought (I am not an attorney nor do I really know anything) is that you should get a good criminal lawyer to get the charge taken down to something much less serious. They can find arguments - maybe that you didn't understand what you were pleading to with a CWOF and you explained to your lawyer/public defender that you have immigration consequences and the lawyer did not handle your case properly and gave you bad advice. A good lawyer never would have let you plead "no contest" for a CWOF.
 
gc_wait_485 said:
I can't give you a clear answer, but one thing I know, based on my experience, is 'one year sentence' is the key. If it is less than 'one year sentence', you may be ok, but, if not, the outcome might be serious. Anyway, you may want to hire a lawyer for your case.
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He didn't serve any jail sentence because he had a CWOF which is essentially probation followed by a dismissal for good behavior, except that it is treated as a conviction for the purposes of later arrests or charges. It was a felony so the possible sentence had to be more than a year, and that is a problem.

He needs a good lawyer.
 
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It was a felony so the possible sentence had to be more than a year, and that is a problem. He needs a good lawyer.
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You made a good point. Yes, I absolutely recommend hiring a lawyer as to you don't "what kinds" of AO is waiting for stress_out.

cheers!
 
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