Wants to file for Citizenship but...

A

aniadm

Registered Users (C)
Hi,

I would like to apply for USC within next 2/3 weeks to Newark, NJ USC center. But I have few questions.

I was involved with a DWI offence 2 years ago while going home from X'mas party. The cops took me to police station and took my breathing test and
released me. I pleaded guilty and paid all County/State/DMV fines.

I am planning to click "Yes" on question 18 (Have you ever been convicted of a crime or offense?) on N-400 form and describe truly what happen on that
day.

Now,

Do I need a lawyer to represent my case ?
Do I also need to go through lawyer for my wife's case ?
I have no idea how much lawyers charge for Naturalization process ?
Any min/max $$$$ figure will help me.

Any additional documents needed if I decided not to hire a lawyer ?

please help me to answer my question.

thx.
 
aniadm said:
I was involved with a DWI offence 2 years ago while going home from X'mas party. The cops took me to police station and took my breathing test and released me. I pleaded guilty and paid all County/State/DMV fines.
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Save your money. You'll need this alcohol offense to fall outside of the 5yr "good moral behavior" window before you stand a chance of being naturalized. Even then, you probably want to consult with a lawyer before filing anything.
 
I say just apply. Take all documents with you and file as required by their standards (provide original disposition, etc.) Whats the worst that will happen? they will say no and you will loose your 600-700 in fees. so what? if you ask a lawyer, you'll have to pay them 3-4g's and pay 600-700 bucks, and they'll tell you, ' i give no guaranty'
 
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Triple Citizen said:
I too would advise you to wait until the DWI incident is 5 years old.
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+1

A buddy of mine went through the same situation. He had a DUI back in 01 or 02..Because of that his application for denied. He just got naturalized earlier this year, February I suppose. That's when his charges dropped.
 
aniadm said:
Hi,

I would like to apply for USC within next 2/3 weeks to Newark, NJ USC center. But I have few questions.

I was involved with a DWI offence 2 years ago while going home from X'mas party. The cops took me to police station and took my breathing test and
released me. I pleaded guilty and paid all County/State/DMV fines.

I am planning to click "Yes" on question 18 (Have you ever been convicted of a crime or offense?) on N-400 form and describe truly what happen on that
day.

Now,

Do I need a lawyer to represent my case ?
Do I also need to go through lawyer for my wife's case ?
I have no idea how much lawyers charge for Naturalization process ?
Any min/max $$$$ figure will help me.

Any additional documents needed if I decided not to hire a lawyer ?

please help me to answer my question.

thx.
Click to expand...
A single DWI during the 5 year period before before you apply for naturalization may subject you to a denial based on 8 C.F.R. 316.10(b)(3)(iii) unless you can establish extenuating circumstances. There have been instances where an applicant successfully appealed such a denial and the court awarded favorable summary to the applicant. (See RAGOONANAN v. USCIS (Minn. 12-17-2007).
Needless to day, it's always best to seek the help of an immigrant lawyer with experience in criminal law when dealing with such cases unless you are very knowledgeable of the laws and court system.
 
Did anyone notice the date of the original post?
9 months elapsed and suddenly this thread was resurrected, but not by the OP. :confused:
 
boatbod said:
Save your money. You'll need this alcohol offense to fall outside of the 5yr "good moral behavior" window before you stand a chance of being naturalized. Even then, you probably want to consult with a lawyer before filing anything.
Click to expand...


Interesting. My attorney (who is both criminal and immigration attorney) tells me something very different: that DWI is not CIMT and by itself is not an evidence of bad moral character, that it is even possible to get naturalized while on DWI probation, and that his clients did it on a few occasions.
 
wombat said:
Interesting. My attorney (who is both criminal and immigration attorney) tells me something very different: that DWI is not CIMT and by itself is not an evidence of bad moral character, that it is even possible to get naturalized while on DWI probation, and that his clients did it on a few occasions.
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What we need is someone to test that theory. Either your attorney knows something that nobody else does, or he's hoping to extract money for trying to put you through the process.

I do believe it might be possible under _some_ circumstances to be naturalized while having a single DWI or maybe even a DUI, but its going to require the IO to really be on your side.
 
boatbod said:
What we need is someone to test that theory. Either your attorney knows something that nobody else does, or he's hoping to extract money for trying to put you through the process.
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Both of these are possible, although I have doubts about the second, since I already paid his fee before my DUI happened.

I filed N-400 in late April 2007 (PD May 1, 2007), and had my DUI in July. He was my attorney for DUI as well, and was completely unperturbed - told me right away that single DUI in Massachusetts is not going to affect naturalization and that he knows exactly how to overcome that obstacle at the interview and that he had done it before. I vaguely remember him mentioning some previous court decision to that effect. It did not smell like lawyer BS to me.

He also mentioned that it is even possible to get naturalized while on DUI probation, although he did say that it is more difficult. My probation ends it the end of July.

As I said, I do not think he is trying to extract any money for that, as the N-400 was aqlready started and I already paid my retainer at that time.

In any case, right now I am stuck in name check limbo and was going to make an appointment with my attorney at the end of April to discuss my strategy regarding that. Since I am now getting more involved in the nitty-gritty of my case, I am going to ask him to give me the details on how exactly he is going to overcome the DUI. Then I will publish it here.
 
boatbod said:
I do believe it might be possible under _some_ circumstances to be naturalized while having a single DWI or maybe even a DUI, but its going to require the IO to really be on your side.
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And a good lawyer. In the case you mentioned where the applicant prevailed, they were initially denied. The IO will probably be inclined to deny the application, unless there is a lawyer at the interview who can argue against it and cite the relevant precedents.
 
Simple DWI is not considered CIMT, however in some circumstances (and depending on state law) a DWI may lead to a charge of aggravated DWI which is considered a CIMT. It all depends on the factors surrounding the arrest , so that would explain someone on DWI probation being approved for naturalization. However, unless an applicant is very experienced with the laws and legalese, applying for naturalization with a DWI without lawyer representation is risky.

http://immlawcounsel.com/moralturpitude.pdf
 
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Jackolantern said:
And a good lawyer. In the case you mentioned where the applicant prevailed, they were initially denied. The IO will probably be inclined to deny the application, unless there is a lawyer at the interview who can argue against it and cite the relevant precedents.
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Of course. I am going to need all the help I could muster. That is why I will go to the interview with this attorney.
 
I had a DWI 4 yrs ago. so 3.5 yrs after DWI, i applied for naturalization. i submited a complete file (with original documents from court as requested by N-400 guidelines), i've paid all my taxes, and am a good citizen... so i got my interview/citizenship done.

it took about 6 months from date of application submission to fingerprint to interview/oath. its all not true that you need a lawyer and good moral charecter and bla bla bla - just go apply. whats the worst that can happen? nothing.

i went without a laywer. nothing happened. i got approved.
 
evilkayak said:
I had a DWI 4 yrs ago. so 3.5 yrs after DWI, i applied for naturalization. i submited a complete file (with original documents from court as requested by N-400 guidelines), i've paid all my taxes, and am a good citizen... so i got my interview/citizenship done.

it took about 6 months from date of application submission to fingerprint to interview/oath. its all not true that you need a lawyer and good moral charecter and bla bla bla - just go apply. whats the worst that can happen? nothing.

i went without a laywer. nothing happened. i got approved.
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Consider yourself lucky. Every situation is different and there are plenty of examples of denials based on DWI convictions. It's always best to seek council in these cases instead of taking the chances to see what will happen.
 
evilkayak said:
it took about 6 months from date of application submission to fingerprint to interview/oath. its all not true that you need a lawyer and good moral charecter and bla bla bla - just go apply. whats the worst that can happen? nothing.
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That's if you think denial=nothing.
 
The cases involving "moral issues" are very open to interpretation, perhaps it all comes down to the IO and how stict s/he is ? We have seen this with the 'days outside US' also, some people are grilled and passports checked for stamps while others coast through.
 
I totally agree with you. It all boils down to the officer sitting across the N-400 applicant. Being a die hard teetotaller and a MADD activist, if I was an N-400 adjudicator, I would never approve any applicant with a DUI/DWI, regardless of when the incident took place. No wonder I know I will never be hired by USCIS :)


aabbcc11 said:
The cases involving "moral issues" are very open to interpretation, perhaps it all comes down to the IO and how stict s/he is ?
Click to expand...
 
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