When Immigration And Criminal Law Combine
Criminal charges are always a worry. They can affect your schooling, your job and your future. Incarceration literally places your life on hold.
But if you are an immigrant, green card holder (permanent resident alien), or DACA student, the consequences of a criminal charge for your immigration status can lead to severe repercussions and, in some cases, catastrophic consequences.
At Robert F. Jacobs & Associates, PLC, our attorneys have more than 25 years of experience and can help you understand “crimmigration” and protect your immigration status, as well as provide an aggressive criminal defense to any charges.
What Is Crimmigration?
At one time, criminal law and immigration law were separate and distinct. If you were charged with a crime, your charges were dealt with in criminal court and any punishment was only what was contained in the criminal statutes.
Similarly, immigration law was generally restricted to immigration matters and the immigration authorities. In the 1980s, that began to change, as many more consequences of criminal activity were added to the immigration laws. Also, many immigration-related activities were “criminalized” or treated as criminal violations.
The result is “crimmigration,” which is a combination of immigration-related crimes and crimes that now have direct effects on immigration status.
Criminal Charges That Place Your Immigration Status At Risk
- Drug charges
- DUI/DWI
- Theft charges and shoplifting
- Domestic violence
These and many criminal charges could have disastrous effects on your immigration status. Even something like cheating on a test in college could cause a negative impact on your student visa or immigration status. Our attorneys are very experienced with both criminal defense and with immigration law, and they work to minimize the potential effects of criminal charges on you and your future.
Contact Us Today!
For immediate help with crimmigration, call our Santa Fe Springs office at 866-308-5703 today. If you don’t need immediate help from our attorneys, use our online contact form to set up an appointment. We provide affordable representation on a flat-fee basis. You will know the cost upfront, and there will be no surprises when you receive your bill. We also offer payment plans.