The crossover between immigration and criminal law is one of the most complex and technical areas of law. The Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) is recognized as a national leader in criminal immigration law and immigration consequences of crimes. We provide critical support to immigration attorneys and criminal defenders through analysis, policy work, trainings, technical assistance, and developing and disseminating best practices. We also publish an in-depth practitioner’s guide, Defending Immigrants in the Ninth Circuit: Impact of Crimes under California and Other State Law.
California Quick Reference Chart
Go here for the 2016 California Quick Reference Chart.
Latest in Crimes
06/14/2019
For noncitizens, even a low level offense like a shoplifting conviction can lead to mandatory deportation. However, this can be avoided when people secure post-conviction relief to erase or modify their old convictions. If the convictions are vacated, or the sentences reduced, the grounds for removal often evaporate. This guide, created by the ILRC and Californians for Safety and Justice, is an...
06/04/2019
Gubernatorial pardons have become an increasingly important and accessible tool for immigrants to erase certain immigration consequences of criminal convictions. This two-page primer, written in collaboration with the UCLA School of Law Criminal Defense Clinic and available in both English and Spanish, provides an overview of the California Pardon process for potential applicants and their...
05/29/2019
Diversion refers to a variety of programs that seek to avoid the processing of a defendant through the traditional criminal legal system. The goal of diversion is to direct an individual who has been accused of a crime into a treatment or care program as an alternative to imprisonment and/or prosecution. Diversion can take many forms, depending on how and when the diversion program is introduced...
03/19/2019
Update: Note also that the Supreme Court has reversed the Ninth Circuit's beneficial decision in Nielsen v. Preap. See alert in this advisory, and we will issue an updated version of the advisory soon. Noncitizens with certain criminal records are subject to mandatory immigration detention under INA § 236(c), 8 USC § 1226(c). This means that they may remain detained during the weeks, months, or...
03/12/2019
This page offers resources on “crim/imm,” the law governing the intersection of immigration and crimes, especially as it applies to California law. This page includes the Public-Facing California Chart , Analysis: Selected Defenses to Selected California Crimes , as well as a series of short articles on crim/imm entitled Notes. Immigration advocates and criminal defenders can access additional...