Safe Havens

If immigration counsel is confronted with a client who has already been convicted of a criminal offense, s/he will want to determine whether the disposition falls into a safe haven.  If the disposition is not a conviction, or if the conviction does not trigger deportation, it constitutes a safe haven, and the DHS will not initiate removal proceedings based on a claim that the disposition triggers deportation, assuming the DHS agrees that the safe haven does not trigger deportation.  In the alternative, the DHS may erroneously initiate deportation proceedings, but the respondent should prevail on a motion to terminate since the safe haven does not trigger deportation.  In either event, immigration counsel should obtain certified copies of the record of conviction to protect the client against later destruction of the court files and ensure the client can in the future prove to the satisfaction of the DHS, EOIR, or federal courts that the disposition indeed does constitute a safe haven and does not trigger deportation.

            This investigation may occur shortly after conviction.  If so, the client may wish to establish that the disposition is a safe haven and that s/he does not need to pursue post-conviction relief in criminal court in order to obtain protection against deportation on account of the disposition.  This investigation should occur promptly, since many forms of post-conviction relief have short deadlines and the chances of success in obtaining post-conviction relief from a conviction drop markedly with the passage of time after the conviction occurs.