Safe Havens

 

(A)  General Safe Havens.  The following safe havens apply to all conviction-based grounds of deportation, including all domestic violence conviction deportation grounds:

 

            (1)       Persons whose citizenship status or nationality renders them immune

                        from the grounds of deportation.

 

                        (a)  United States Citizens, see § 4.5, supra;

 

                        (b)  Nationals of the United States, see § 4.6, supra;

 

                        (c)  American Indians born in Canada, see § 4.7, supra.

 

(2)       Dispositions that are not considered convictions of a crime.  See § 4.9, supra.

                        (a)  Juvenile delinquency dispositions, see § 4.10, supra;

 

                        (b)  Dispositions under a procedure that is not considered criminal

                        procedure, so the disposition is not considered a conviction of a

                        crime, see § 4.11, supra;

 

                        (c)  Certain foreign convictions for conduct that is not considered

                        criminal under United States law, see § 4.12, supra.

            (3)       Dispositions of criminal cases that do not constitute convictions,

                        under the immigration-law definition of “conviction.”  See § 4.13,

                        supra.

 

                        (a)  Acquittal, see § 4.15, supra;

 

                        (b)  Dismissal before conviction, see § 4.16, supra;

 

                        (c)  Deferred prosecution, see § 4.17, supra;

 

                        (d)  Deferred verdict, see § 4.18, supra;

 

                        (e)  Deferred sentence, see § 4.19, supra.

 

            (4)       Convictions in criminal cases that are not considered sufficiently

                        final to permit the initiation of deportation proceedings, because an

                        appeal is pending or they are still subject to appeal, see § 4.21,                                  supra.

 

            (5)       Convictions that have been effectively eliminated for immigration

                        purposes by some form of post-conviction relief, see § 4.24, supra.

 

                        (a)  Judicial Recommendations Against Deportation, see § 4.25,

                        supra;

 

                        (b)  Executive pardons are not listed in the statute as eliminating this                                   ground of deportation, but there is an argument that they will be                               effective in doing so nonetheless, see § 4.26(C), supra;

 

                        (c)  State rehabilitative relief, see § 4.27, supra;

 

                       

(d)  Convictions that have been vacated on a ground of legal

                        invalidity, see § 4.28, supra;

                        (e)  Sentences that have been modified, reduced, or eliminated by

                        post-conviction relief, see § 4.29, supra.

 

            (6)       Convictions that are defective on some ground that may be raised in

                        immigration court as a defense to removal, see § 4.30, supra.

 

                        (a)  Convictions by a court that lacks jurisdiction to render a

                        conviction, see § 4.31, supra;

 

                        (b)  Convictions (usually foreign convictions) that are rendered in

                        absentia without adequate notice to the defendant, see § 4.32, supra.

 

            (7)       Convictions that do not follow admission do not trigger any ground

                        of deportation described in INA § 237(a), 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a).  See §

                        4.33, supra.

 

(8)       Convictions for unlisted non-substantive offenses.

 

                           (a)  Accessory After the Fact.  See § 7.8, supra;

 

                                  (b)  Aiding and Abetting.  See § 7.9, supra;

 

                                 (c)  Facilitation.  See § 7.10, supra;

 

                                 (d)  Misprision of a Felony.  See § 7.11, supra;

 

                           (e)  Solicitation.  See § 7.12, supra;

 

                                  (f)  Other Non-Substantive Offenses.  See § 7.13, supra.  Note that neither attempt nor conspiracy are listed in the domestic violence conviction deportation ground.  See § 7.151, infra.