Tooby's California Post-Conviction Relief for Immigrants

First, it is necessary to verify the jurisdiction (i.e., the geographical location of the court) in which each criminal conviction occurred.  If the conviction occurred in federal court, it is necessary to determine the state and district of the U.S. District Court in which the client suffered the conviction.  If the conviction occurred in state court, the attorney must ascertain the state and county (or other local governmental subdivision) in which the conviction occurred.  This information is necessary to determine which “rap sheets” (federal, state, and/or local criminal history records) must be obtained in order to verify the existence of the conviction(s), and to determine which court in which city has the court file containing the documents that may be used to identify and challenge the conviction.[109]

            Because certain immigration consequences may depend on the exact nature of the court in which the client was convicted, it is necessary to obtain this information as well.  For example, convictions rendered in local courts that cannot properly be called "state courts," military courts, or tribal courts may not trigger certain of the adverse immigration consequences normally flowing from a criminal conviction.  See N. Tooby & J. Rollin, Criminal Defense of Immigrants, § § 7.25(C),  7.26 and Appendix G (2007).

[109] For information on obtaining official records, see § 3.34, infra.