Tooby's California Post-Conviction Relief for Immigrants

(D)

Sentencing to Minimize Adverse Immigration Consequences.  A great deal can be accomplished at sentencing, if the exact target sentence is first identified by consultation with an immigration expert.  For a listing of some of the possible goals to shoot for, see Chapter 8, supra.  This is the best arena in which to argue the client’s equities, produce voluminous letters of support from members of the community, etc.  Standard sentencing techniques, in support of goals identified to minimize the immigration consequences, are sufficient.  Effective counsel will identify the exact immigration consequences of various sentences, and use this information where it will help the client obtain a sentence that will avoid disastrous immigration consequences or otherwise obtain a lesser sentence.