Publication Date
12-1-2023
Abstract
Immigration law is a complicated and constantly evolving legal landscape. When non-citizens are accused or convicted of a misdemeanor crime the two most important potential consequences are inadmissibility or deportation. This Comment will look at two major triggers for deportation and inadmissibility. First, “significant misdemeanors,” or crimes that carry a potential jail time of 365-days or higher, immediately initiate inadmissibility or deportation proceedings. Second, crimes that are classified as Crimes Involving Moral Turpitude also automatically trigger immigration consequences. Because these immigration charges are litigated in criminal courts, to be effective counsel criminal defense lawyers need to take certain steps to inform non-citizen clients about potential immigration consequences. Non-citizens’ legal rights are complicated in some jurisdictions by the existence of home rule governance. In home rule jurisdictions, municipal ordinances can vary from state statutes, which might affect a non-citizen’s right to counsel as guaranteed by Padilla v. Kentucky and principles of equal protection. This Comment will argue that any criminal statute or ordinance affecting immigration status should be considered a matter of “mixed state-and-local concern” whereby municipal ordinances are preempted by state statutes. By ensuring state statutes preempt local ones, the rights of non-citizens will not change city-to-city, attorneys will be able to advise their clients more effectively, and there will be improved consistency in the practice of immigration and criminal law. This Comment goes on to argue that both Colorado and the United States have a legal and moral obligation to protect non-citizens. This Comment concludes by exploring both practical and radical solutions to this crimmigration issue. This Comment is the first to examine how home rule autonomy in Colorado subverts equal protection in immigration law.
First Page
397
Recommended Citation
Dylan Fair, Immigration Enigma: InterSections between Immigration Status and Minimum Mandatory Sentences in Home Rule Municipalities, 101 Denv. L. Rev. 397 (2024).