Aplead for citizenship and I have two charges

[Ismae83 0]

On 8/20/2017 at 9:51 AM, Going through said:

It depends on when the offense occurred, under section  237 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (any noncitizen convicted after September 30, 1996 of domestic violence, stalking, child abuse, child neglect, or child abandonment, is deportable.).  That's why I asked him what year he was charged in, if the crime occurred in the US, the actual charge (if he was charged with an aggravated felony or he pleaded down to a lesser charge) and what the final disposition was...he hasn't provided that info, though.

 

Despite all that, if he was placed in removal proceedings, it would be most likely due to not disclosing the incident(s) as he should have and therefore not getting his original GC properly approved....might not have anything to do with the charges themselves, at this point in the game, but more so for the misrepresentation/fraud.

The first charge was domestic violence and officer he knows about that it was 2014  and  is not Felony and the second one was 2016 when I already Apply to remove the condition . I didn't lie he ask me about the first I answer and he didn't ask me anything else about the arrests . 

 

And the both charges they are not Felony and the bow was dismissed but my lawyers told me just apply guilty and they will dismiss the charges taking classes. 

 

That what I did and the both charge was dismissed .

Edited August 23, 2017 by Ismae83

[Going through 5,668]

4 hours ago, Ismae83 said:

I didn't lie and he didn't ask anything about the second arrest . He was talking about the first arrest and other questions about the relation.

the officer was very nice with us 

 

4 hours ago, Ismae83 said:

when I had Interview The officer he didn't asnk me about the anything the second charge or ask me if I had arrest !! 

I remeber he told me u was arrest in 2014 I told him yes and I explain to him what happing .  And he ask me more question about my relations .

He didn't "ask" about the second arrest because, as you said, he didn't know about it.  How could he have asked about it if he didn't know it ever existed?

 

You should have disclosed the second arrest happened after your application was filed, whether he asked about any other arrests or not.  You didn't disclose it.  In immigration's eyes, you intentionally left out that information.

[Going through 5,668]

5 hours ago, Ismae83 said:

The first charge was domestic violence and officer he knows about that it was 2014  and  is not Felony and the second one was 2016 when I already Apply to remove the condition . I didn't lie he ask me about the first I answer and he didn't ask me anything else about the arrests . 

 

And the both charges they are not Felony and the bow was dismissed but my lawyers told me just apply guilty and they will dismiss the charges taking classes. 

 

That what I did and the both charge was dismissed .

Two misdemeanors can be held against you if you apply for the N400 too early.  The rule of thumb is to wait until your charges are outside of the statutory period (at least 3 or 5 years) to show Good Moral Character (a term used by USCIS when determining whether applications can/should be denied based off of criminal background).

 

Make sure you disclose both charges (and any others) on your N400 application whenever you do file.  Get certified court documents and copies of the arrest records as well because you will be required to submit them with your application.

 

If you were to apply this year or next for the N400, you may be facing a denial because both of your charges fall within the 3 (or 5)-year period used for showing the government "Good Moral Character".  I can almost guarantee that during your interview, the IO will be interested in you explaining why the 2nd charge was never disclosed during your prior interview.  A response of "the officer never asked" would not be sufficient.

 

Yes, your charges were dismissed---however, USCIS does not look at "dismissed charges" the same way police agencies or employers do.  They focus more on whether you plead guilty or not regardless of the final outcome.  To USCIS, taking court-ordered classes is still  a form of conviction/alternate sentencing due to guilt.

 

Should you apply this year for citizenship?  That's up to you...others can only give you advice here, just as your lawyer has given you the advice not to.  Personally, I would suggest waiting at least 2 years before submitting your application (and staying out of trouble during those 2 years) since you would have a much better chance then because it further increases the length of time between your application and the 2014 and 2016 arrests.

 

For what it's worth, I'm not judging you at all here---I have a criminal history as well, and have my citizenship interview next month---I'm just trying to save you around $700 bucks if you apply this year, because your chances are a bit slim for approval right now...remember, it's not just the two charges, but also the non-disclosure in your previous interview they can hold against you.  USCIS takes any type of misrepresentation very seriously (probably more seriously than actual criminal charges sometimes).

Edited August 23, 2017 by Going through

[Ontarkie 13,915]

You didn't bring it up or bring in updated forms. You lied by omission. 

[Boiler 43,430]

Did they not ask you to confirm that the information you had provided was correct?

 

I agree with the Lawyer.

[redwoodnative 1]

Get an Immigration lawyer who also also understands criminal law. Also get the court diposition about the cases ( if cases have been dismissed or deferred that is a good sign), Right now is a good time to apply for naturalization if you are eligible as in future it might be harder with smart act or something that might get passed. Most important dont have any more runins with the law. Keep a clean slate. I would still get a lawyer who really understands such situations and make sure he accompanies you during the interview. Let the lawyer fill up the paperwork where needed in regards to your arrests and cases.

[redwoodnative 1]

17 minutes ago, redwoodnative said:

Get an Immigration lawyer who also also understands criminal law. Also get the court diposition about the cases ( if cases have been dismissed or deferred that is a good sign), Right now is a good time to apply for naturalization if you are eligible as in future it might be harder with Raise act or something that might get passed. Most important dont have any more runins with the law. Keep a clean slate. I would still get a lawyer who really understands such situations and make sure he accompanies you during the interview. Let the lawyer fill up the paperwork where needed in regards to your arrests and cases.

 

[Boiler 43,430]

OP has a Lawyer.