will I get in trouble?

[imailin 0]

A friend of mind got married a few years back and her marriage did not work and they got divorce right before they had the interview... of course she has a case pending with possible deportation. I am not sure what her lawyer did, but she has court on March and asked me and a few friends to attest that she is a person of good moral character and that I know her for around 7 years. She is in fact a good person but, my question is will I get in trouble for saying that I knew an illegal immigrant for so long?

Thanks!

I want to help her but I do not want to jeopardized my residency

Thanks!

I am becoming a citizen on May

thanks!

[Adrian+Mike 2]

Not being an expert or a lawyer, however lieing under oath or in court is never a good thing, if you get found out then you should expect severe consequences.. that of which im sure someone can tell you.

[rsn 135]

Not being an expert or a lawyer, however lieing under oath or in court is never a good thing, if you get found out then you should expect severe consequences.. that of which im sure someone can tell you.

huh? Who said anything about lying under oath?

A friend of mind got married a few years back and her marriage did not work and they got divorce right before they had the interview... of course she has a case pending with possible deportation. I am not sure what her lawyer did, but she has court on March and asked me and a few friends to attest that she is a person of good moral character and that I know her for around 7 years. She is in fact a good person but, my question is will I get in trouble for saying that I knew an illegal immigrant for so long?

Thanks!

I want to help her but I do not want to jeopardized my residency

Thanks!

I am becoming a citizen on May

thanks!

Lots of people know illegal immigrants. Knowing someone who may have done something illegal does not make you an accomplice.

[Krikit 1,163]

Post violating the TOS has been removed.

Moving thread from the AOS forum to General Immigration Discussion.

[Bobby+Umit 161]

huh? Who said anything about lying under oath?

Lots of people know illegal immigrants. Knowing someone who may have done something illegal does not make you an accomplice.

No, it doesn't make you an accomplice, however, it could make you an accessory after the fact.

In the United States, a person who learns of the crime and gives some form of assistance before the crime is committed is known as an "accessory before the fact". A person who learns of the crime after it is committed and helps the criminal to conceal it, or aids the criminal in escaping, or simply fails to report the crime, is known as an "accessory after the fact". A person who does both is sometimes referred to as an "accessory before and after the fact", but this usage is less common.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

People are jumping to conclusions here...

She is out of status, but it sounds like she has a valid basis to self petition. She didn't get this done in time, which is why she's in deportation now. Unless someone is helping her evade US immigration law, I don't see how anyone is going to get into any trouble. What her attorney is doing is perfectly legal, and the correct step to take at this point.

imailin, you aren't going to get into any trouble as long as you are telling the truth.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

No, it doesn't make you an accomplice, however, it could make you an accessory after the fact.

I'm with this on this one. I would speak with a lawyer to see how it affects you. We don't know exactly what she did, and how long she was "illegal" for, or whether you knew she broke the rules or not and what exactly this whole process she's going through is about. If you're asked if you knew she was illegal you must tell the truth.. so definitely ask someone for legal advice. It's admirable that you want to help a friend, but it's still a bit scary and I too would want to make sure my status is safe.

[Adrian+Mike 2]

huh? Who said anything about lying under oath?

Lots of people know illegal immigrants. Knowing someone who may have done something illegal does not make you an accomplice.

I apologise, I guess I misread the post, I thought they were saying that they had knew the person for less than the 7 years their friend was asking them to say.

Edited January 20, 2010 by Adrian+Mike

[rsn 135]

If you re-read what I put you'll see I said Under oath OR in court... i'll edit the post just for you

Edit: ah, seems I can't...

The emphasis of my question should be have been on the word "lying" and not on "under oath".

[Adrian+Mike 2]

The emphasis of my question should be have been on the word "lying" and not on "under oath".

I re-edited my edit just at the same time as you posted

[freetv 7]

Hold on, there is no law to report an illegal alien to authorities. You can get in trouble for hiring them, bills have tried to be passed in the house that will make it illegal to provide housing to illegal aliens (fine...), but to my knowledge were never passed, you can get in trouble for helping them evade law enforcement ect. But did you ever help her maintain here illegal status? Of course not, all you did was be a friend and go to dinner, parties, ect. No one can hang you up to dry because you were friendly to an illegal.... thats very unAmerican.... How many of us know illegals? I mean seriously, you are in no danger if you were only a friend to her.

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Hold on, there is no law to report an illegal alien to authorities. WRONG You can get in trouble for hiring them, bills have tried to be passed in the house that will make it illegal to provide housing to illegal aliens (fine...), but to my knowledge were never passed, you can get in trouble for helping them evade law enforcement ect ETC. But did you ever help her maintain here illegal status? Of course not, all you did was be a friend and go to dinner, parties, ect ETC. No one can hang you up to dry because you were friendly to an illegal.... thats very unAmerican.... How many of us know illegals? I mean seriously, you are in no danger if you were only a friend to her.

Firstly, I understand if you have a friend that's illegal (that it would be hard to "dob them in" that is), but you state it's very "unAmerican" to get into trouble for not reporting a crime (illegal immigration is a crime whether you like it or not) and that's just completely warped. With all the avenues for entry, for LEGAL entry, it's abhorent that you would effectively encourage illegal immigration, thus spitting in the face of anyone taking the time to do it the right way. It's because of people doing things the WRONG way that it makes it that much harder for all the honest people. These are the laws of YOUR country that you are laughing in the face of and it's a shame you have such little respect for it.

Secondly, you're wrong about it not being something to get into trouble for:

http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/search/...04----000-.html

In regards to illegal immigration being a felony:

" Under Title 8 Section 1325 of the U.S. Code, "Improper Entry by Alien," any citizen of any country other than the United States who:

* Enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers; or

* Eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers; or

* Attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a material fact;

has committed a federal crime.

Violations are punishable by criminal fines and imprisonment for up to six months. Repeat offenses can bring up to two years in prison. Additional civil fines may be imposed at the discretion of immigration judges, but civil fines do not negate the criminal sanctions or nature of the offense.".

More quotes regarding this: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qi...14143232AAhD4bM

To the OP: As previously stated, seek consultation with a solicitor who will be able to advise you of whether this will create an issue for you.

----

Oh and personal pet hate, it's ETC not ECT. It's short for etcetera.

Edited January 20, 2010 by Vanessa&Tony

[SuperDuper! 230]

I would NOT want to be associated "on the record" with anyone illegal or otherwise out-of-status while I was going thru the immigration approval process. Its better to distance yourself from such person. There comes a time when you must consider "looking out for number one" ahead of someone else less responsible who got themselves into the present mess. Good luck!

[VanessaTony 3,567]

I would NOT want to be associated "on the record" with anyone illegal or otherwise out-of-status while I was going thru the immigration approval process. Its better to distance yourself from such person. There comes a time when you must consider "looking out for number one" ahead of someone else less responsible who got themselves into the present mess. Good luck!

Succinct and to the point. 100% agree

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Firstly, I understand if you have a friend that's illegal (that it would be hard to "dob them in" that is), but you state it's very "unAmerican" to get into trouble for not reporting a crime (illegal immigration is a crime whether you like it or not) and that's just completely warped. With all the avenues for entry, for LEGAL entry, it's abhorent that you would effectively encourage illegal immigration, thus spitting in the face of anyone taking the time to do it the right way. It's because of people doing things the WRONG way that it makes it that much harder for all the honest people. These are the laws of YOUR country that you are laughing in the face of and it's a shame you have such little respect for it.

Secondly, you're wrong about it not being something to get into trouble for:

http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/search/...04----000-.html

In regards to illegal immigration being a felony:

" Under Title 8 Section 1325 of the U.S. Code, "Improper Entry by Alien," any citizen of any country other than the United States who:

* Enters or attempts to enter the United States at any time or place other than as designated by immigration officers; or

* Eludes examination or inspection by immigration officers; or

* Attempts to enter or obtains entry to the United States by a willfully false or misleading representation or the willful concealment of a material fact;

has committed a federal crime.

Violations are punishable by criminal fines and imprisonment for up to six months. Repeat offenses can bring up to two years in prison. Additional civil fines may be imposed at the discretion of immigration judges, but civil fines do not negate the criminal sanctions or nature of the offense.".

More quotes regarding this: http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qi...14143232AAhD4bM

To the OP: As previously stated, seek consultation with a solicitor who will be able to advise you of whether this will create an issue for you.

----

Oh and personal pet hate, it's ETC not ECT. It's short for etcetera.

Nice bit of research, but I think it's totally irrelevant in this case. The OP said nothing about illegal entry. In fact, the OP said her friend was divorced just before her interview. She also said her friend's attorney was looking for an affidavit that her friend is of good moral character. If her friend never adjusted status, then the lawyer is probably filing a VAWA case for adjustment of status. If her friend did adjust status, then the lawyer is filing to lift conditions base on good faith marriage that ended in divorce (this seems likely, based on the timeline she gave). In either case, there would be zero chance of success if her friend had entered illegally. USCIS would have denied the petition without ever scheduling an interview. The opportunity for an alien to adjust status after illegal entry ended in April of 2001, when the last amnesty program ended.

Her friend was illegal because she failed to file her application in a timely fashion, and not because she entered the US illegally.