Ross Goodman
In the legal system, a final sentence isn't entirely final; rather, the parties involved have the right to contest the sentence within a limited span of time before it takes effect. Many seemingly lost cases were overturned or reversed after such appeals, and has helped many innocent defendants get the acquittal they sought.
This is how post-conviction appeals work for local residents. However, how does Nevada's post-conviction relief for immigrants work?
Federal law describes the following crimes as grounds for deportation of immigrants who commit a crime on US soil:
Note that these apply to both legal and undocumented aliens, especially if a crime of violence was involved. As such, immigrants dealing with a false charge involving these crimes require some pretty serious defense measures.
The defendant requests the court for a new trial within seven days after the sentence has been handed in. This requires the defendant to present strong evidence of judicial misconduct during the previous hearing in order to be approved.
The defendant can choose to withdraw their guilty plea after a sentence is handed to attempt and get a new trial. The defendant must provide a compelling reason why their original plea should be scrapped; claiming that the defendant was not of sound mind or was ill-informed of the circumstances of deportation will have to be backed up by serious evidence.
Question the court if there are sufficient grounds to hold the defendant in custody while a review of the previous trial is underway. If the writ is invoked successfully, the defendant can be freed temporarily and partially return to normal life until a new decision has been handed down or the old sentence is sustained.
