Senate Bill S4399

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S4399A

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the criminal procedure law, in relation to requiring
the court, prior to accepting a plea to a misdemeanor or violation, to
advise the defendant of the risk of deportation if he or she is not a
citizen


 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL :
This bill requires notification of alien defendants during the plea
process that pleading guilty to a misdemeanor or violation may subject
them to automatic removal (deportation) or denial of naturalization.

 SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS :
This bill adds a new subdivision 5 to section 340.20 of the criminal
procedure law, requiring alien defendants to be notified that pleading
guilty to misdemeanors or violations may have immigration
consequences.  Such notification shall be on the record. For those
courts not of record, the bill requires a writing affirming that the
warning was given contemporaneous with the plea, and a form would
suffice for this purpose.

 JUSTIFICATION :
In 1996, Congress made major changes to federal immigration law. Under
the new federal law, legal immigrants and residents may be subject to
              

automatic removal (deportation) even if they plead guilty to some
minor offenses classified under N.Y. law as violations. Deportation
may also be a threat for those whose proceedings do not result in a
conviction under N.Y. law (i.e. entry of guilty plea to drug treatment
on order of court as alternative to conviction and incarceration).

Unfortunately, defendants pleading guilty to these minor offenses are
unaware of the harsh new federal immigration consequences of doing so.
Because of the broad scope of the 1996 immigration law, defendants who
have plead guilty to some minor offenses, even more than 25 years ago,
are now subject to deportation. As a result, immigrant communities
have lost confidence in state courts and the criminal justice system
generally.

This bill requires defendants to be notified during the plea process
for misdemeanors and violations that pleading guilty may subject them
to automatic deportation or denial of naturalization. Legal residents
and immigrants will now have the opportunity to consider the harsh
immigration consequences of pleading guilty to a minor offense, even
if doing so would have provided no sentence or fine.

At least nine other states have similar statutes or court rules
requiring notification prior to accepting a defendant's plea,
including:  Massachusetts, Connecticut, Texas, Florida, California and
the District of Columbia; most of these states allow the plea to be
vacated if the prescribed warning is not given.

Defendants should, at the very least, be made aware that pleading
guilty to some of these minor offenses could put them on a plane out
of the country or worse -- removal to a detention center cell for an
indefinite term while awaiting deportation. This bill, while providing
no rights to illegal immigrants, provides legal immigrants and
residents with the protection of making a plea with the understanding
of its immigration consequences.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
S.4077/A.7175 of 1999-2000 Passed Assembly
A.7702 of 2001-2002 Passed Assembly
A.6019 of 2003-2004 Rules Committee
A.6884 of 2005-2006 Codes Committee
A.4166 of 2007-2008 Codes Committee

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS :
None.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
This act shall take effect on the 90th day after enactment.