About.We are dedicated to improving the legal representation of indigent non-citizens by providing training, consultations, and expert immigration advice to appointed counsel on Long Island.
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Our Goal
Our goal is to support appointed counsel in helping his/her non-citizen clients to make informed choices regarding any adverse immigration consequences which may arise from a Criminal or Family Court proceeding.
In 2010, the Supreme Court announced in Padilla v. Kentucky, 130 S. Ct. 1473 (2010), that non-citizens facing criminal charges are entitled under the Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel provision to informed, accurate advice and assistance from counsel in avoiding the potential negative immigration consequences of any guilty plea. However this mandate can prove challenging because immigration laws are in constant flux, are complex and often subject to misinterpretation. Immigration consequences stemming from even minor criminal charges like disorderly conduct or petit larceny can be serious and certain, including mandatory detention and removal. Similarly, dispositions in Family Court can result in adverse immigration consequences affecting life-altering decisions such as custody, visitation, adoption and termination of parental rights. The LIRIAC can help assigned counsel to navigate these case complexities with expert analysis and legal advice.
In 2010, the Supreme Court announced in Padilla v. Kentucky, 130 S. Ct. 1473 (2010), that non-citizens facing criminal charges are entitled under the Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel provision to informed, accurate advice and assistance from counsel in avoiding the potential negative immigration consequences of any guilty plea. However this mandate can prove challenging because immigration laws are in constant flux, are complex and often subject to misinterpretation. Immigration consequences stemming from even minor criminal charges like disorderly conduct or petit larceny can be serious and certain, including mandatory detention and removal. Similarly, dispositions in Family Court can result in adverse immigration consequences affecting life-altering decisions such as custody, visitation, adoption and termination of parental rights. The LIRIAC can help assigned counsel to navigate these case complexities with expert analysis and legal advice.
Our TeamJackeline Saavedra-Arizaga
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Michelle Caldera-Kopf
Padilla Attorney Michelle Caldera-Kopf is the Padilla Attorney for the Suffolk County 18(b) Panel. Michelle has practiced, taught, and advised clients, attorneys, and criminal defenders on immigration issues for many years. Most recently Michelle served as the Managing Attorney for the Long Island Office of the Safe Passage Project, assisting young immigrants facing deportation in family and immigration courts. Michelle has practiced immigration law at the New York Association for New Americans and the Empire Justice Center, taught immigration at the Touro Law Center and the University of Connecticut School of Law, and advised criminal defenders in both Nassau and Suffolk Counties. Michelle has presented numerous CLEs on topics including the practice of immigration law and protecting immigrant criminal defendants from onerous negative consequences of contact with the criminal legal system.
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