Thread: TX-Probation plan prompts tricky legal questions

34Comments 0Recommend
Probation plan prompts tricky legal questions
Harris DA’s idea hinges on whether illegal immigrants can legally serve terms
By SUSAN CARROLL
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
April 4, 2009, 9:44PM

The legal argument behind a controversial proposal by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office to eliminate probation plea deals for illegal immigrants hinges on a simple but hotly contested question.

Can people who are in the country illegally, by letter of the law, comply with the terms of their probation?

That question was raised by District Attorney Pat Lykos on the campaign trail before she took office in January and has generated a heated debate among judges, defense attorneys and legal scholars.

Lykos, a former judge, said defendants who are in the country illegally cannot fulfill probation requirements for two reasons: first, she said, because they are unlawfully in the United States; and secondly, she said, because they cannot legally work or seek out employment — a requirement of community supervision.

Detractors, however, disagree with that interpretation of the law, and some predicted increased jail crowding and lawsuits if the proposal becomes policy.

Mark Bennett, president of the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association, said Lykos raised an interesting legal argument, he but added that “practically speaking, I think it’s going to be a disaster, and we’re going to find there’s a reason that Harris County DA’s Office isn’t in the business of enforcing our immigration laws.â€

Illegals get better treatment in Chatham County, North Carolina??

DO NOT DRIVE THROUGH THIS COUNTY IF YOU ARE AN AMERICAN.

Related Link
http://www.alipac.us/ftopicp-877802.html#877802

Duplicate
http://www.alipac.us/ftopicp-877854.html#877854