Los Angeles Criminal Lawyers Blog
Many of our clients who are detained on criminal allegations also have Immigration proceedings started at the time of their arrest. There are many questions regarding the differences between Criminal court and Immigration court.
Your criminal case is a separate entity from your immigration case. It involves two separate courthouses and two separate Judges. When you are detained on a Criminal case it is in regards to your criminal case only. Any time served in jail will go towards your criminal sentence only.
If you do not have citizenship status in the United States then an Immigration hold will be put on you once you are arrested on accused criminal charges. After you have been released from custody , if you are in custody, and have appeared before a criminal Judge and completed your criminal case, you will be transferred over to an Immigration detention center.
Once in Immigration custody, you will appear before an Immigration Judge who will determine whether you will be permitted to remain in the country and/or if you will remain in custody. A separate bail amount will be set, if any, for Immigration custody. If you have paid a bail amount to be released from jail on your criminal case, it will not cross over to your Immigration bail amount. The Immigration Judge will set a separate amount for bail. This amount must be paid to be released from custody.
The criminal and immigration process is complex and can cause a lot of confusion if you are not familiar with its ins and outs .A knowledgeable Los Angeles Criminal Defense attorney is not only familiar with the criminal procedure, but knows the Judges and Prosecutors as well. Additionally, an attorney that has been practicing for over thirty years can recommend an Immigration attorney that they have worked with on thousands of cases and can provide work representation that you can have confidence in.