Hi,

My question is wether it is safe to travel with a green card if i commited a youthful offender in the year of 1998. My case is sealed and was commited when i was at a young age. I am currently serving probation and had my citizenship test yesterday my parents are citizens and my brothers and sisters are citizens. INS didn't give me my citizenship and said that i need to submit certain paper works such as my records in order for them to review everything. Would INS bar me from coming back into the us if i travel with a green card. and what would my chances of becoming a citizen be if my whole family is citizens, and also is there any chances of deportation. I have resided in america for over 10 years now since i was a little boy. Please respond. Thank you, Ruffy

-- ruffy galsim (ruffski@hotmail.com), April 18, 2002

Answers

The INS will probably not approve your citizenship application while you are on probation, even if your offense was very minor. It is not a good idea for anyone with a conviction to make a citizenship application without getting really careful legal advice beforehand.

It may be dangerous to travel. It is easier for the INS to bar someone from reentering the U.S. than to deport them. You can be stopped from reentering if you admit you committed one of the kid so crimes on the list. If you admitted to committing the crime during your interview, that may be enough to keep you out. To deport you, they actually have to prove that you were convicted. That could be hard for them if your state seals youthful offender records.

I can't tell you if your youthful offender determination counts as a conviction or not. It varies depending on the state's rules. Sometimes a youthful offender determination will be considered a juvenile deliquency adjudication, which is not a conviction. Even if it is a conviction, it might fall outside the entry or deportatbility rules (For example, a six month sentence for assault will NOT normally subject you to an entry or deportation problem.), or you might be eligible for a waiver.

You need to get the details about the youthful offender offense and talk to an immigration lawyer in your state. If you are in Connecticut, please feel free to call us. 203 239-2299.

-- Michael Boyle (boylelaw@aol.com), April 18, 2002.