Recently at the Westminster Courthouse in Orange County, I was able to negotiate a plea to one misdemeanor count of violating Vehicle Code section 23104(a), Reckless Driving with Bodily Injury, and was able to dismiss the other seven counts charged against my client.
My client holds “Deferred Action For Childhood Arrivals” (DACA) status in the United States, as he is not a United States citizen. My client was charged with violating eight Vehicle Code section offenses. According to my client’s immigration attorney, if he was to be convicted of three or more misdemeanors he would no longer be eligible for DACA status and would be ineligible to renew his DACA application.
The District Attorney’s Office originally wanted our client to plead to all counts and to serve 60 days in the Orange County jail.
Our office provided a mitigation package to the District Attorney’s office outlining the equitable factors in my client’s favor and detailing the grave immigration prejudice he would suffer if he was to be convicted of the counts charged. We also highlighted that our client accepted responsibility at an early stage and even voluntarily went to the local police station to be interviewed regarding the incident.
The District Attorney’s Office agreed to allow our client to plead to only one of the misdemeanor counts for a sentence to 30 days of Cal Trans with 60 days of jail suspended if he does not successfully complete the Cal Trans.
With this result, our client avoided the DACA consequence and, if he successfully completes probation, he will have avoided the 60 days of jail!
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