How Arkansas Convictions are Treated for Immigration Purposes

Abstract

This article is a companion piece to "Immigration Consequences of State Criminal Convictions" published in the same edition of Arkansas Law Notes. It is intended to be an example of a basic analysis of how certain Arkansas Criminal Convictions are viewed through the federal immigration system.

Part I explores how the INA defines a conviction, Part II synthesizes various conviction relief states in Arkansas and what affect they have in immigration law, and Part III describes how criminal convictions effect a foreign national in the United States. Although this article deals with specific statutes, it should in no way be considered dispositive in any given criminal case.