Folks - I wanted to share my experience in the hope that the reader can gain some useful information: [check Dec 26, 2007 post for initial discussion]
Result: Dismissal without prejudice (the best result)
Time: 5 months
Journey: Full of anxiety. Horrible.
What I want to convey: Two things:
1) As immigrants we have come a long way from home - physically, emotionally. There is a lot at stake. I only realized the full value of things at stake during my ordeal. You are probably reading this because you have already committed a similar offense. However, the best use of this read would be if you could convey to your other immigrant friends in a normal course of conversation to not do any stuff -completely refrain - that will jeopardize your main objective of coming here.
2) From the information below you should be able to gather useful insights in your research. Don't worry but instead keep a cool head. I did all the worrying :-) Initially it seems like the whole world is collapsing on you but dont do that to yourself. The best you can do is say - you cant change the past, you wont do anything like this in the future and right now you will do your best to defend yourself.
The process I followed: (for some of the points below - it varies from state to state so you cant generalize but I will share my process so you get a sense):
- Confide in close friends and partner: They can help in research, talking to lawyers, discussing impact and options, etc. They might have or know of others with experience. For me this was the first ever use of law, lawyers, etc so I didnt know anything of the system, the language, the process. My friends and wife could comfort and think more clearly than I could.
- Interview several lawyers. Along with a criminal lawyer seek advise from an immigration lawyer. Figure his / her experience in the matter at hand. See their qualifications, study their website, speak with them. Check reviews on Avvo and other such websites. Check their tenure in this specialty, & tenure in the county on these websites. The longer in one area (and one type of specialty) then hopefully they know the system, the judges, the prosecutors, etc better than others. Score the lawyers to see who best knows the possible outcomes applicable in the county / state (not all of them do) and try to gauge their expertise in getting the best possible outcome. Note: lawyers are not very customer service oriented and once you retain them you will realize. they can be very busy, might not return calls, you might need to chase them. So be mentally prepared.
- Fees: Ranged from $3000 to $ 5000 for the criminal lawyer. Please note again it depends on state. In some states if these matters are resolved in one hearing then I assume the fees could be lesser. Feees should be secondary. Immigration lawyer: did not formally retain but only consulted. If you retain they might ask $1,000. But I got a very good imm. lawyer whom my wife used almost as 'retained'
- Possible outcomes: Note that different states use different language. In my case it was: Dismissal (best option), Stipulation of Continuation, Diversion, Guilty (worst). Stipulation & diversion are variations of each other but I forget the exact interpretation; one is slightly worse than the other. Fines - could be levied with any of the options. A guilty doesnt mean necessarily you go to jail but you get a theoretical equivalent of a jail sentence.
- You plead with not-guilty; I was so naive I didnt know even this. First time offenders are better off.
- Had to do HIV test. Had to do volunteer service. Ask your lawyer of these options. Courts like to see you taking efforts.
- High level view of the process: 4 stages in my cases. (a) Upon receiving the court documents the lawyer puts in a non-guilty plea. (b) There is something called arraignment; I didnt need to be present. (c) There were 2 - 3 hearings. I was present for the first two. It was a horrible experience. Court times are always delayed, your lawyer is late, etc so you are sitting there with other people you dont want to be near. So when you go be mentally prepared to sit for a longer time than expected and to see the crowd around you, to be called by the judge and to speak when required. All this depends on state to state - # of hearings, to be present or not, etc (d) Trial:If the court and the defendant dont agree to a settlement.
Why the experience was full of anxiety & why your friends (in addition to you) can benefit if you tell them - Think about it: 5 months. Think about the time away (physically & mentally) from work, from fun, from enjoying life, from normal routines : time in discussions with friends, in researching the law, shortlisting a lawyer, time taken off from work to be present at court hearings. Think about the time thinking of what to tell, to who and how. Think about the costs. Think about all the time in worrying in understanding what happens from an immigration perspective. In my case, I had to defer my GC filing as I didnt know what documents I needed to send in to my company who had approved my GC just at the same time this thing happened.
Note: Its been a while since this all ended so memory does fade but I tried my best.
So finally: Hope you found this information useful. Dont do any thing not legal again. You are not in a very bad situation where you think all your immigrant dreams (that you now fully realize) have all ended. Keep cool, confide and develop a robust plan of action. Things will develop into the best.

