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Plead Guilty, You Could Face Deportation: Seventh Circuit Rules Misadvice And Nonadvice To Non-Citizens Has Same Effect Under The Sixth Amendment, Dana Cronkite

Seventh Circuit Review

The Sixth Amendment right to assistance of counsel has evolved since its inception. Originally, the right only meant that criminal defendants in federal cases were entitled to assistance of counsel of their choosing. The right was eventually applied to state criminal proceedings, and later interpreted to mean that criminal defendants had a right to effective assistance of counsel. This right is imperative in protecting a defendant's fundamental right to a fair trial. In 1984, the Supreme Court laid out a two-part test to determine whether a defendant's Sixth Amendment rights were violated by ineffective assistance of counsel. This test, known …