Immigrant who won NY court OK to practice faces political-protest probation roadblock
A Mexican immigrant illegally brought to this country as a young child won a landmark ruling last month from a New York appeals court.
It said Cesar Vargas, now a 31-year-old law graduate, can be licensed to practice law in New York despite his immigration status. However, because he is currently on probation in Iowa, his bar admission may have to be postponed.
On Wednesday, an Iowa judge declined to end Vargas’ low-risk probation early, after just one month, even though he has already met all the required conditions and paid a $300 fine, the Des Moines Register reports.
Echoing a prosecutor’s concerns about special treatment in the Polk County case, District Judge Kevin Parker said he had never made such a ruling before and declined to treat Vargas differently than others.
“I support him in the fact that he’s been able to reach those pinnacles given the challenges he has faced,” assistant county attorney Jeff Noble told the judge before the ruling, referring to Vargas’ pending bar admission. But “my fear is today he will become a symbol for the proposition that we do treat some people different in the criminal justice system if they’re willing to step in front of the camera, if they’re willing to talk with a Des Moines Register reporter, if they’re willing to argue their case and have enough friends writing letters to the court.”
Vargas was convicted of trespassing, a simple misdemeanor, for shouting a question at New Jersey’s Republican governor, Chris Christie, during an Iowa Freedom Summit meeting at a private location in January, according to the Register. The question: Whether Christie would support deporting Vargas’ 70-year-old mom.
Ordinarily, New York does not admit to practice individuals who are on probation, but it is up to the state’s character and fitness committee, the newspaper notes.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “CUNY Law Grad Reveals Undocumented Status, Fears He Can’t Practice Despite Passing NY Bar”
NBC News: “Immigrant Activist Cesar Vargas Gets OK to Practice Law in New York”
New York: “César Vargas Just Became New York’s First Undocumented Lawyer”
New York Times (reg. req.): “New York Court Rules for Immigrant in Fight to Become Lawyer”
