La Prensa San Diego Staff
While the retail sale and recreational use of marijuana are now legal in the State of California, possession is still a federal offense that can lead to major consequences for non-citizens.
Immigration falls under federal law and possession of marijuana is a federal offense, leading to consequences for convictions related to this drug.
Immigrants to America, undocumented or not, can face deportation for marijuana consumption under some scenarios and risk not being admitted back into the United States if they leave.
In 2017, shortly after Donald Trump went into Office, the White House stated that any immigrant living in the United States illegally who has been charged or convicted with any crime, including marijuana-related offenses, was now a priority target for authorities.
In an article published by Riverside-based news Outlet Press Enterprise, Virginia Kice, a spokeswoman with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), declined to disclose how the agency handles marijuana-related immigrant cases in states where the drug is legal.
Kice did, however, stated that Homeland Security’s focus is to remove “removable aliens” who have been convicted of criminal offenses.
Currently there are many who think that possession of marijuana is completely safe, but due to the discrepancies in State and federal laws, there are still pitfalls for those who consume and carry marijuana.
Since January of last year, the Immigrant Legal Resource began to warn immigrants through a series of flyers that advises anyone without without U.S. citizenship to not use marijuana at all, to not have marijuana or any paraphernalia on themselves. Immigrants are even advised to not post any drug-related content on social media.
Most importantly, anyone who doesn’t have a permanent residence is advised to never admit they have consumed or possessed marijuana, as these acts are federal offenses and ground deportation.
Beyond possession and use, beneficiaries of the Obama-era DACA program are still subject to having their program protections ended via significant misdemeanor or felony offenses, some of which are related to possession of marijuana.
Under USCIS guidelines, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs is a significant misdemeanor, and therefore grounds for DACA protections to be terminated.