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Keywords

statutedeportationstatute of limitations

statuteleasefelonydeportationstatute of limitations

Related Cases

United States v. Gunera

Facts

Gunera, a citizen of Honduras, initially entered the United States in July 1990 and was deported in 1991 after a conviction for possession of a controlled substance. He re-entered the U.S. after a second removal in 1992 and applied for Temporary Protected Status in 1999, during which the immigration authorities discovered his prior deportation. He was indicted for illegal presence in December 2004, more than five years after he was found in the U.S. according to the immigration authorities.

Gunera, a citizen of Honduras, initially entered the United States in July 1990. In January 1991, he was convicted of possession of a controlled substance under Texas law and sentenced to three years' imprisonment. He was released in June 1991 and deported to Honduras. After a second removal in 1992, Gunera re-entered the United States.

Issue

Whether the indictment against Gunera for illegal presence in the United States was barred by the statute of limitations.

Rule

Under 18 U.S.C. 3282, no person shall be prosecuted for any non-capital offense unless the indictment is found within five years after the offense was committed. The standard for determining when an alien is 'found in' the United States is when their physical presence is discovered and noted by immigration authorities.

Under 18 U.S.C. 3282, no person shall be prosecuted, tried or punished for any offense, not capital, unless the indictment is found or the information is instituted within five years after such offense shall have been committed.

Analysis

The court applied the standard from United States v. Santana-Castellano, determining that Gunera was 'found in' the U.S. when immigration authorities identified him through a NAILS inquiry on September 28, 1999. The court concluded that the immigration authorities had actual knowledge of Gunera's illegal presence at that time, which satisfied the statute of limitations criteria.

However, we believe the immigration authorities can reasonably be attributed with actual knowledge that Gunera was present illegally in the U.S. on September 28, 1999, when the NAILS system identified him as having a prior deportation based on a prior conviction for an aggravated felony, that inquiry having been run on the same name, same date of birth, and same country of origin as Gunera submitted on his TPS application.

Conclusion

The court reversed Gunera's conviction and dismissed the indictment, concluding that it was barred by the statute of limitations.

We conclude that, having been returned more than five years following the date Gunera was 'found' in the United States, the indictment against him was barred by limitations.

Who won?

Gunera prevailed in the case because the court found that the indictment was barred by the statute of limitations, thus reversing his conviction.

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