Opinion ID: 764472
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Mejia's Fifth Amendment Ineffective-Assistance Claim

Text: 36 Since Mejia's motion to reopen is clearly time barred, Mejia alternatively contends that his motion to reopen was untimely as a result of ineffective assistance of counsel in his deportation proceedings. Mejia contends that the same attorneys who advised him that his no-contest plea would not affect his immigration status also pursued a frivolous legal position in attempting to argue that Mejia's conviction could not be used as grounds for deportation. Thus, according to Mejia, if not for his counsels' deficient performance in his deportation proceedings, he would have sought to vacate his sentence in state court earlier and then promptly moved to reopen his deportation before the expiration of the limitations period. According to Mejia, his counsels' deficient performance in his deportation proceedings amounts to a violation of Mejia's Fifth Amendment right to due process. 6 37 In order to evaluate Mejia's ineffective-assistance argument, it is important to reemphasize that Mejia is currently facing deportation for overstaying his student visa--not for his drug conviction. Mejia does not contest the validity of the basis for his deportation order. Therefore, Mejia's ineffective-assistance contentions necessarily focus on only his argument that, except for the cocaine conviction, he would have been eligible for suspension of deportation. As suspension of deportation is an extraordinary remedy over which the Attorney General possesses broad discretion, Mejia does not, and cannot, argue that he would have received suspension, and thus would not be facing deportation, if he had received effective assistance from his counsel during his initial deportation proceedings. Thus, the issue becomes whether deficient representation by counsel in deportation proceedings that renders an alien ineligible for suspension of deportation inflicts a constitutional injury. 38