Hays County will pilot a program that will provide legal assistance to criminal defense attorneys to help fulfill their Padilla obligation.
On Tuesday morning, the Hays County Commissioners Court formally accepted a $342,720 grant from the Texas Indigent Defense Commission (TIDC) for the Regional Padilla Compliance Pilot Project. The pilot program will provide technical support to criminal defense attorneys in Hays County and the 3rd Administrative Judicial Region “for constitutionally required Padilla assistance.”
Criminal defense attorneys, under the Supreme Court case Padilla v. Kentucky, are required to advise their non-citizen clients about the immigration consequences of pleas, such as the possibility of deportation. However, the Padilla obligation is difficult to meet for most defense attorneys without a dedicated resource or attorney versed in immigration law.
