A tough-on-crime ballot measure that appears destined to pass could lead to more Californians being deported, immigrant advocates warn.
Proposition 36 would reclassify certain misdemeanor drug and theft offenses as felonies, which means immigrants convicted of those crimes are more likely to face deportation if they have a case before an immigration court, the advocates said.
“It is not an understatement to say that if Prop. 36 passes, more Californians, including green-card holders, including refugees, will be deported,” said Grisel Ruiz, a supervising attorney with the Immigrant Legal Resource Center . “The impacts will be pretty disastrous.”…