Federal appeals court allows man to fight deportation despite conviction for indecent exposure

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Man who exposed himself may escape deportation
by Bob Egelko
San Francisco Chronicle

(02-10) 17:13 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- The crime of indecent exposure isn't always "base, vile and depraved," a federal appeals court ruled Wednesday - a conclusion that enables a Bay Area man to fight his deportation to Mexico.

The 2-1 ruling by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco allows Victor Ocegueda Nuñez to return to immigration court for a hearing on the circumstances of his crime and on whether his deportation would cause extreme hardship to his wife and their three children, all U.S. citizens.

Ocegueda entered the United States illegally in 1993, at age 15. He was living in Fremont when he was convicted of misdemeanor indecent exposure in 2003 and turned over to immigration authorities.

His lawyer, Cheryl Franke, said Wednesday that the crime involved an encounter with a woman who accused Ocegueda of exposing himself to her.

Federal law allows illegal immigrants who have lived in the United States for at least 10 years to contest deportation orders that would cause extreme hardship to their family. But deportation is automatic for those who have been convicted of two crimes of "moral turpitude," defined in court rulings as conduct that is "base, vile and depraved."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2010/02/10/BAOB1BVK7A.DTL

If you're very sensitive, please don't read the comments - it turns out that Freeper anti-Mexican/anti-immigrant comments are the "most recommended".