Visa Lawyer Blog
Gov. David A. Paterson announced that he had issued pardons to 24 immigrants with prior criminal convictions, to prevent their deportation.
In a statement, Mr. Paterson said his administration had reviewed more than 1,100 pardon applications and found that federal immigration laws were often “excessively harsh and in need of modernization.” Tell me about it.
Mr. Paterson said the 24 people he pardoned had committed offenses in the past but had paid their debt to society and were now making positive contributions to their communities.
The governor made a similar statement after granting an earlier round of pardons to six immigrants on Dec. 6.