Post: Smuggling Illegal Aliens - case in Arizona

Posted by Rachel on 9/09/07

I am a criminal defense attorney in Arizona, and I have a
client who has been charged with Smuggling. The statute
is as follows:

13-2319. Smuggling; classification; definitions

A. It is unlawful for a person to intentionally engage in
the smuggling of human beings for profit or commercial
purpose.

2. "Smuggling of human beings" means the transportation or
procurement of transportation by a person or an entity
that knows or has reason to know that the person or
persons transported or to be transported are not United
States citizens, permanent resident aliens or persons
otherwise lawfully in this state.

Here is my question: The prosecutor has informed me that
he doesn't know if the illegal immigrants have been
deported yet or not and that he has not yet received
anything from immigration to show that they were in fact
illegal. If they have been deported - how would the
prosecutor be able to prove they were illegal? Could he do
so with documentation? This is a fairly new statute, so
there's not much on it.

Posts on this thread, including this one

Smuggling Illegal Aliens - case in Arizona, 9/09/07, by Rachel.