8/8/2019 Paterson Pardon List

1/4

The individuals who received pardons include:

Tressan Allen, in 2002, was convicted of Attempted Criminal Possession of Marijuana in the

Fourth Degree, a class B misdemeanor. She is married to an active duty U.S. Army Specialist

who is currently stationed in Germany and will be deployed for his second tour of duty in

Afghanistan in February.

Luz Marina Camacho was convicted of drug sale and possession crimes in 1983. She was

sentenced to 15 years to life in prison, but Governor Mario Cuomo commuted her sentence

in 1991. Since her release, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has permitted her to

remain in the United States under a "deferred action," which will expire in February 2011.

Ian Carter pled guilty to Attempted Criminal Sale of Stolen Property in the Third Degree in

1994 and was sentenced to five years on probation. He has demonstrated his rehabilitation by

receiving an Associates and a Bachelors Degree, maintaining gainful employment and serving

his community by participating in charitable activities. A pardon will remove the basis for his

deportation.

Edouard Colas was brought to the United States from Haiti as a lawful permanent resident at

age 10. He was convicted in 1997 of Attempted Burglary in the Third Degree and sentenced

to five years on probation. He has maintained gainful employment and is married to a United

States citizen with whom he has two young sons. The pardon will remove the basis for his

deportation.

Lucila Cruz has been a lawful permanent resident of the United States since 1992. She was

convicted of Attempted Grand Larceny in the Third Degree in 1996, and was sentenced to a

conditional discharge. Many supporters, including her employer, have commended her for thecare she provides to her severely disabled son. The pardon should remove all grounds for her

deportation.

Vijay Dandapani was pardoned for a 1993 conviction of first-degree grand larceny, for

which he served a one-to three year sentence. He cooperated with the prosecution, including

providing essential testimony at the trial of his accomplices. A pardon will prevent his

deportation, allowing him to remain in the United States with his wife, who is a citizen, and two

children.

Neil Drew has been a lawful permanent resident of the United States since he was 10 years

old. He was convicted of third-degree grand larceny in 1998, for which he served a one-to-three

year sentence and made restitution. He has earned a Bachelors Degree from the School of

Visual Arts in New York City and has been gainfully employed as a graphic designer. His two

brothers serve in the U.S. military. The pardon should fully resolve his immigration problems.

Carol Hamilton, now a Reverend, was convicted of two class A misdemeanors of Criminal

Possession of Marijuana in the Fourth Degree in 1995 and 1986, for which he was sentenced to

8/8/2019 Paterson Pardon List

2/4

a conditional discharge and a fine, respectively. He has now earned a Bachelors and a Masters

Degree and works as an ordained minister, counseling youth, ex-offenders and people living

with HIV/AIDS. A pardon should assist him in fighting his deportation, allowing him to remain in

the United States with his wife and three young children.

Olusegun Ola Johnson, a lawful permanent resident since 1991, was convicted of three countsof second-degree forgery and one count of third-degree grand larceny in 1990, for which he was

sentenced to five years of probation. He has had no further contacts with the criminal justice

system, and is now an ordained deacon, who is married to a citizen and is the father of four

children.

Walter Mills, now 60-years-old, was convicted of attempted possession of a firearm in 1973

and was sentenced to a conditional discharge. In the 37 years since this conviction, he has had

no other contact with the criminal justice system. He now works full time and cares for his 82-

year-old mother. The pardon will be considered a favorable discretionary factor if he is ever

placed in deportation proceedings.

Pedro Montesquieu was convicted in 2000 of attempted Criminal Sale of a Controlled

Substance in the Third degree and was sentenced to five years on probation. Montesquieu runs

his own business, and is the father of three young children, two of whom suffer from severe and

life-threatening illnesses. The pardon should enable Montesquieu to re-open his immigration

proceedings and would make him eligible to seek cancellation of removal but because he was

convicted of a controlled substance offense, it will not guarantee that he will be permitted to

remain in the United States.

About this case, Governor Paterson said: "At a later date, we may have a clearer idea of the

impact that a pardon will have for persons with controlled substance convictions who arefighting deportation, but I am granting this pardon for humanitarian reasons because of the

sorrowful multiple tragedies that may beset this family."

Francisco Moya de Leon, who has been a lawful permanent resident of the United States

since 1988, was convicted in 1994, of fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled

substance for which he served five years on probation. He is married to a citizen, and his

son serves as a police officer in New York City. Moya de Leon is now facing removal as an

inadmissible alien because he left the country three times after he was convicted, despite

the fact that he has been a lawful permanent resident for 22 years and was re-admitted to

the United States after each trip outside the country. Governor Paterson granted the pardon

to assist Moya de Leon in overcoming the unfairness of the U.S. Customs and Immigration

Services decision.

Frances Novoa, who is now 63 years old, is being threatened with removal for attempted

petit larceny convictions from 1984 and 1974, for which she was sentenced to a conditional

discharge. Novoa is gainfully employed, and provides stability to one of her daughters and three

of her grandchildren, who would suffer a serious disruption of their lives and extreme emotional

8/8/2019 Paterson Pardon List

3/4

harm if she were to be deported.

Angela Parker was brought to the United States at age four. When her father was killed when

Parker was 11 years old she was kicked out of her home and, along with her 16-year-old sister,

forced to live on the streets and endure years of abuse and violence. During these tumultuous

years, she was convicted, in 1989, of two counts of third-degree criminal sale of a controlledsubstance and one count of first-degree assault and was sentenced to 1 to 4 years in State

prison. For the last 17 years, she has raised her oldest son, who served in the U.S. Army, and

is now desperate to remain in the United States so that she may help her two younger children

have a better life than she had.

Juan P. Ramirez, who was then the owner of a bodega, was convicted in 2003 of two

misdemeanors. Since these convictions, he has been gainfully employed, supporting his wife

and children. He has been an active member of his community who has devoted himself to

helping others. The pardon should remove all grounds of deportability and allow him to have his

green card restored.

Laurenton Rhodon has been a lawful permanent resident of the United States for twenty years,

but now faces removal as a result of a 1995 conviction for Attempted Criminal Possession of a

Controlled Substance in the Third Degree, for which he was sentenced to five years probation.

Rhodon has sole custody of his 12-year-old daughter. The pardon will make him eligible to seek

cancellation of removal, but because he was convicted of a controlled substance offense, there

is no guarantee that he will be permitted to remain in the United States.

Fredy C. Rojas, a veteran of the U.S. Army and after having served our country for 8 years, is

deportable as a result of a single misdemeanor drug possession conviction in 1995. Since that

time, he has completed drug treatment and, together with his wife, who is a citizen, he is raisinghis 7-year-old daughter and working as a truck driver.

Jose Sanchez was granted lawful permanent resident status in 1998, even though he

disclosed to immigration officials that he had been convicted in 1989 of fifth-degree criminal

possession of a controlled substance and sentenced to five years on probation. Eleven years

later, after Sanchez has built a stable life in New York, Immigration and Customs Enforcement

is seeking to deport him for that same conviction.

Melbourne Sinclair has been a lawful permanent resident of the United States since 1986. He

was convicted in 1990 of the misdemeanor offense of fourth-degree criminal sale of marijuana

and sentenced to a fine. As many permanent residents do, he applied for naturalization,

unaware that he was ineligible as a result of his conviction, and he now faces the likelihood of

being placed in deportation proceedings. If removed, he would be torn from his wife, who is a

citizen, and sons, who would likely be unable to continue their college attendance without their

father's support and assistance. If he is placed in proceedings, the pardon will make Sinclair

eligible seek cancellation of removal, but will not guarantee that he will be permitted to remain in

the United States.

8/8/2019 Paterson Pardon List

4/4

Eligio Valerio has resided in the United States since 1982, but was recently the subject of

immigration proceedings based on a 1986 conviction for fifth-degree criminal sale of a controlled

substance and a 1988 conviction for fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. In the 22

years since his conviction, Valerio has been gainfully employed, has raised a family and has

had no further contact with the criminal justice system. The pardon will make him eligible forcancellation of removal.

Additionally, Governor Paterson pardoned four individuals who, due to retroactive changes

to the immigration laws, would have been subject to deportation. These individuals were all

convicted of offenses that did not initially carry the penalty of deportation, though that was

changed due to subsequent legislation. Those pardoned include:

Salvador Gonzalez was convicted of first-degree assault in 1975, for which he served a one to

three year sentence in State prison. He has had no involvement with the criminal justice system

in the 35-years since his conviction, and is now a small-business owner who takes care of his

elderly parents and his young son. Gonzalez has been hampered in his efforts to prevent his

removal, because retroactively-effective changes in the immigration laws in the 1990s made him

ineligible for cancellation of removal a form of relief that was available to him at the time of his

conviction.

Engels R. Guzman, a lawful permanent resident of the United States since age 15, was

convicted of second-degree robbery in 1990, when he was 16 years old. After his release from

prison, he worked in the family supermarket business, married and is the father of four young

children. He too has been hampered by retroactive changes in the immigration law that now

made him ineligible for cancellation of removal.

Jose Palma has been a lawful permanent resident of the United States since 1971, but faces

deportation as a result of a first-degree reckless endangerment conviction from 1978, for which

he served 60 days in jail and five years on probation. He has lived an exemplary life during the

30 years since he was released from parole supervision, having become a business owner and

raising his three children with his wife of over 30 years. Like Gonzalez and Guzman, he has

been hampered by retroactive changes in the immigration law that now made him ineligible for

cancellation of removal.

Randy Valentin De La Cruz has been a lawful permanent resident since the age of 13, but now

faces removal to an unfamiliar country as a result of a 1984 conviction for first-degree assault,

for which he was sentenced to 1 to 4 years in prison. In the 26 years since this conviction,

De La Cruz and his wife have raised their two children, one of whom has served in the U.S.

Navy for the last 11 years. Like other pardon recipients, retroactive changes in the immigration

laws have made De La Cruz ineligible for cancellation of removal. The pardon should eliminate

all grounds for deportability.