Capitol Pressroom: Alisa Wellek and Khalil Cumberbatch

Under current law, immigrants convicted of a crime can be deported after facing a sentence of over one year. Activists are pushing for New York to shorten the maximum sentence for Class A misdemeanors by just one day to allow federal immigration judges discretion on a case by case basis. Alisa Wellek, Executive Director of the Immigrant Defense Project, and Khalil Cumberbatch, Associate Vice President of Policy at the Fortune Society, explained the impact this will have for immigrants across New York.