Question by THE GREATEST GODDESS JILL: What do you think illegal sentenced in cocaine case addicted to cocaine has wife & kids will supporters?
What do you think illegal sentenced in cocaine case addicted to cocaine has wife & kids will supporters denounce the separation of families ?
COLUMBUS, Ind. — In what a judge called a “tragic case,” an illegal immigrant living in Columbus was sentenced Thursday to seven years in prison for dealing cocaine and could be deported, leaving his wife and two young children.

Jonathan Galvan Lopez, 26, testified Thursday that he was addicted to cocaine and sold it because he did not want to use the income from his full-time job at a local factory to support his addiction.

He said he used the income from his job, where he has been employed since coming to the United States in 2004, to support his wife and two children. The children were born in Bartholomew County, he said.

Lopez was charged in October with three counts of dealing cocaine, two Class A and one Class B felony.

He pleaded guilty in June to the Class B felony in exchange for prosecutors dropping the other charges.

Bartholomew Circuit Court Judge Stephen Heimann called the case “tragic” because Lopez was fully employed and was able to support his family in a fashion he was unable to in his home country.

The judge, reading from a pre-sentence investigation report, said Lopez’s wife had to sell the family home to assist in her husband’s legal fees and to help provide for the family.

“The family has suffered at this point and will continue to suffer,” Heimann said. “Nevertheless, dealing cocaine is a serious offense.”

Lopez has no criminal record, which mitigated his sentence, the judge said.

Heimann said he found no factors that would aggravate Lopez’s sentence.

He said some people may believe being in the country illegally would aggravate the sentence, but that illegal residency is not a factor the court can consider because it is not recognized as an aggravator under state law.

Heimann ordered Lopez to the seven-year prison sentence, which is three years less than the state’s advisory sentence.

He said he also will notify federal immigration authorities of his conviction and sentence so that they can begin deportation procedures.

http://www.therepublic.com/view/local_story/Immigrant_sentenced_in_cocaine_case_7_29_2010/

Best answer:

Answer by Proud Aryan
Poor guy, I say we let him go. j/k

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