People v. Lopez

Defendant pled guilty to possession of a controlled substance, a Class 4 felony. Court treated Defendant's "Amended Motion to Withdraw Plea of Guilty", filed 8 months later, as a petition for postconviction relief and summarily dismissed it. Given facts alleged, had Defendant been properly advised of immigration consequences of his plea, Defendant's decision to reject the plea bargain would have been rational under the circumstances, including nature of offense and Defendant's lack of criminal history.Defendant's affidavit stated that defense counsel never advised him that pleading guilty would cause him to be immediately deported from U.S. and separated from his family. Defendant made a substantial showing of ineffective assistance of counsel. (McBRIDE and ELLIS, concurring.)