She pleaded guilty to a drug charge. Then she visited Mexico not knowing she couldn’t return

Angela Hernandez, a legal permanent resident of the U.S. for 19 years, pleaded guilty to drug charges in Kern County in 2013. She signed a form acknowledging the deportation consequences of her guilty plea, but the California Supreme Court ruled that her understanding of the legal implications was insufficient. The court found that there was a reasonable probability Hernandez would have rejected the plea offer if she had fully understood the consequences.

Hernandez, who was 55-years-old at the time of her arrest, had family members in the U.S. and was unaware that she could not return to Mexico after her conviction.

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