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Cuomo said he issued the pardons on Monday, Dec. 31 in recognition of each individual's rehabilitative efforts and to remove the barriers that their criminal records present to their immigration status.
Some are facing deportation, while others wish to be able to participate in their communities as citizens of the country they call home. In each case, a pardon will make immigration-related relief possible, if not automatic.
"While President Trump shuts down the federal government over his obsession with keeping immigrants out, New York stands strong in our support for immigrant communities," Cuomo said. "These actions will help keep immigrant families together and take a critical step toward a more just, more fair and more compassionate New York."
Pardoned was Marvin Hernandez, 34, who was convicted of attempted arson in 2006 in Westchester for setting fire to a box of trash when he was 21. There were no injuries and he has remained crime-free in the 12 years since his 2006 conviction.
He came to the United States at age 3 from El Salvador to join his parents. A pardon will help him avoid deportation to El Salvador, where he has no family and fears gang violence.
Peekskill resident Trevor Elliot, 67, was also pardoned. He was convicted of criminal sale and attempted sale of a controlled substance and sale of marijuana in the early 90s in Westchester, the governor's statement said.
He was born in Jamaica and has worked at a nonprofit that provides social services for youth and as an elder care provider. A pardon would allow Elliot to apply for citizenship. He has maintained a crime-free lifestyle for 10 years.
Also pardoned was Dimas Acosta Ramirez, 64, of Clarkstown, after being convicted in 1976 of robbery, of petit larceny in 1992, and of the sale of a controlled substance in 1997 in Manhattan, Westchester, and the Bronx, according to the governor’s office.
Ramirez has been crime-free and sober for 21 years. He was born in Colombia and actively faces deportation, despite living here for 46 years. Mr. Ramirez is a volunteer pastor who provides childcare for his grandchildren and is the father of four children, three of whom served in the U.S. Armed Forces.
The pardons are the latest actions Cuomo has taken to support the immigrant community and defend immigrants against federal attacks, the statement said.
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