Antonio Esposito v. Immigration and Naturalization Service

Petitioner Antonio Esposito, a native and citizen of Italy, had been a lawful permanent resident of the United States since 1970. In 1986, he was convicted in Virginia state court of unlawful possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute, unlawful possession of marijuana, and unlawful possession of a sawed-off shotgun. He was sentenced as follows: (1) for the cocaine possession, a suspended sentence of twenty years imprisonment conditioned upon twenty years good behavior, a $10,000 fine, twelve months imprisonment, and court costs; (2) for the marijuana possession, a suspended sentence…