State v. Romero-Ochoa

*343 ¶1 A jury convicted Leonel Romero-Ochoa of burglary, unlawful imprisonment, assault, and multiple *344 counts of rape, arising from an incident in which he broke into a woman's home, beat her, and raped her twice. At trial, Romero-Ochoa sought to admit evidence that the victim had applied for a U visa in connection with these crimes. A U visa grants temporary legal resident status to a person who is the victim of a qualifying crime and who helps law enforcement investigate or prosecute that crime. The trial court excluded the U visa evidence.

¶2 Romero-Ochoa appealed his convictions on the ground…