Just posting this to tease....
Consequences of DUI
Canada Would Ban Bush — But There Are
Loopholes
By Rebecca Cooper
W A S H I N G T O N, Nov. 3 — Even if
George W. Bush is elected
president, he may need special
permission to get into Canada
because of his arrest for
drunken driving.
The Republican candidate for
president acknowledged for the first
time on Thursday that he was
arrested for driving under the
influence on Labor Day weekend in
1976, near his family home in
Kennebunkport, Maine.
According to Canada’s Criminal
Code, Bush is deemed an
“inadmissible” person, in violation of
Section 19 (2) (a.1) of the
Immigration Act of Canada.
In other words, he has committed
a crime considered an indictable
offense in Canada, and, because of
that he is banned.
Alternative Entry Points
Luckily for Bush, if he is elected
president of the United States Nov.
7 and is invited to any gatherings of
heads of state in Canada, since his
offense is more than five years old,
there are ways for him to gain entry
without breaking federal law.
“He is going to have to go through
what’s called the rehabilitation
process. The rehab takes a while and
it would be somewhat demeaning for
a president of the United States. He
would have to go through a series of
steps, including getting letters from
friends saying he has cleaned up his
act. If he wanted to come to Canada
before completing the lengthy rehab
process, he would need the
permission of a senior immigration
official,” immigration lawyer Colin R.
Singer tells ABCNEWS.
Has He Reformed?
According to a “rehab check list”
compiled by the Canadian law firm of
Larson, Bryson & Boulton, the
Canadian government considers
several factors when determining
whether a person wanting entry to
Canada has truly rehabilitated
themselves from their criminal
offense and deserves entry,
including: acceptance of
responsibility for the offense;
evidence of remorse; evidence of a
change in lifestyle; and, evidence of
stability in employment and family
life.
If Bush wants to avoid any
appearance of favoritism and skip
the special waiver from a senior
official, it is possible to speed up the
rehab process by just paying a hefty
“processing fee” at the border.
And a lot of Americans with DUIs
on their records manage to get in to
Canada without border computers
catching their previous offense and
without admitting to their criminal
records.
Of course Singer doesn’t
recommend that approach for Bush.
“If Bush comes to Canada or has
ever been to Canada since his
conviction and hides the fact that he
has a prior conviction — no matter
how far back — he could be excluded
from Canada permanently and never
allowed to return.”
An Influential Law
Canadian immigration experts say the
law affects numerous Americans
seeking entry to Canada every month,
usually when computer checks do
catch the old offense.
There’s even information on a
Canadian fishing Web site explaining
to visiting anglers how to cross into
Canada with an old DUI charge. And
according to Singer, “This affects
professionals in the sports and
entertainment industries more often
than people think.”
Gore and Clinton Illegal Too
Canadian attorney Darryl Larson
maintains Bush has some notable
company in the “inadmissible”
category, contending that Canadian
law bans both President Clinton and
Vice President Al Gore.
“If you admit to having smoked
marijuana,” Larson explains, “You
have admitted to an unlawful act. That
would allow reasonable grounds for
our immigration officers to
determine that you have broken a law
that, if committed in Canada, would
be subject to prosecution and
therefore falls under this law. So
this would apply to both Clinton and
Gore.”
Larson and Singer say a president
of the United States can expect to
bypass the rehab process and be
given special permission to enter
fairly quickly.
But a special waiver is good for
only 30 days.
“If George W. Bush wants to come
to Canada for more than 30 days to
vacation here, like President
Roosevelt used to do, or if he
decides he wants to live or work
here,” Larson contends, “He’s going
to have to go through the Canadian
rehabilitation process.
It’s the law.”
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