Deming man seeks to withdraw guilty plea that led to his deportation

LORDSBURG — A Deming man who accepted a plea agreement, and was subsequently deported to Mexico, is seeking to withdraw his plea and have his sentence vacated.

A hearing on the matter Thursday at the Hidalgo County Courthouse was postponed until July, leaving Misael Hinojos-Parra, 30, waiting in a country he left at the age of 3, separated from his family and long-term partner.

Hinojos-Parra had been a legal permanent resident since 2011. According to court records, his parents are also legal residents, while his brother is a U.S. citizen.

In 2022, Hinojos-Parra pleaded guilty to receiving a stolen firearm, a fourth-degree felony. Per the agreement, state District Judge Jarod Hofacket handed him a suspended sentence of 18 months in prison.

Two years later, after taking a plea agreement in another case, he was summoned to appear for a deportation hearing in El Paso, Texas, where he learned the 2022 plea agreement held surprise consequences.

The length of the sentence in that case, even though it was suspended, meant his conviction was considered an aggravated felony for immigration purposes, as stated on the summons from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Hinojos-Parra was detained at the ICE processing center in El Paso and informed he was not eligible to seek relief from deportation. He also faces exclusion from the U.S. for the remainder of his life.

In a civil petition, Hinojos-Parra said his attorneys failed to advise him of the immigration-related consequences of his 2022 sentence.

“If I would have known that this offense was going to cause for me to be deported and separate me from my family and permanently bar me from ever reentering the United States, I would of taken this case to trial or insisted that my attorney negotiate an immigration safe plea,” he wrote.

Hinojos-Parra has a criminal history in New Mexico of offenses involving methamphetamine, aggravated DWI and firearms.

The 2022 case stemmed from an encounter with Border Patrol at a Lordsburg gas station. According to court documents, Hinojos-Parra and another man were arrested on suspicion of transporting immigrants who were unlawfully present in the U.S., although federal court records indicate the case was not prosecuted.

While Hinojos-Parra was detained at the Border Patrol station, a Hidalgo County deputy traced a Smith and Wesson .38 Special he had been carrying in his waistband and learned it was reported stolen.

ICE proceeded with deportation after Hinojos-Parra once again landed in court, pleading guilty in March 2024 to possessing a firearm after previous felony convictions as well as possessing methamphetamine. In that case, he received a suspended sentence totaling four and a half years.

“As a result of his plea, (Hinojos-Parra) has suffered harm and prejudice,” his attorney stated in the petition. “The impact of deportation is great if not greater than the imposition of any criminal sentence.”