TwitterJustin Bieber looks like the picture of innocence all snuggled up with his baby brother Jaxon, but could his recent legal troubles get him deported from the United States?!
E! News talked to legal experts (in Canada and the U.S.) about whether there's an actual possibility of Justin being deported (which seems to be what the over 180,000 people petitioning the White House are hoping for). But before any Beliebers freak out, let's take a quick look at the 19-year-old singer's rap sheet.
So, just hours before Jeremy Bieber tweeted a sweet picture of his sons "Safe and sound" in bed on Thursday morning, Justin turned himself in to Toronto police, was charged with assault (stemming from an alleged attack in December that involved his entourage and a limo driver), then released on his own recognizance.
This most recent run-in with the cops came just six days after Justin's Jan. 23 DUI arrest in Miami (to which he plead not guilty). The "Confident" singer is scheduled to appear in Toronto court on March 10 nearly a month after his Feb. 14 arraignment in Miami.
Oh, and remember the police raid at Justin's L.A. home following the incident earlier this month where he allegedly egged his neighbor's house? Police confirmed that no illegal substances were found in the Biebs' place of residence (except for the drugs found in Lil Za's room, which he was arrested for), but just yesterday, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Lt. David Thompson confirmed to E! News the case is still ongoing. The D.A. asked authorities to continue to investigate and have yet to decide whether or not they will get a judge to issue a search warrant to access Justin's phone.
Whew, OK, you're all caught up! Now, Michael Wildes, a prominent immigration attorney in New York, told E! News that if Bieber were to be "charged with felony vandalism in California [stemming from the egg-throwing incident], he can very well face the day when immigration authorities concluded that he'd abused the privilege of living in the U.S. long enough."
"He is young and his stature and acclaim have probably shielded him thus far, but he cannot continue on his current trajectory," Mr. Wildes added. "He might end up disappointing millions of fans."
Mr. Wildes also reasoned that even if Justin were charged with assault in Canada, it would "not be considered a crime of moral turpitude which would bar him from admission [to the United States] or make him deportable."
Toronto criminal attorney Edward Prutschi agreed, pointing out that Justin's charges in Canada shouldn't have any deportation risk in the U.S. But Mr. Prutschi thinks the Biebs' charges for anything in Miami could lead U.S. attorneys to deny his O-1 visa renewal and force him back to Canada.
Don't panic, though: Mr. Prutschi says this is extremely unlikely.
—Additional reporting by Claudia Rosenbaum