ICE Drops 21 Savage’s “Aggravated Felony” Charge, But Rapper May Still Be Deported Because of Trump

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has dropped 21 Savage’s 2014 “aggravated felony” charge from its deportation case against the rapper. Now, the government’s argument relies solely on 21’s expired visa…although the rapper, born She’yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph, re-applied for a new visa in 2017.

ICE claimed in a statement after 21’s arrest that he was previously convicted on felony drug charges. However, Savage’s lawyers disputed the claim. An attorney who helped expunge the conviction stated the rapper’s plea in the case resulted in a misdemeanor sentence for possession of a controlled substance.

Charles Kuck, acting attorney for #21Savage in his immigration case, said he believes the deportation case spotlights a macro-level issue in the U.S. as a whole. “I think this case is emblematic of a lot of cases where people are detained for not correct reasons, but they don’t always have resources to fight the system. This case is very emblematic of what happens in immigration court and detention.”

Kuck also confirmed that the rapper has returned home after recently being released from ICE custody. But now, according to TMZ, it appears Donald Trump’s immigration policies could still send the rapper back to the U.K., at least until 2021. 

Apparently, ICE headquarters in D.C. got involved with the case, and although they knew 21’s conviction was expunged, the agency ignored it and said the rapper should not be released. 

However, despite the gross attempts by the headquarters, 21’s lawyers convinced a judge to bond the rapper out. And since his application is still pending to be processed, he should have had no problem being approved. 

But, since Trump recently changed the immigration policies from his predecessors’ policies, it appears the rapper may still be deported. According to the publication, under Trump’s new policy, people with pending visa applications are still to be deported until their applications are approved. 

21 filed his application in 2017 and apparently it takes about four years to process, which means he could be deported until 2021.