NOT FOR PUBLICATION WITHOUT THE APPROVAL OF THE APPELLATE DIVISION This opinion shall not "constitute precedent or be binding upon any court ." Although it is posted on the internet, this opinion is binding only on the parties in the case and its use in other cases is limited. R. 1:36-3. SUPERIOR COURT OF NEW JERSEY APPELLATE DIVISION DOCKET NO. A-3512-19 STATE OF NEW JERSEY, Plaintiff-Respondent, v. MIGUEL TORRES, a/k/a MIGUEL TORRES-ZULUAGA, and MIGUEL ALEJANDRO TORRES, Defendant-Appellant. ___________________________ Submitted March 16, 2021 – Decided May 19, 2021 Before Judges Fisher and Gilson. On appeal from the Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division, Atlantic County, Indictment No. 15-02-0313. Derek A. DeCosmo, LLC, attorneys for appellant (Derek A. DeCosmo, of counsel and on the briefs; Anne T. Picker, on the briefs). Damon G. Tyner, Atlantic County Prosecutor, attorney for respondent (Melinda A. Harrigan, Assistant Prosecutor, of counsel and on the brief). PER CURIAM Defendant Miguel Torres-Zuluaga appeals from a March 2, 2020 order denying his petition for post-conviction relief (PCR). He argues that his plea counsel failed to fully advise him of the immigration consequences of his guilty plea and the possibility of an assertion of self-defense. Having conducted a de novo review of the record, we affirm substantially for the reasons explained by Judge Donna M. Taylor in her thorough written opinion where she correctly found that the record established defendant understood the immigration consequences of his plea and he presented no facts suggesting that he could have asserted self-defense. In 2014, defendant got into a physical fight, used a broken bottle to stab the victim, and caused serious injuries to the victim. In November 2015, defendant pled guilty to second-degree aggravated assault, N.J.S.A. 2C:12- 1(b)(1). At that time, he represented that he was a citizen of the United States. Before he was sentenced, defendant and his counsel learned that defendant was not a United States citizen. Defendant had been born in Colombia, had come to the United States with his parents as a child, and had become a legal permanent resident in 2009. Accordingly, defendant was allowed to investigate the immigration consequences of his plea. A-3512-19 2 Thereafter, on April 15, 2016, defendant withdrew his first guilty plea, confirmed that he had the opportunity to consult with an attorney about the immigration consequences of a guilty plea, and entered a new plea, again admitting that he had committed second-degree aggravated assault. Both in his plea forms and in a colloquy with the judge who accepted his guilty plea, defendant acknowledged he understood he would likely be deported if he pled guilty. Defendant also testified that he had consulted with an attorney about the immigration consequences of his plea and, understanding those consequences, he wanted to plead guilty. In May 2016, defendant was sentenced in accordance with his plea agreement to five years in prison subject to the No Early Release Act, N.J.S.A. 2C:43-7.2. He did not file a direct appeal. In June 2019, defendant filed a petition for PCR. …
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