An undocumented immigrant who was cleared by a Brooklyn appellate court to practice law in New York has run into a potential obstacle to joining the bar after an Iowa state judge sentenced him to one year of probation for trespassing during a political rally held on private property.

Cesar Vargas, 31, participated in a demonstration over immigration policies at a rally for Republican presidential candidates and others in Des Moines. He and other demonstrators sat among about 1,500 attendees on the private property.

At one point, he rose and disrupted a speech by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, asking if he would support the deportation of Vargas' 70-year-old mother if elected.