Justia Government & Administrative Law Opinion Summaries

Nepalese native and citizen petitioner Narendra Raj Karki petitioned the Tenth Circuit to review a Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) decision affirming an order of an immigration judge (IJ) that denied his application for asylum and restriction on removal under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and protection under the United Nations Convention Against Torture (CAT). Petitioner entered the United States in 2007 in order to present a paper at a forestry conference in Oregon. His visitor's visa authorized him to remain in the country for approximately one month. A few days after the visa expired, Petitioner filed an asylum application, which was denied by an asylum officer and referred to an immigration judge. Removal proceedings were initiated against him in early 2008. At the removal proceedings, Petitioner renewed his application for asylum and sought restriction on removal under the INA and protection under the CAT, claiming that he had suffered past persecution and feared future persecution based on his political opinion and membership in a particular social group. The IJ concluded that Petitioner had failed to establish a nexus between his alleged fear of persecution and a statutorily protected ground. On appeal, the BIA affirmed the IJ's conclusion that the incidents described by Petitioner did not rise to the level of past persecution thus concluding that Petitioner was not eligible for asylum or restriction on removal because he had not shown past persecution or a fear of future persecution based on his political opinion. Furthermore, the BIA concluded that Petitioner was not eligible for relief under the CAT because he had not shown that the government of Nepal was likely to torture him or acquiesce in his torture if he returned. Upon review, the Tenth Circuit concluded that the record as a whole did not support the BIA's conclusion that Petitioner failed to show that public officials in Nepal would likely acquiesce in his torture by Maoists if he returned to Nepal. Accordingly, the Court granted the petition for review as to Petitioner's CAT claim. The Court noted that there was no agency factfinding on the likelihood that Petitioner will be tortured if he returned to Nepal, and on remand the agency could consider whether Petitioner had shown a sufficient likelihood of torture to be entitled to CAT relief. The case was remanded for further proceedings. View "Karki v. Holder" on Justia Law

Pro se petitioner Lucio Salgado-Toribio sought review of a Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) order denying his motion to reopen removal proceedings. Petitioner had been using the federal courts' procedures to put off removal for more than three years since an immigration judge found him removable. This appeal was his third time seeking the Tenth Circuit's review of an administrative decision over which the Court found it had no jurisdiction. "Enough is enough. We deny Petitioner's motion to proceed in forma pauperis, dismiss the petition for review, and recommend that the Department of Homeland Security enforce the order of removal immediately." View "Salgado-Toribio v. Holder" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a native-born citizen of the People's Republic of China, entered the U.S. without admission or parole. Six months later, Petitioner filed an affirmative application for asylum and withholding of removal, asserting that he and his wife conceived a second child in violation of China's one-child policy, and that as a result, his wife was subjected to a forced abortion. Petitioner later modified his asylum application, asserting that he and his wife were adherents of Falun Gong, a spiritual discipline that is the target of a suppression campaign by the Chinese government, and that when his wife was pregnant with their child child, Chinese officials came to his home and hit him, and that he was forced into hiding. After a merits hearing, the immigration judge (IJ) denied asylum, finding Petitioner's claim as initially presented did not entitle him to asylum, that Petitioner's later assertions lacked credibility, and that Petitioner's lack of sincere belief in his practice of Falun Gong meant he was not entitled to asylum. The Board of Immigration Appeals dismissed Petitioner's appeal. The First Circuit Court of Appeals denied Petitioner's petition for review, holding that substantial evidence supported the IJ's findings regarding Petitioner's credibility. View "Liu v. Holder" on Justia Law

Plaintiff, a refugee immigrant, sued defendants, seeking a judgment declaring that the USCIS acted unlawfully by withholding adjudication on his application without periodically reviewing it, an injunction ordering USCIS to adjudicate his application within 30 days, and other relief. The district court granted defendants' motion for summary judgment in part, holding that the delay in adjudicating plaintiff's application was neither unlawful nor unreasonable as a matter of law. After intervening action by the Secretary, USCIS approved plaintiff's application for adjustment to permanent resident status. Because the case is now moot, the court dismissed the appeal, vacated the judgment of the district court, and remanded the case with instructions to dismiss the complaint. View "Ayyoubi v. Holder, Jr., et al" on Justia Law

Plaintiffs challenged certain rules issued by the Department of Labor governing the employment of temporary, non-agricultural foreign workers, asserting that the Department had no authority to issue these rules. The district court agreed and granted plaintiffs a preliminary injunction prohibiting the enforcement of the rules during the pendency of the action. The court found that the district court's legal conclusion regarding plaintiffs' likelihood of success on the merits was without error, and its finding of fact supporting its conclusion that none of the other factors militates against the issuance of the preliminary injunction was without clear error. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment of the district court. View "Bayou Lawn & Landscape Svcs, et al v. Pineros Y Campesinos Unido, et al" on Justia Law

Petitioner was granted conditional permanent residency in the U.S. on the basis of her marriage to a U.S. citizen. Petitioner and her husband then began divorce proceedings. Petitioner subsequently sought to remove the conditions on her residency. The Department of Homeland Security (Department) denied Petitioner's petition, terminated her conditional resident status, and initiated removal proceedings against her, concluding that Petitioner did not establish that she married her husband in good faith. In removal proceedings, an immigration judge (IJ) denied Petitioner's request for removal of conditions and determined Petitioner was ineligible for cancellation of removal because she could not establish the requisite good moral character. Consequently, the IJ ordered Petitioner's removal. The Board of Immigration Appeals dismissed Petitioner's appeal. The First Circuit Court of Appeals denied Petitioner's petition for review, holding (1) substantial evidence supported the Board's conclusion that Petitioner did not establish she married her husband in good faith; and (2) the Board did not err in concluding that Petitioner was subject to a mandatory bar to a finding of good moral character on the basis of false testimony in her immigration proceedings. View "Reynoso v. Holder" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a native and citizen of Ecuador, entered the United States without being admitted or paroled. When Petitioner was placed into removal proceedings, she applied for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture. The immigration judge denied Petitioner's applications for relief. The board of immigration appeals (BIA) dismissed Petitioner's appeal. The First Circuit Court of Appeals denied Petitioner's petition for review of the BIA's order, holding (1) the BIA did not err in concluding that Petitioner was ineligible for asylum, as Petitioner failed to demonstrate her status as a refugee; and (2) because Petitioner failed to demonstrate that she was eligible for asylum, her claims for withholding of removal and relief under CAT also failed. View "Guaman-Loja v. Holder" on Justia Law

In 2003, Petitioner pled guilty to conspiracy-to-commit larceny stemming from a scheme in which Petitioner stole from the dorm rooms of his college classmates. At the time, Petitioner was a lawful permanent resident. Consequently, an immigration judge and the board of immigration appeals (BIA) found that Petitioner was removable because his crimes involved "moral turpitude" within the meaning of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The First Circuit Court of Appeals granted Petitioner's petition for review and vacated the BIA's order dismissing Petitioner's appeal, holding that the BIA erred in finding Petitioner removable, as there was no statement in Petitioner's plea colloquy admitting an intent to commit a permanent deprivation. Remanded. View "Patel v. Holder" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a native and citizen of the Dominican Republic, entered the United States without inspection in 1992. In 1995, an immigration judge (IJ) adjudged Petitioner deportable and gave her until 1996 to voluntarily depart. Petitioner remained in the country. In 2011, Petitioner filed a motion to reopen her removal proceedings, basing her motion on charged circumstances and citing her marriage to a United States citizen and approval of her visa petition. The IJ denied her motion as untimely. The board of appeals affirmed. The First Circuit Court of Appeals denied Petitioner's petition for review, holding that Petitioner missed the deadline to file a motion to reopen, and none of the regulatory exceptions to the deadline applied in this case. View "Paca v. Holder" on Justia Law

Petitioners, a Pakistani native and his family, sought refuge in the United States in 2009 after the Taliban began attacking Awami National Party (ANP) activists. Petitioner was an active member of the ANP. Later in 2009, Petitioners filed applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture. An immigration judge (IJ) denied Petitioners' applications and ordered them removed to Pakistan. The Board of Immigration Appeals (BOA) affirmed the IJ's order. The First Circuit Court of Appeals granted Petitioners' petition for review and vacated the order of the BIA, holding that neither the IJ nor the BIA presented a reasoned analysis of the evidence as a whole in this case. Remanded. View "Khattak v. Holder" on Justia Law