United States Seventh Circuit

Petition for review of the denial of a former El Salvadoran soldier's asylum application is granted and the denial vacated and remanded where: 1) petitioner's mere presence during an act of persecution did not constitute assistance in the act; 2) petitioner's attempts to cover-up the persecution did not amount to participation in the persecution; 3) the legitimacy of petitioner's conviction for the persecution could be reviewed in his immigration proceeding since the trial that produced the conviction was a travesty of justice; and 4) the immigration judge disregarded all evidence of petitioner's fear of persecution upon return to El Salvador.

Appellate Information

• Argued 02/23/2007
• Decided 04/17/2007
• Published 04/17/2007

Judges

• POSNER, Circuit Judge., Before POSNER, KANNE, and ROVNER, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Seventh Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Jack J. Crowe (argued), Winston & Strawn, Chicago, IL, for Petitioner.


• For Appellees:
  
• Karen Lundgren, Department of Homeland Security Office of the Chief Counsel, Chicago, IL, Daniel E. Goldman (argued), Department of Justice Civil Division, Immigration Litigation, Washington, DC, for Respondent.