United States Eighth Circuit

Petition for review of a denial of asylum and related relief brought by a citizen of the Republic of Congo is denied as to asylum and CAT claims, but granted as to a withholding of removal claim where: 1) the IJ applied an incorrect, heightened legal standard in defining past persecution as 8 C.F.R. section 1208.16 uses the term; and 2) the IJ erred in concluding that defendant's membership in the Lari ethnic group of the Kongo tribe is not a particular social group for purposes of withholding relief, as the group members are identifiable by accent, dialect, home region, and surname.

Appellate Information

• Decided 11/03/2008
• Published 11/03/2008

Judges

• BRIGHT, Circuit Judge., Before RILEY, BRIGHT, and MELLOY, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Eighth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Timothy E. Wichmer, argued, Rachel Groneck, on the brief, St. Louis, MO, for petitioner.


• For Appellees:
  
• Thomas Henderson Dupree, argued, Andrew Oliveira, on the brief, U.S. Dept. of Justice, Washington, D.C., for respondent.