United States Ninth Circuit

Petition for review of a decision by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) denying petitioner withholding of removal and protection under the Convention Against Torture is granted, where: 1) applicants for asylum and withholding of removal have a due process right to testify fully as to the merits of their application; 2) the immigration judge's (IJ) refusal to hear petitioner's full testimony with respect to the abuses he suffered in Nigeria was particularly troublesome because the denial of relief rested solely on an adverse credibility finding, and the limitation of testimony hampered the IJ's ability to judge the totality of the circumstances, including petitioner's demeanor, candor or responsiveness, and the consistency between petitioner's oral testimony with his written declaration; and 3) the IJ's actions caused petitioner prejudice because the outcome turned entirely upon petitioner’s credibility.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/27/2013
• Published 08/27/2013

Judges

• PAEZ

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel