Daud v. Atty Gen USA

207 F. App'x 194
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Third Circuit
DecidedDecember 5, 2006
Docket05-5051
StatusUnpublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 207 F. App'x 194 (Daud v. Atty Gen USA) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Daud v. Atty Gen USA, 207 F. App'x 194 (3d Cir. 2006).

Opinion

*197 OPINION

GARTH, Circuit Judge:

Mohammad Daud appeals from a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals adopting and affirming the decision of an Immigration Judge which denied his applications for asylum, -withholding of removal, and protection under the United Nations Convention Against Torture. He also appeals the Board’s denial of his motion to remand the case to the Immigration Court to consider his Application to Adjust Status. We will deny in part and dismiss in part the petition for review.

I.

Daud was born in Pakistan on March 20, 1949. He entered the United States as a non-immigrant visitor on March 27, 2001, on a B-2 visa that expired on June 26, 2001. Nearly two years later, on March 19, 2003, Daud was served with a Notice to Appear by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (“INS”). The Notice to Appear alleged that Daud was removable pursuant to section 237(a)(1)(B) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (“INA”), because he had remained in the United States past the expiration of his visa.

On July 23, 2003, Daud filed an application for asylum, withholding of removal and protection under the United Nations Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). In his application, Daud stated that he was a member of the Pakistan Armed Forces and that, in this capacity, he oversaw the arrest of a powerful narcotics and weapons smuggler named Pakistan Khan. Daud stated that, as a result of arresting Khan, he and his family began receiving threats from the Taliban, who were supporters of Khan and with whom Khan was associated. Daud stated that he reported these threats to the police, but that they would not provide protection because they, too, were affiliated with the Taliban.

On February 25, 2004, a hearing with respect to Daud’s applications was held before an Immigration Judge. Daud testified as follows. In 1989, Daud was a commander in the Frontier Corps of the Pakistani army, assigned to conduct operations in northwest Pakistan. He was ordered by his superiors to arrest Pakistan Khan, whom he described as a notorious narcotics and gun smuggler. Daud stated that Khan then threatened him with death in an effort to dissuade him from attempting the arrest. As a result of these threats, in July 1989, Daud moved his family to his home village of Baffai. In August 1989, after two unsuccessful attempts, Daud’s unit arrested Khan along with ten or twelve of his associates. Although Daud provided the IJ with evidence of his service in the Pakistani military, he was unable to provide any documentation about Khan or his arrest.

Daud testified that, after the arrest, people associated with Khan started threatening him, stating that they would kill him and his male family members. Daud stated that he was afraid because Khan was affiliated with and had many supporters among the Taliban. Daud’s commander then transferred him to another part of Pakistan called Chidraf, where he served until his retirement in 1992. He then returned to his hometown of Baffai.

Daud testified that on December 14, 1994, after Khan’s release from prison, he received a threatening phone call from one of Khan’s Taliban supporters. On another occasion, in February or March 1995, Khan’s men actually entered his home. Daud testified that he called the police, but that they did nothing because they are under the influence of the Taliban. As a result of these occurrences, Daud moved to several places throughout Pakistan, including Mirpur, Hazara, and Karachi. Daud testified that Khan’s men followed him to *198 each of these places. Daud then obtained a visa to accompany his brother, who required medical treatment, to the United States.

Daud testified that, if he returns to Pakistan, Khan’s men will kill him and his family. Daud admitted to the IJ, however, that he had never been physically harmed by Khan or his associates. Daud also testified that his family had begun negotiations with Khan for a “Dastoor,” which he described as a negotiation to repay “damage.” According to Daud, Khan has demanded that Daud’s youngest daughter marry him, and that Daud pay restitution of 50 Loes. Daud stated that he has no intention of complying with either of these demands.

On the hearing date, Daud also submitted an affidavit to explain why he filed his application for asylum nearly two years after he arrived in the United States— more than a year past the one-year filing deadline imposed by the INA. In the affidavit, Daud stated that he was hoping the political situation in Pakistan would improve and enable him to return, but that this has not happened. Indeed, Daud asserted that “the Taliban supporters are increasing in Pakistan every day.”

II.

The IJ rendered an oral decision on February 25, 2004, denying Daud’s applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the CAT. The IJ denied Daud’s application for asylum on several grounds. First, the IJ found that Daud had not filed his application within one year of arriving in the United States as required. The IJ rejected Daud’s claim that the increased power of the Taliban constituted a changed or extraordinary circumstance justifying the late filing. The IJ reasoned that, having fled Pakistan for fear of imminent death, Daud should have filed his asylum application immediately.

The IJ also rejected Daud’s asylum petition on the merits. The IJ found Daud’s testimony not credible, both because he failed to provide independent documentation about Khan or his arrest, and also because of several “material discrepancies” between Daud’s testimony and his application for asylum. For example, while Daud’s application states that he moved to Mirpur in January 1995, his testimony, at least initially, was that he moved to Mirpur only after receiving threats and “being followed” in February or March 1995. Daud attempted to explain this inconsistency by stating that the threats occurred after he moved to Mirpur while he was on a visit back to Baffai. Additionally, in his application, Daud stated that he “ignored” the threatening December 14, 1994 phone call, whereas he testified that the phone call was one of the reasons he fled to Mirpur. Because of these inconsistencies, as well as Daud’s failure to provide documentation of Khan’s existence, arrest, or subsequent threats, the IJ found Daud’s testimony not credible.

The IJ also held that, even if Daud’s testimony were true, he would still be unable to meet his burden of showing a well-founded fear of persecution if returned to Pakistan. The IJ found that the threats directed against Daud, and the fear “that people might be following him” were insufficient to meet his burden of proof. 2 The IJ therefore denied Daud’s application for asylum. The IJ also denied relief under *199 the CAT, finding that Daud had failed to show that Khan is a member of, or acting on behalf of, the Pakistani government. Daud timely appealed the IJ’s decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”).

III.

While his appeal to the BIA was pending, Daud filed a motion with the BIA seeking to have his case remanded to the IJ for consideration of his recently filed application to adjust status.

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Bluebook (online)
207 F. App'x 194, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/daud-v-atty-gen-usa-ca3-2006.