Silais v. Sessions

855 F.3d 736, 2017 WL 1531640, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 7555
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
DecidedApril 28, 2017
DocketNo. 15-3277
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 855 F.3d 736 (Silais v. Sessions) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Silais v. Sessions, 855 F.3d 736, 2017 WL 1531640, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 7555 (7th Cir. 2017).

Opinion

FLAUM, Circuit Judge.

Hernel Silais, a Haitian citizen and opposition political party member, petitioned the United States for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). The Immigration Judge, and later the Board of Immigration Appeals (collectively, the “Agency”), denied his petition. We do the same.

I. Background

On February 5, 2011, Silais arrived in the United States without an immigrant visa or other valid entry document. The Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) charged Silais with inadmissibility under 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(7)(A)(i). In response, Silais conceded his inadmissibility, based on his lack of valid documents, but requested asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under CAT.

A. Removal Hearing

On April 30, 2013, an Immigration Judge (“IJ”) conducted Silais’s removal hearing. Silais testified and submitted documentary evidence. The IJ then continued the removal hearing to May 15, when Silais’s country-conditions expert, Brian Concan-non, was available to testify. Concannon is a human-rights attorney and the director, of the Institute for Justice and Democracy [739]*739in Haiti, a non-profit organization based in Boston.

1. Silais’s Testimony

Silais testified to the following alleged facts: He was born in Aux Cayes, Haiti. In 2003, he joined a Haitian political party known as the Óganizasyon Pep Kap Lité (the “OPL”). At that time, the OPL was one of the two largest opposition political parties in Haiti. A group known as the Chimeres, who supported then-President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, often disturbed OPL meetings that Silais had organized, beating participants, firing guns, or throwing rocks. Although the Chimeres was not a government entity, it allegedly received benefits from various officials and included police officers in their ranks. Silais identified two particular Chimeres members he claimed he repeatedly encountered between 2002 and 2010: Ronald Felix and Charles Bertrand.

During a soccer game in 2002 where Silais was distributing political information, for example, both Felix and Bertrand allegedly threw rocks at the spectators and asked Silais about the papers he was distributing. They did not injure Silais at this incident.

At a later event, however, Felix purportedly attacked Silais in his neighborhood, pushing Silais down, placing a revolver in his mouth, and threatening to kill him. When other people approached them, Felix released Silais, who ran away. Felix allegedly threw rocks at Silais as he escaped.

Silais further testified that on February 22, 2004, Felix and Bertrand went to a political meeting Silais was attending and began asking him about his political affiliation. Silais informed them that he only wanted to educate people, and the Chim-eres did not harm him. During a Mardi Gras celebration soon afterward, though, both Felix and Bertrand allegedly attacked Silais in his neighborhood. Consequently, he fled and hid at his friend James Lete’s house. Silais then testified that when the Chimeres found Silais, they hit him with their hands and a pistol and struck his leg with a machete. After Silais began to bleed, Felix and Bertrand stopped, and Silais escaped to another friend’s house. The Chimeres then went to Silais’s family’s house and allegedly beat certain family members.1

Silais then stated that, in September 2004, the Chimeres attacked him while he was speaking at a political meeting and forced him to run away.

According to Silais, he left Haiti in November 2004 for the Dominican Republic, where he remained until January 2006,2 when he heard that Haiti’s condition had improved. Silais testified that he wanted to complete his studies in Haiti on “veterinary and agricultural techniques” that required two years of classroom work and one year of practice. He graduated from the program in January 2007.

Afterward, he worked with an organization that he had cofounded to assist Haiti’s orphaned children.3 Silais’s organization [740]*740hosted an event for World AIDS Day on December 1, 2009, and Felix, Bertrand, and other Chimeres attended. They allegedly questioned Silais about what he was doing there, beat him, and forced him to leave the event.

Silais finally testified that during Haiti’s 2010 presidential election, Silais was a representative for the Repons Peyizan political party, supporting then-candidate Michel Martelly. While working as a “poll watcher,” Silais witnessed Felix and Bertrand attempt to commit voter fraud by stuffing ballots for Jude Celestin, their preferred candidate. When Silais tried to stop them, Felix purportedly hit and kicked him. As Silais tried to flee, Felix and Bertrand threw rocks at him. The police arrived and detained Felix, but released him after Silais de-parted without filing a report. Silais testified that he currently experiences lingering pain from this incident.

Silais never contacted the Haitian police to report any of the above alleged encounters with the Chimeres. After the election, Silais left Haiti by boat to Guatemala.4 Eventually, in 2011, Silais sought refuge in the United States.

2. Documentary Evidence

In addition to his testimony, Silais presented written statements and over twenty pieces of documentary evidence, including, in part, (1) documents concerning his identity, political party membership, employment, and education; (2) James Lete’s declaration; (3) Dr. Nora Rowley’s affidavit opining that Silais’s scars were consistent with his alleged abuse; (4) Brian Concan-non’s affidavit; (5) a letter of support from Lawrence Hock, a church acquaintance; and (6) media reports and articles concerning Haiti’s condition.

Silais also unsuccessfully attempted to enter other documentary evidence. During the break between April 80 and May 15, the government had submitted an unsolicited, written closing argument, highlighting that Silais’s testimony was vague, inconsistent, and uncorroborated. On May 13, two days before the hearing was scheduled to continue, Silais submitted a response to the government’s closing and moved to submit additional evidence “since DHS ha[d] called Mr. Silais’ credibility into question.” The additional evidence included: (1) Silais’s own amended affidavit; (2) a declaration from Silais’s brother-in-law addressing the chain of custody of the evidence he had collected in Haiti; (3) an affidavit from Silais’s former attorney and interpreter discussing interpretation issues that arose in drafting Silais’s original statement; and (4) a media account of a recent armed robbery of an OPL member in Haiti. The IJ denied Silais’s motion to submit the additional evidence, because DHS had only recently received the materials and Silais had failed to make the subjects of the evidence available for cross-examination.

3. Brian Concannon’s Testimony

On May 15, Silais presented his country-conditions expert, Brian Concannon. Con-cannon stated that Haiti had experienced escalating conflict between 2000 and 2004.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
855 F.3d 736, 2017 WL 1531640, 2017 U.S. App. LEXIS 7555, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/silais-v-sessions-ca7-2017.