Ghalehmamakaei v. Gonzales
Docket: No. 02-73727
Court: Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit; May 9, 2005; Federal Appellate Court
Khanom Ofísana Mansourian Ghalehmamakaei, an Iranian citizen, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) decision that affirmed the immigration judge's (IJ) denial of her asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). The jurisdiction is established under 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(1). The petition is partially dismissed and partially granted, with a remand ordered. The BIA and IJ's decisions regarding CAT and procedural due process claims are dismissed due to Mansourian's failure to exhaust administrative remedies on these issues. The IJ incorrectly required corroborating evidence for Mansourian’s testimony without making an explicit adverse credibility finding, meaning her testimony is accepted as true. The evidence indicates that Mansourian suffered past persecution based on imputed political opinion, establishing a rebuttable presumption of a well-founded fear of future persecution for asylum and a clear probability of future persecution for withholding of removal. Since the BIA did not address whether the Government could rebut these presumptions, the case is remanded to the BIA for consideration of Mansourian’s asylum and withholding of removal claims. The disposition is not for publication and is governed by specific Ninth Circuit rules.