On February 7, 2013, after a full half day trial, Judge Ipema of the San Diego Immigration Court granted withholding of removal in the matter of a Kenyan torture victim who had resided in the United States for many years before applying for humanitarian immigration relief.
Withholding is a form of relief which protects aliens from being returned to a country in which they fear persecution and/or have been persecuted in the past as a result of their race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion. Though withholding does not provide a direct path to Lawful Permanent Residence or US Citizenship, it is often a life-saving benefit to those upon which it is conferred.
The case took roughly a year to bring to trial, in San Diego, which is quite a bit faster than the two to three year average time-frames we experience in Los Angeles.
Incidentally, I was back in San Diego court the very next day, to receive an order of Termination of Removal Proceedings for an alien who will now be allowed to adjust status to lawful permanent residence through USCIS.
By: Duane M. Hamilton
