Nate* is a 37-year-old Honduran man who came to the United States as teenager because he feared a gang. When Nate was a teenager, he refused to join the gang and then flirted with a woman the gang considered to be its property. As a result, gang members had beaten him multiple times, tried to strangle him with the chain from a swing, and ultimately shot him in the knee. He fled after the shooting.

Nate now seeks deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture (DCAT) because he still fears the gang members and knows they do not forget prior affronts to their authority. However, the Immigration Judge (IJ) found that the likelihood of torture by the gang fell below the required clear probability standard because, according to the IJ, the long-ago affronts to the gang’s authority were not so significant that the gang would be motivated to seek him out.

Additionally, the IJ found that the government of Honduras would not acquiesce to torture-level harm because the Honduran government is now taking significant action against gang members, albeit with mixed results, and at one point a judge did order the individual accused of harming Nate to appear in court.  Nate also fears that his tattoos will make him a target for other gangs, but the IJ again found that the chance of torture on this basis fell below a clear probability. Finally, he fears Honduran officials will torture him because under the State of Exception (SOE), the Honduran government is detaining suspected gang members, including deportees with tattoos and criminal records.  Again, the IJ found the likelihood of torture on this basis was low and even when aggregating all sources of torture, found that the likelihood of torture fell below the required clear probability threshold. Nate now seeks to challenge the IJ’s decision denying him protection under the Convention Against Torture.

Nate is incarcerated in Maryland. (He was convicted of sexual offense, but criminal convictions are legally irrelevant to DCAT claims.) As we noted during the info session, this is a challenging case. Honduran SOE DCAT claims are tougher to win than those for El Salvador, because there is less published evidence of torture by state officials.

All Amica Center matters placed with a pro bono team are robustly mentored by an Amica Center attorney. Our mentoring program includes an opening meeting to discuss the scope and process of the matter, provision of samples, guidance on the law, review of draft filings, assistance with client contact, and guidance on preparation for interviews and hearings.

• Language: Spanish
• Location: criminal custody in Maryland

For more information about this case, please contact Jennifer Grishkin, Managing Attorney for Pro Bono Coordination, at jennifer@amicacenter.org.

*Pseudonyms are used to protect privacy

*Pseudonyms are used to protect privacy.