Opinion ID: 78497
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: IJ and BIA Rulings

Text: The IJ denied all relief, finding that Shkambi was not credible because he had not been consistent in describing the severity of his mistreatment in Albania. The IJ pointed out that: (1) the extent of Shkambi's reported political involvement increased from nothing at his airport interview, to attending two DP meetings at his credible-fear hearing, to being an active member of the DP Youth Group and the son of a DP party leader in his asylum application and hearing testimony; and (2) Shkambi did not disclose his (or his father's) September 2000 arrest and torture, the most severe mistreatment he claims to have suffered, until he filed his asylum application. The IJ acknowledged that Shkambi's explanation for not disclosing these facts earlier was his fear of being returned to Albania. However, the IJ found this explanation unconvincing, stating: The Court fails to see why an individual will diminish the weight of his claim by indicating that if he disclosed more, he would then be returned to the home country when the opposite is what's logical. The higher the level of harm, the less the chances are that the person may be returned on the spot. The less a person discloses as far as the level of harm, the higher the chances are that an individual may be returned to the home country because they do not meet that even of [sic] prima facie case of being paroled to this country for [the] purpose of a credible fear interview, much less a full asylum hearing before the Immigration Court. That type of rational[e] is not logical. It does not make sense. That is the explanation that the Respondent has given the Court. That he may have been nervous, the Court understands and accepts. But that he did not even remember as he told the Court here today, that is not consistent with how a reasonable person, when disclosing, once they have been given the opportunity to do so, all the reasons as to why they're seeking political asylum and all the level of harm that may have occurred to them. The Court fails to see why the Respondent would have disclosed what appears to be a minor incident with the police in which apparently he's beaten and his arm is injured by a broken bottle, and does not tell the asylum officer that he in fact was beaten severely to the point that he's injured or at least had a blow to his genitals, much less that he is being electrocuted by metal plates that are being placed on his shoulders. It does not make sense. After noting that Shkambi's asylum application recounted a September 9, 2000 arrest in which he claims to have been brutally tortured, beaten and interrogated, the IJ stated: The Court can allow for some leeway as far as the level of detail in an asylum hearing or even in a formal, written application for political asylum. But when a story or a claim increases to the level that this particular claim has increased, then the Court then does have issues with an individual's credibility. The IJ credited Shkambi's claim that some sort of confrontation with the police occurred on August 11, 1999. However, the IJ found that, even assuming this single confrontation was politically motivated, it did not rise to the level of persecution. The IJ also discredited Shkambi's testimony as to the extent of his and his father's political activities. Noting that in Albania Shkambi was unemployed and poor, the IJ found it very difficult to believe that the Respondent would then otherwise engage his available time in politics as opposed to worrying about what normal human beings worry about day [in] and day out, that is, about eating and putting a roof over one's head, first and foremost. The IJ also noted that, although conditions in Albania suggested a political tug-of-war between the DP and the SP, given Shkambi's minimal level of [political] activities, Shkambi had not shown he would be targeted in Albania. Finally, the IJ found that Shkambi had successfully relocated in Albania, where he remained unharmed for a year-and-a-half (from September 2000 to May 2002). Thus, the IJ concluded that Shkambi had failed to show he had suffered past persecution or had a well-founded fear of future persecution. On appeal to the BIA, Shkambi challenged, inter alia, the IJ's adverse credibility finding, arguing that the IJ relied on minor flaws and irregularities to discredit him and failed to take into account that the fear Shkambi felt while being interviewed by immigration officials caused him not to fully disclose all the details of his persecution. The BIA adopted and affirmed the IJ's decision to deny Shkambi's requests for asylum and withholding of removal to the extent it was based on the adverse credibility finding. [3] The BIA reviewed the IJ's reasons for the adverse credibility finding, noting that in his airport interview Shkambi omitted any mention of his past persecution at the hands of the Albanian police and that in his credible-fear interview he mentioned only the beating where he sustained an injury to his arm. In contrast, the BIA pointed out that Shkambi mentioned for the first time in his hearing testimony that he had trouble with the police in 1998 and September 2000 and failed to provide a plausible explanation for omitting these incidents in his previous interviews. In addition, the BIA determined that Shkambi failed to explain why he told the asylum officer in his credible-fear interview that his arm was injured in June 2000 and required two months' hospitalization, but testified at the removal hearing that the injury occurred in August 1999 and required only five days' hospitalization. Thus, the BIA concluded that the IJ's adverse credibility determination was not clearly erroneous. Shkambi filed this petition for review.