Opinion ID: 4507879
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Representation and Merits Hearing

Text: While detained, Sow was in contact with two friends: Ibrahim Barry and Aminata Diallo. Ibrahim reached out to an attorney, Joseph Gurian, on Sow’s 3 Case: 17-15245 Date Filed: 02/14/2020 Page: 4 of 15 behalf. Gurian agreed to represent Sow. Ibrahim and Diallo then began to gather evidence for Gurian to use in support of Sow’s asylum application. Shortly after Gurian agreed to represent Sow, Sow began calling Gurian. Sow, who speaks only French, had to rely on other detainees to help him communicate with Gurian, who speaks only English. After a couple unproductive calls, Gurian informed Sow that he would secure a French interpreter. Gurian also asked Sow to send him documents related to Sow’s case. Sow asked if Gurian would meet with him at the detention center, but Gurian refused. Sow then sent Gurian his asylum application and a statement detailing his fear of returning to Guinea. A few days later, Sow called Gurian and, again relying on other detainees to translate, requested copies of the documents that Ibrahim and Diallo had collected on his behalf. Sow did not receive any documents.3 During their next call, Sow again requested access to the evidence so that he and Gurian could discuss his case. Gurian told Sow that he would obtain an interpreter and call back at a particular time so they could discuss his case. Gurian did not call at the arranged time. Gurian later admitted that he missed the call because the interpreter cancelled. 3 Gurian later told Sow that he had indeed mailed the documents, but there is no evidence to support this statement. 4 Case: 17-15245 Date Filed: 02/14/2020 Page: 5 of 15 Gurian eventually visited the detention center, but the visit lasted only thirty minutes and there was no interpreter present. The only evidence that Sow was able to review was an affidavit written by Sow’s aunt, Oumou Hawa Barry. Sow tried to communicate that Oumou is forgetful and that she was unfamiliar with the events leading to his displacement. He described her statement as “no good.” But without a translator, Gurian did not fully understand Sow’s concerns. According to Sow, Gurian “dismissed” him, told him the letter “was good,” and informed him that he would “not get a chance to review the rest of the evidence.” Gurian then gave Sow a questionnaire written in both English and French and asked him to draft a new statement based on his answers. Sow answered the questionnaire, relying on other detainees to translate his responses to English. A few days later, Gurian picked up the statement, but did not review it with Sow. Sow requested another meeting so he could review the evidence. Gurian eventually agreed to meet with Sow once more before the merits hearing. The meeting, again conducted without an interpreter, lasted only twentyfive minutes. Gurian neither brought any of the evidence for Sow to review nor discussed the substance of the case with Sow. Sow and Gurian did not meet again until thirty minutes before the merits hearing. Gurian again failed to bring an interpreter. During this meeting, Sow finally had the opportunity to briefly review the two affidavits submitted by his 5 Case: 17-15245 Date Filed: 02/14/2020 Page: 6 of 15 friend, Djibril Barry. Sow tried to communicate to Gurian that the content of the affidavits “did not match up with what happened” and that the dates of the same events listed in Djibril’s two affidavits were inconsistent. But because there was no interpreter present, the message was not properly relayed. Sow attempted to express his concerns in English, telling Gurian “[t]his evidence is no good.” But Gurian dismissed his concerns. Sow also stated that Gurian did not prepare him for direct or cross-examination, and that he did not even know a government lawyer would be present until the hearing began. Before Sow’s merits hearing, Gurian submitted the following evidence: the State Department’s 2016 Guinea Human Rights Report, a news article describing lynchings targeting homosexual people in Conakry, two photographs allegedly showing Alpha’s dead body, Diallo’s affidavit, and two affidavits each from Djibril and Oumou. At the beginning of the hearing, the Immigration Judge (IJ) noted that Sow submitted two applications for asylum. He asked Gurian which application Sow intended to rely on. Gurian responded that he did not know that Sow had submitted two applications. When the IJ noted that the second was more detailed, Gurian said that he “imagine[d]” that was the one Sow wanted to move forward with. 6 Case: 17-15245 Date Filed: 02/14/2020 Page: 7 of 15 During his testimony, Sow detailed his experience in Guinea. He testified that he and his homosexual friends were persistently persecuted, that his friend was killed in 2009 for being homosexual, and that other homosexual friends had been imprisoned. He said that he had been in a relationship with Alpha for six years and that they were first persecuted for being homosexual in April 2015 when a neighbor told the police that she saw them kissing. The police charged Sow with engaging in homosexual activity, which is illegal in Guinea, and jailed him. While visiting him in jail, his uncle beat Sow. After two months in jail, Sow swore to his uncle that he was not homosexual, and his uncle eventually secured his release. Sow further testified that in May 2016, Sow’s sister discovered explicit pictures of Alpha and Sow, exposing their relationship. Sow fled. He later learned that his family and members of the community apprehended Alpha, tortured him, and then burned him alive. On cross-examination, the government asked Sow to explain inconsistencies in Djibril’s two affidavits.4 Sow responded that he could not explain the inconsistencies because he had not had an opportunity to read the affidavits. 4 The inconsistencies were glaring. In one affidavit, Djibril’s account of Alpha’s death tracked Sow’s account. But the other affidavit describes a wholly separate incident. Djibril said Alpha was killed months after Sow’s family discovered the true nature of Alpha and Sow’s relationship. According to this second affidavit, Alpha died after a man punched him while he and Sow were walking in the streets of Conakry. 7 Case: 17-15245 Date Filed: 02/14/2020 Page: 8 of 15 Gurian stated that he believed there were two individuals named Djibril Barry. Sow had to correct Gurian and confirm there was only one. In his oral decision, the IJ said that he “unfortunately” had to deny Sow’s application based solely on an adverse credibility finding. In coming to this conclusion, the IJ specifically highlighted the inconsistencies in Djibril’s and Oumou’s statements. He noted that, if it were true that Sow were a homosexual, then he “clearly should get” asylum. Likewise, he said “if [Sow was] telling the truth I would in a heartbeat grant him asylum.”