Opinion ID: 785417
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Serious Reasons Standard

Text: 15 Khouzam maintains the BIA applied the wrong standard in assessing whether the evidence created serious reasons to believe that he had committed the murder. It is his contention that the meaning of the phrase serious reasons is the same as that of probable cause, and that the BIA applied a lower standard in his case. We agree with his first point, but not his second. 16 As to the first point, this Court interpreted the phrase serious reasons to mean probable cause in Sindona v. Grant, 619 F.2d 167, 174 (2d Cir.1980), and the Ninth Circuit followed suit in McMullen v. INS, 788 F.2d 591, 598-99 (9th Cir.1986). Although there might be room to argue that Chevron gives the Attorney General discretion to construe serious reasons as a standard higher than probable cause, it clearly could not be a lower standard. In any event, the Attorney General has already construed the phrase in accordance with Sindona and McMullen. See Deportation Proceedings for Doherty, 13 U.S. Op. Off. Legal Counsel 1, , 1989 WL 595832 (1989). 17 Equating serious reasons with probable cause, however, does not help petitioner's case. Although neither the immigration judge nor the BIA used the phrase probable cause in their opinions in this case, it is abundantly clear that the standard they applied was equivalent to, if not higher than, probable cause. The immigration judge stated that the alleged murder was proved by convincing evidence ..., not necessarily proof beyond any doubt, but certainly very strong proof and sufficient. He went on to state that the evidence tended to show that Khouzam committed the murder, and that the bulk of the evidence on this point strongly support[ed] [that] theory. The BIA then affirmed this well-reasoned decision with only minor comments.