Yan v. Gonzales

438 F.3d 1249 (2006)

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Yan v. Gonzales

United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
438 F.3d 1249 (2006)

Facts

Yong Ting Yan (defendant) entered the United States from the People’s Republic of China and sought religious asylum. The United States government, represented by Gonzales (plaintiff), began deportation proceedings before an immigration judge (IJ). Yan testified that he started attending meetings with other Christians in a house church, and he was baptized by a pastor. Yan also testified that the Chinese authorities broke up the house church in China, jailed him, and beat him. On cross-examination, the government counsel asked Yan about the Old Testament and New Testament, and Yan answered the questions with only minor errors. The government counsel also asked Yan about the exact dates of Christmas and Easter, and Yan was able only to answer when Christmas occurred. Yan also testified that he attended two Chinese-language churches in Los Angeles, a fact confirmed by another witness. The IJ denied the asylum request, noting his concerns about Yan’s commitment to Christianity. The IJ found that Yan “seemed to only have rudimentary knowledge of the Christian religion.” The IJ also found Yan failed to show he would be targeted by the Chinese government because of his religious faith. The IJ stated that the evidence from the State Department indicated that Chinese government would ordinarily not target house churches like the church attended by Yan, rendering his testimony about the government’s raid on his church incredible. The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) affirmed the IJ’s decision, and Yan appealed to the Tenth Circuit, reasserting his religious-asylum claim.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (McConnell, J.)

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