John Assifuah v. Eric Holder, Jr., No. 10-1151 (4th Cir. 2010)
Annotate this Case
Download PDF
UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 10-1151 JOHN ASSIFUAH, Petitioner, v. ERIC H. HOLDER, JR., Attorney General, Respondent. On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals. Submitted: July 13, 2010 Decided: July 23, 2010 Before MOTZ, DAVIS, and KEENAN, Circuit Judges. Petition denied by unpublished per curiam opinion. Oscar L. Amorow, AMOROW & TACHIE-MENSON, PA, Hyattsville, Maryland, for Petitioner. Tony West, Assistant Attorney General, Mark C. Walters, Senior Litigation Counsel, Aaron R. Petty, Office of Immigration Litigation, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Respondent. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. PER CURIAM: John petitions Appeals for Assifuah, review ( Board ) a an native order dismissing of the and the appeal citizen of Ghana, Board of Immigration from the immigration judge s order denying the motion for a continuance and granting voluntary departure with an alternate order of removal. We deny the petition for review. Under 8 C.F.R. ยง 1003.29 (2010), the immigration judge See Jean v. may grant a continuance for good cause shown. Gonzales, 435 F.3d 475, 483 (4th Cir. 2006). The immigration judge s refusal to grant a continuance is thus subject to review Onyeme v. INS, 146 F.3d 227, 231 (4th for abuse of discretion. Cir. 1998). Mirasawo v. Alleged Holder, errors 599 of F.3d law 391, are reviewed 397 (4th de Cir. novo. 2010). Immigration judges have no authority to decide visa petitions. That authority rests with the District Director of the United States Citizenship and Matter of 24 Hashmi, Immigration I. & N. Services Dec. 785, ( USCIS ). 789-90 (BIA See 2009) (describing process to continue a removal proceeding for the purpose of seeking adjustment of status); Matter of Aurelio, 19 I. & N. Dec. 458, 460 (BIA 1987). When deciding a motion to continue for the purpose of allowing for a visa petition to be adjudicated by the USCIS, the immigration judge s discretion should be favorably exercised if the alien establishes a prima 2 facie approvable visa petition. However, the immigration Hashmi, 24 I. & N. Dec. at 790. judge is not required to grant a continuance if it is found that the application for adjustment of status would be denied as an exercise of discretion. 146 F.3d at 233. The immigration judge may also consider visa petitions that have been previously denied. Dec. at 792. Onyeme, Hashmi, 24 I. & N. [E]vidence of potential fraud or dilatory tactics may impact the viability of the visa petition underlying the motion [for a continuance]. Id. We hold there was no error of law by the immigration judge or the Board in the consideration of Assifuah s motion for a continuance. We also hold that the immigration judge s denial of a continuance was not an abuse of discretion. we deny the petition for review. Accordingly, We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. PETITION DENIED 3
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
