Johnson v. Att'y Gen. of United States, No. 12-3343 (3d Cir. 2015)
Annotate this CaseIn 1991, when Johnson was six years old, Liberian rebels murdered Johnson’s father, a military officer under a prior government, seriously wounded Johnson’s mother, and bayonetted Johnson. Johnson escaped to a refugee camp in Ghana. In 2003, he was admitted into the U.S. as a refugee. In 2008, he was arrested, pleaded guilty to possession with intent to deliver marijuana, and was sentenced to probation and a $1 fine. The government charged him as removable under 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(A)(iii) for an aggravated felony conviction and under 8 U.S.C. 1227(a)(2)(B)(i) for a controlled substance conviction. Johnson sought adjustment of status as a refugee with a waiver of inadmissibility under 8 U.S.C. 1159(c), asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture. The IJ sustained the charge based on Johnson’s controlled substance conviction, but did not sustain the charge predicated on Johnson’s aggravated felony conviction, concluding the record was insufficient to establish that Johnson’s conviction was for an aggravated felony, so Johnson was not statutorily barred from discretionary relief. The IJ granted him asylum, based on “other serious harm” Johnson would suffer if removed. The BIA ordered Johnson removed, finding that Johnson had been convicted of an aggravated felony and denied withholding of removal and CAT relief. The Third Circuit remanded with instructions to reinstate the IJ’s decision. The BIA erred in concluding Johnson’s conviction was an aggravated felony
This opinion or order relates to an opinion or order originally issued on December 17, 2014.
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