Edu v. Holder, No. 06-72609

Female Genital Mutilation-Related BIA Review Petition

In Edu v. Holder, No. 06-72609, a petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals' (BIA) denial of petitioner's application for deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture (CAT), and from its denial of her motion to reopen, the court granted the petition in part where there was no basis for returning petitioner to a country where she must either give up her appropriate political behavior or face a substantial risk of torture.

As the court wrote:  "Josephine Edu, a native and citizen of Nigeria, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals' (BIA) denial of her application for deferral of removal under the Convention Against Torture (CAT), and from its denial of her motion to reopen. Deferral was denied on the basis that Edu could avoid torture by ceasing to exercise her political rights, and that the mere fact that she had endured female genital mutilation was insufficient to support CAT relief."

Related Resources

• Read the Ninth Circuit's Decision in Edu v. Holder, No. 06-72609