Turkhan v. Lynch, No. 15-1378 (7th Cir. 2016)
Annotate this CaseTurkhan, born in 1960 in Iraq, entered the U.S. in 1979, eventually becoming a legal permanent resident. He is an Assyrian Christian, has not left the U.S. since 1979, is married to a U.S. citizen, and is the father of children, ages 10 and 19. In 1990, he pleaded guilty to cocaine charges. In prison, he obtained his G.E.D., became a nursing assistant, worked as a mental-health companion, and received a letter of commendation. In 1994, an IJ found him deportable. Existing law allowed waiver of deportation for certain excludable legal permanent residents (Section 212(c)). At the hearing, Turkhan attempted to have relatives testify; although arrangements were to have been made, no interpreter was provided. The IJ found Turkhan statutorily eligible but denied relief. The BIA affirmed and, in 1997, declined to reconsider, citing the 1996 Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty and Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Acts. The Seventh Circuit denied habeas relief. In 2001, the Justice Department issued regulations for reopening section 212 cases. The Supreme Court held that persons rendered removable by guilty pleas entered before AEDPA may obtain relief. The BIA denied Turkhan’s renewed motions twice. In 2006, he additionally sought withholding of removal under the Convention Against Torture. The BIA remanded for consideration of “changed country conditions in Iraq.” An IJ found Turkhan ineligible for section 212(c) relief but granted CAT deferral of removal. The BIA affirmed. The decision did not restore Turkhan’s lawful permanent resident status nor abrogate the deportation order. The Seventh Circuit affirmed, rejecting arguments concerning the scope of the BIA remand and that Turkhan’s right to procedural due process was violated. The court was “mystified by the government’s decision … [but] the decision is not ours to make.”
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