Thangaraja

BACKGROUND

Thangaraja is a Tamil native and citizen of Sri Lanka. She attempted to enter the United States in October 2001 at the San Ysidro border crossing. After an interview with an asy- lum officer, Thangaraja was found to have “demonstrated a credible fear of persecution or torture.” She was placed in detention and issued a Notice to Appear in Immigration Court.

In January 2002, Thangaraja submitted an asylum applica- tion and appended a declaration describing her claim. The declaration detailed two incidents of prolonged detention by the Sri Lankan Army, during which Thangaraja was taken from her home, interrogated, accused of being a member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (“LTTE”), and physi- cally abused. “I was neither taken to a court nor allowed to seek any legal help.”

At Thangaraja’s removal hearing on April 10, 2002, she testified similarly, noting that she was never an LTTE mem- ber and that she was not politically active in Sri Lanka. No THANGARAJA v. GONZALES 15087 evidence was presented that Thangaraja was the subject of a legitimate criminal prosecution.

The Immigration Judge (“IJ”) denied Thangaraja’s applica- tions for relief. The…