Manipal Singh v. Holder

MEMORANDUM

Manipal Singh petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ denial of his claims for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture. We grant Singh’s petition and remand for further proceedings.

When the BIA does not perform an independent review of the Immigration Judge’s decision, this Court reviews the IJ’s decision. Tapia v. Gonzales, 430 F.3d 997, 999 (9th Cir.2005). Here, the IJ did not make an explicit adverse credibility determination and, to the extent an implicit determination was made, it was not supported by substantial evidence. See Shah v. INS, 220 F.3d 1062, 1071 (9th Cir.2000) (“Speculation and conjecture cannot form the basis of an adverse credibility finding, which must instead be based on substantial evidence.”). Remand to the agency for a credibility determination is therefore inappropriate. Cf . Hartooni v. INS, 21 F.3d 336, 342-43 (9th Cir.1994) (remand for a credibility determination is appropriate where the IJ has raised substantial questions about petitioner’s credibility but did not make an explicit finding that petitioner was not credible).

Without an adverse credibility determination, we are…