Pasqual Antonio-Martinez v. Immigration and Naturalization Service

We consider whether the fugitive disen-titlement doctrine applies to an alien who goes missing while his petition for review of a deportation order is pending.

Background

Petitioner Pasqual Antonio-Martinez was a rope-maker in Guatemala in the 1970s. Unsatisfied with his paycheck, he took up more lucrative work as an enforcer for a group called the “Guerrilla Army of the Poor.” His new job was to go door-to-door shaking down local villagers for food and money to support the guerrillas, like an out-of-control UNICEF collector. The guerrillas threatened to kill anyone who didn’t donate, and Antonio-Martinez kept a list of those who did and those who didn’t. The Guatemalan authorities, not amused by his guerrilla credentials and aggressive brand of solicitation, sent soldiers to rough him up. Antonio-Martinez fled to Mexico and, in 1982, went on to the United States.

In 1985, the INS sought to deport him. At a hearing before an Immigration Judge, Antonio-Martinez conceded deportability but argued that he was entitled to asylum because he had been “persecuted” by the Guatemalan authorities. The Immigration Judge, taking a dim view of his extortion of civilians, refused to…