Cuban national obtains asylum and defeats government appeal before Board of Immigration Appeals
Client(s) Client J
On October 25, 2019, a trial team led by New York Partners Jay Tambe and Lauri Sawyer, and with support from Shachar Gannot, tried the firm’s first Migrant Protection Protocol (“MPP”) case from a tent facility in Laredo, Texas. On November 21, 2019, the Immigration Judge granted client J asylum based on the Cuban government’s past persecution for his political opinions.
Client J has opposed the communist party-controlled Cuban government for his entire life. For these views, he was subjected to surveillance, arrest, confinement and torture. He was arrested and detained three times for more than twenty days in total. During an arrest, he was handcuffed, beaten, and subjected to solitary confinement without medical care.
DHS appealed the Immigration Judge’s asylum determination to the Board of Immigration Appeals. Another cross-office team of Jones Day attorneys represented client J in this appeal, led by Irvine Partner Roman Darmer and Atlanta Associate Jeff Kaplan, with support from New York Associate Shachar Gannot. On May 18, 2021, the Board of Immigration Appeals dismissed DHS’ appeal, finding that client J was eligible for asylum, as per the Immigration Judge’s decision.
