We would like to share with you a successful LGBT asylum case in the immigration court.

The client fled from South America to the United States and was arrested by border officials when entering the US border. Because the client did not have the authorization to enter the United States legally, he was sent to an immigration detention facility.

The client told the border officials that he did not dare to return to his home country because he was afraid of being persecuted. As a result, he was given a Credible Fear interview. After the interview, the client received a notice from the court and was given the opportunity to apply for asylum in immigration court.

In his asylum application, the client mentioned that he fled his home country because the local gang members forced him to join a gang. Because of his disobedience to the gang, he was threatened. Even if the client reported to the local police, he would not receive help from them.

However, during the client’s prep for his individual hearing, we discovered that there were multiple inconsistencies in the client's testimony. After repeatedly confirming with the client, we learned that the client had concealed the real reason for applying for asylum. The client was persecuted because of his homosexuality, and he was worried that his family would find out about his sexual orientation. He was too ashamed to tell the judge what happened.

Finally, we encouraged the client to tell the truth in court. During the trial, both the judge and the interpreter were very sympathetic to his experience. They believed that his failure to inform the judge of the truth in the earlier processes was justified. Finally, his asylum application was approved.