Velasquez-Banegas v. Lynch

Banegas, a then-38-year-old citizen of Honduras, entered the U.S. in 2005, without authorization. In removal proceedings, initiated in 2014, he applied for withholding of removal and for protection under the Convention Against Torture. He is HIV-positive and argued that he faces serious danger if returned to Honduras because many Hondurans believe that AIDS is an affliction of homosexuals and are hostile, often violently hostile, to persons they believe to be homosexual. For cultural reasons related to Hondurans’ beliefs, medical treatment of HIV and AIDS in Honduras is often deficient and often invasive of privacy. The Board of Immigration Appeals affirmed denial of his petitions. The Seventh Circuit vacated, stating that “the immigration judge made a hash of the record” and overlooked key testimony. View "Velasquez-Banegas v. Lynch" on Justia Law