Chertoff Court Opinions Shed Insight (denied asylum from torture)

[Rose Siding]

WASHINGTON - Homeland Security Department nominee Michael Chertoff denied asylum, ordered deportation or otherwise ruled against foreigners in 14 of 18 immigration cases he handled during his short tenure as a federal appeals court judge.

But he has secured grudging respect from immigration rights groups who applaud his legal support of a family trying to escape China's forced abortion policies.
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In an Aug. 24, 2004 decision, Chertoff wrote that a Bangladeshi man did not meet the requirements for asylum under United Nations (news - web sites) torture standards. The man claimed he was arrested after participating in a peaceful political rally and beaten by police with canes, kicked in the face and forced to denounce his political party during six days in jail. He also provided documentation of 19 days of medical care he received after being released.

"Such treatment is, to say the least, troubling," Chertoff wrote. "Nevertheless, this evidence alone does not undermine the conclusion that there was substantial evidence to support the denial of his application for asylum."

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