Mehedi Hasan-Nayem v. U.S. Attorney General


USCA11 Case: 21-12402 Document: 39-1 Date Filed: 12/07/2022 Page: 1 of 27 [PUBLISH] In the United States Court of Appeals For the Eleventh Circuit ____________________ No. 21-12402 ____________________ MEHEDI HASAN-NAYEM, Petitioner, versus U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL, Respondent. ____________________ Petition for Review of a Decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals Agency No. A213-538-941 ____________________ USCA11 Case: 21-12402 Document: 39-1 Date Filed: 12/07/2022 Page: 2 of 27 2 Opinion of the Court 21-12402 Before LAGOA, BRASHER, and ED CARNES, Circuit Judges. LAGOA, Circuit Judge: Mehedi Hasan-Nayem, a native and citizen of Bangladesh, seeks review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) final or- der affirming the immigration judge’s denial of his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the United Na- tions Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (“CAT”). In the removal proceedings, the immigration judge made an adverse credibility de- termination against Hasan-Nayem based on (1) inconsistencies and omissions between his hearing testimony and the documentary ev- idence in the record and (2) his demeanor at the hearing. The BIA affirmed the immigration judge’s adverse credibility determina- tion, finding that it was not clearly erroneous and adopting much of the immigration judge’s reasoning. In his petition, Hasan-Nayem argues that the BIA’s affir- mance of the adverse credibility determination was error. He con- tends that the findings in support of that determination are not sup- ported by substantial evidence in the record and that the immigra- tion judge failed to cite examples in her analysis of his demeanor. After careful review and with the benefit of oral argument, we conclude that substantial evidence supports the adverse credi- bility determination against Hasan-Nayem. Accordingly, we deny his petition for review. I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND USCA11 Case: 21-12402 Document: 39-1 Date Filed: 12/07/2022 Page: 3 of 27 21-12402 Opinion of the Court 3 Hasan-Nayem, a native and citizen of Bangladesh, entered the United States near McAllen, Texas, in December 2019. After an asylum officer determined that Hasan-Nayem had a credible fear of political persecution, the Department of Homeland Security filed a notice to appear, charging him with removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(6)(A)(i) and (a)(7)(A)(i)(I). Hasan-Nayem, who at the time was proceeding pro se, conceded the charges of removability during a master calendar hearing on April 21, 2020. After obtaining counsel, Hasan-Nayem filed an application for asylum, withhold- ing of removal, and CAT relief. Because this case concerns an adverse credibility determina- tion against Hasan-Nayem based on inconsistencies and omissions between his hearing testimony and the documentary evidence as well as his demeanor at the hearing, we discuss the relevant evi- dence and testimony below. A. The Credible Fear Interview After Hasan-Nayem entered the United States, an asylum of- ficer conducted a credible fear interview with him. In that inter- view, Hasan-Nayem stated the following. Hasan-Nayem was afraid to return to Bangladesh because of the actions of people in the Awami League (the “AL”)—the ruling political party in Bangladesh—and the actions of the police. He was …

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