The Obama era Board of Immigration Appeal and the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals denied the appeal for asylum by a Christian Chinese immigrant, Ting Xue, fleeing religious persecution, and now Xue is suing the Tenth Circuit.

The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Board of Immigration Appeals’ decision to deny Xue’s request for asylum in the U.S. despite evidence of beatings, arrest, and being forced to attend “re-education” classes administered by Chinese police officers,

While the Tenth Circuit acknowledged that Xue was “confined in unsanitary conditions, beaten by interrogators, and fined more than half of his annual wages” and was nearly interned in a labor camp, according to a Pacific Justice Institute (PJI) press release announcing an amicus curiae brief PJI filed on Xue’s behalf on May 30, the court ruled “that religious persecution does not necessarily exist where an immigrant has had to practice his or her faith in hiding to avoid harassment or punishment by his native country’s authorities.”

The ruling stands in stark contrast to rulings in similar cases by the Seventh and Eleventh Circuits, but it is par for the course with Obama Era immigration policies that prevented entrance to the U.S. for thousands of persecuted Christians fleeing from countries like Syria.

Xue’s legal representatives filed a petition for writ of certiorari in response to the ruling, requesting the Supreme Court to review and reverse the 10th Circuit’s ruling. Xue’s attorneys assert that, in addition to the factual basis presented for Xue’s persecution, the Supreme Court should grant Xue’s petition and review the Tenth Circuit’s ruling to resolve the current conflict between the Circuit Courts over “whether being forced to practice one’s religion in secret to avoid punishment constitutes persecution.”

PJI rallied in defense of Xue, filing an amicus curiae brief with the Supreme Court on Tuesday in favor of reversing the 10th Circuit’s decision. PJI is the fourth organization to file such a brief in Xue’s favor, providing the Supreme Court with facts and argument supporting a reversal of the 10th Circuit’s ruling.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions, defendant, has until June 23 to file a response to Xue’s petition as of May 25.

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