Us judge under fire for grilling gay asylum seeker

A disturbing audio recording has surfaced, revealing a US immigration judge's intense questioning of a gay Iranian asylum seeker. Judge Samuel Williams spent nearly three hours with the man, pressing him relentlessly on intimate aspects of his same-sex relationship.

Advocates decry misguided credibility assessments

Legal experts warn that such probing can be shaped by bias, especially when judges lack a full grasp of the perils of disclosure in hostile environments. The case exposes broader systemic issues within US immigration courts, where oversight is limited.

Attorney Rebekah Wolf of the American Immigration Council called the judge's language 'atrocious,' suggesting an expectation that applicants must 'prove' their sexuality in ways that don't reflect the real-world dangers they face. The asylum seeker had fled Iran fearing execution for being gay.

Wolf described the case as a 'textbook' asylum claim, but said the judge's line of questioning implied that applicants must provide proof of their sexuality in methods that don't mirror how LGBTQ+ individuals survive in countries where being openly gay can be deadly.