Court grants Pinoy general reprieve from deportation

SAN FRANCISCO – A Filipino general accused of trying to overthrow the Philippine government in the late 1980s won a reprieve Tuesday from an immigration board’s order that he be removed from the United States.

A federal appeals court said the Board of Immigration Appeals used the wrong standard of review when it determined Jose Zumel should be deported to the Philippines because he had engaged in terrorist activity.

An immigration judge found the 1989 coup Zumel was accused of participating in against President Corazon Aquino did not constitute terrorist activity because it did not include any intent to endanger individuals or cause substantial property damage.

In its ruling Tuesday, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals said the Board of Immigration Appeals was supposed to determine whether the judge’s decision was clearly wrong, but instead conducted its own review of the facts and reached the opposite conclusion that there was intent to endanger people. It sent the case back down to the board for review.