Appointed March 2020 · President Donald Trump→ Attorney General William P. Barr
6 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Republican administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Kenley Thompson earned a Bachelor of Business Administration in 1984 from Pittsburg State University and a Juris Doctor in 1989 from Washburn University School of Law. From 2017 to 2020, he served as county attorney in Wilson County, Kansas. From 2011 to 2017, he was director of fraud investigations and deputy general counsel for the Kansas Department of Children and Families, and from 2010 to 2011 a regional attorney for the Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services. He also served as a judge advocate for the U.S. Army and Army Reserve from 1989 to 2019. He is a member of the State Bar of Kansas and the Nebraska State Bar.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
1,144
Completions per year
5,721 total
0.5%
Detained at decision
share of cases
16 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
28.8%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
4%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
4.3%
Appeals remanded or reversed
46 appeals decided
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
12%
275 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
4.3%
440 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
22.2%⚠
9 decisions Too few cases
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100%⚠
1 decision Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
87.5%⚠
24 decisions Too few cases
Voluntary departure
100%⚠
18 decisions Too few cases
12%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 275 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
12%
This court
6.9%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the bottom 24% of the 825 judges nationally with enough cases to compare.
Does a lawyer matter here?
Asylum grant rate by whether the person had legal representation.
With a lawyerrepresented · 234 decisions since 2021
13.7%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 41 decisions since 2021
2.4%
Asylum grant rate over time
Each point is that calendar year's grant rate, back to 2015 where the judge was deciding cases — the longer career view. Dashed grey line = current national average (31.8%). Headline rates above use 2021 – today.
Courts where this judge has decided cases
Hearing locations for cases this judge completed since 2021, by number of decisions.
Many judges hear cases from more than one court (detained facilities, video dockets, or reassignments).