Appointed June 2015 · President Barack Obama→ Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr.
11 years on the immigration bench
Appointed under a Democratic administration
Background
The Honorable Immigration Judge Patrick S Savage earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1991 from St. Andrews University and a Juris Doctor in 1999 from the University of Oregon School of Law. He practiced at Freeman & Freeman in Rockville, Maryland, served in the U.S. Marine Corps from 2000 to 2007 and the Marine Corps Reserve from 2007 to 2012, and served as an assistant chief counsel for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in San Francisco from 2007 to 2015. He is a member of the State Bar of California and the Maryland State Bar.
Caseload & process (since 2021)
850
Completions per year
5,098 total
2%
Detained at decision
share of cases
50.4 mo
Median time to decision
from case start
16.2%
Ordered removed in absentia
person absent
3.9%
Decisions appealed to BIA
appeal rate
10.8%
Appeals remanded or reversed
37 appeals decided
Grant rates by type of relief
Share granted among merits decisions for each application type, since 2021.
Asylum
84.5%
809 decisions High confidence
Withholding / CAT
5.6%
233 decisions High confidence
Cancellation — 42B (non-LPR)
92.6%
162 decisions Moderate
Cancellation — 42A (LPR)
100%⚠
7 decisions Too few cases
Adjustment of status (245)
96%
50 decisions Moderate
Voluntary departure
83.3%
54 decisions Moderate
84.5%
of asylum claims granted on the merits High confidence
Based on 809 asylum decisions (grants + denials) since 2021.
This judge
84.5%
This court
68.2%
National average
31.8%
0%100% granted
In the top 3% 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 · 785 decisions since 2021
86.4%
Without a lawyer⚠unrepresented · 24 decisions since 2021
25%
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.
* 2026 is a partial year (data through 06/01/2026) and is incomplete.
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).