What is Judge Leon Francis's background?
EOIR's notice says that Leon Francis was appointed in October 2018. Judge Francis earned a Bachelor of Arts in 1993 from Boise State University, a Juris Doctor in 1996 from Gonzaga University School of Law, and a Master of Laws in 2009 from the Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center and School. From 1996 to 2018, he was a judge advocate with the U.S. Marine Corps in the following locations: Kaneohe, Hawaii; Camp Pendleton, California; Pentagon, Washington, D.C.; Camp Hansen, Okinawa, Japan; and Yuma, Arizona. He served as a military judge for the last six years of his military career.
What does TRAC report about Judge Leon Francis's asylum decisions?
TRAC, a research center that began at Syracuse University, reports that for FY 2021 - 2026 (data covers the first 9 months of fiscal year 2026), Judge Leon Francis decided 979 asylum cases at Santa Ana Immigration Court and denied 76.1 percent, based on its report of Aug 27, 2026. These are past figures for one court. They do not predict your case, which turns on your facts, evidence, nationality and representation, and TRAC cautions against simple comparisons between judges at different courts. Read the full report at TRAC, and talk to a lawyer about your own case.
What the official record establishes
The source lists the name Leon Francis in 1 alphabetical row. The recorded title is Immigration Judge. The record is not an appointment history or an employment certification.
Dated court associations
EOIR’s court-specific tables associate this entry with Santa Ana Immigration Court. The relationship is recorded as listed 2026-10-20; it may include supervisory coverage rather than a merits-hearing assignment.