Castro-Ortega v. Garland


Case: 22-60233 Document: 00516600570 Page: 1 Date Filed: 01/06/2023 United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit FILED No. 22-60233 January 6, 2023 Summary Calendar Lyle W. Cayce Clerk Edith Carolina Castro-Ortega; Ashley Nahomy Paz- Castro, Petitioners, versus Merrick Garland, U.S. Attorney General, Respondent. Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals Agency No. A208 700 561 Agency No. A208 700 562 Before Higginbotham, Graves, and Ho, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam:* Edith Carolina Castro-Ortega, a native and citizen of Honduras, entered the United States illegally in 2015 with her daughter. She seeks review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) dismissing her appeal and affirming the immigration judge’s (IJ’s) denial of her * This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5. Case: 22-60233 Document: 00516600570 Page: 2 Date Filed: 01/06/2023 No. 22-60233 application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). 1 On review of an order of the BIA, this court examines “the BIA’s decision and only consider[s] the IJ’s decision to the extent that it influenced the BIA.” Shaikh v. Holder, 588 F.3d 861, 863 (5th Cir. 2009). Because the BIA agreed with the IJ’s analysis and conclusions, we review both decisions. See id. This court reviews the BIA’s factual findings for substantial evidence, and it will not reverse such findings unless the petitioner shows that “the evidence was so compelling that no reasonable factfinder could conclude against it.” Wang v. Holder, 569 F.3d 531, 536-37 (5th Cir. 2009). Among the findings that this court reviews for substantial evidence are the factual conclusions that an alien is not eligible for asylum or withholding of removal. Zhang v. Gonzales, 432 F.3d 339, 344 (5th Cir. 2005). Castro-Ortega argues that the IJ and the BIA erred in disposing of her claims for asylum and withholding or removal on nexus grounds when it was clear that she feared persecution in Honduras solely because of her family membership. 2 She cites this court’s decision in Pena Oseguera v. Barr, 936 F.3d 249, 251 (5th Cir. 2019), in support of her argument that the IJ and the BIA failed to perform the requisite fact-based analysis in evaluating her theory of the case (i.e., that she feared persecution by gangs in Honduras as 1 Because Castro-Ortega is the lead petitioner and her daughter’s claims for immigration relief are derivative of her claim, we will hereinafter refer only to Castro- Ortega unless otherwise specified. 2 Castro-Ortega does not challenge the BIA’s finding that she abandoned her request for relief under the CAT by failing to raise it in her appeal before the BIA. She has therefore abandoned the issue before this court. See Soadjede v. Ashcroft, 324 F.3d 830, 833 (5th Cir. 2003). 2 Case: 22-60233 Document: 00516600570 Page: 3 Date Filed: 01/06/2023 No. 22-60233 a result of her brother Elmer, a former gang member who was serving a 30- year …

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