FILED United States Court of Appeals UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS Tenth Circuit FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT August 6, 2018 _________________________________ Elisabeth A. Shumaker Clerk of Court CLAUDIA BEATRIZ HERNANDEZ LOPEZ, Petitioner, v. Nos. 17-9517 & 17-9531 (Petitions for Review) JEFFERSON B. SESSIONS III, United States Attorney General, Respondent. _________________________________ ORDER AND JUDGMENT * _________________________________ Before BACHARACH, McKAY, and BALDOCK, Circuit Judges. _________________________________ Ms. Claudia Beatriz Hernandez Lopez is a Salvadoran citizen who has allegedly been tormented, raped, and threatened for rebuffing the advances of a gang member, known as “Tiny.” To escape Tiny’s clutches, * Oral argument would not materially aid our consideration of the appeal. Thus, we have decided the appeal based on the briefs. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). This order and judgment does not constitute binding precedent except under the doctrines of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. But our order and judgment may be cited for its persuasive value under Fed. R. App. P. 32.1(a) and 10th Cir. R. 32.1(A). Ms. Lopez has tried four times to enter the United States. Her fourth try resulted in these proceedings. They began when Ms. Lopez was caught crossing the United States border. Because she was illegally in the United States, the government began removal proceedings. She sought an order withholding removal. Removal can be withheld when it would endanger the lives of aliens based on membership in particular social groups. 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(3)(A). The Immigration Judge and Board of Immigration Appeals did not question the danger facing Ms. Lopez if she were returned to El Salvador. The question was instead whether this danger existed because of Ms. Lopez’s membership in a particular social group. The Immigration Judge answered “no,” and the Board of Immigration Appeals dismissed Ms. Lopez’s appeal and motion for reconsideration. Ms. Lopez petitions for review of the Board’s dismissals, and we deny the petitions. 1. Ms. Lopez’s Alleged Social Groups Ms. Lopez has focused on three groups: (1) Salvadoran women unable to leave domestic relationships, 1 (2) Salvadoran women who refuse to be in domestic relationships with gang members, and (3) Salvadoran 1 In the administrative proceedings, Ms. Lopez included “attempted domestic relationships.” In our court, however, she has dropped this part of her proposed group. 2 women who refuse to be victims of gang members’ sexual predation. 2 The Board found that Ms. Lopez was not a member of the first group and that the two other groups were not socially distinct. We agree. 2. The First Alleged Social Group: Salvadoran Women Unable to Leave Domestic Relationships The Board found that Ms. Lopez could not rely on the first group (Salvadoran women unable to leave domestic relationships) because she was never in a domestic relationship with Tiny. Ms. Lopez contends that she was forced into a relationship with Tiny. But the Board could reasonably find that Ms. Lopez had failed to prove eligibility for relief and decline to reconsider this finding. 2 ...
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