PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT _____________ No. 17-2234 _____________ ALEJANDRO MISAEL MELENDEZ SARAVIA, Petitioner v. ATTORNEY GENERAL UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Respondent ______________ On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (Agency No. A204-490-174) _____________ Argued: June 13, 2018 Before: CHAGARES, GREENBERG and FUENTES, Circuit Judges (Opinion filed: October 1, 2018) Gregory Bischoping [ARGUED] University of Pennsylvania Law School (Admitted pursuant to L.A.R. 46.3) Stuart T. Steinberg Thomas J. Miller Derek J. Brader Dechert LLP Cira Centre 2929 Arch St. Philadelphia, PA 19104 Counsel for Petitioner Sabatino F. Leo [ARGUED] Chad A. Readler Anthony P. Nicastro U.S. Department of Justice Civil Division P.O. Box 878, Ben Franklin Station Washington, D.C. 20044 Counsel for Respondent _____________ OPINION OF THE COURT _____________ 2 FUENTES, Circuit Judge. This case concerns the Board of Immigration Appeals’ failure to follow precedent set forth by this Court. 1 Alejandro Misael Melendez Saravia (“Saravia”) petitions for review of the Board’s decision affirming the Immigration Judge’s denial of his application for withholding of removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(3)(A) and relief under the Convention Against Torture. 2 Before the Immigration Judge, Saravia argued that he had a well-founded fear of persecution on the basis of his membership in a particular social group. The Immigration Judge found Saravia to be credible, but determined that Saravia failed to corroborate his claim. The Board affirmed the Immigration Judge’s decision, and this petition followed. In Chukwu v. Attorney General, 3 we held that an Immigration Judge must “give the applicant notice of what corroboration will be expected and an opportunity to present an explanation if the applicant cannot produce such corroboration.” 4 Despite the Board’s subsequent contrary 1 See Abdulai v. Ashcroft, 239 F.3d 542, 553 (3d Cir. 2001) (“The [Board] is required to follow court of appeals precedent within the geographical confines of the relevant circuit.” (citation omitted)). 2 See 8 C.F.R. § 1208.18 (implementing the Convention Against Torture). 3 484 F.3d 185 (3d Cir. 2007). 4 Id. at 192. 3 decision, 5 we remind Immigration Judges in our Circuit that they must follow the requirements of Chukwu. We will vacate and remand. I. Facts Saravia is a native and citizen of El Salvador. In about 1996, when Saravia was five, his mother left for the United States for economic reasons. After this, he lived with his father. A. Saravia’s Encounters with MS-13 In 2005, members of MS-13 began trying to recruit Saravia into the gang. He refused, and they beat and threatened him. Before the Immigration Judge, Saravia testified that they kicked him and hit him with fists, but that the injuries were not severe enough for him to go to the hospital. Saravia testified that the gang members threatened Saravia with the murder of his family if he told his father and his father reported the gang to the police. Saravia also testified that after the gang discovered that his mother lived in the United States, they demanded money ...
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