FILED United States Court of Appeals PUBLISH Tenth Circuit October 18, 2019 UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS Elisabeth A. Shumaker FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT Clerk of Court _________________________________ SANTOS RAUL ESCOBAR- HERNANDEZ, Petitioner, v. No. 18-9583 WILLIAM BARR, Attorney General of the United States, Respondent. _________________________________ PETITION FOR REVIEW FROM AN ORDER OF THE BOARD OF IMMIGRATION APPEALS _________________________________ Submitted on the briefs: Reza Athari of Reza Athari & Associates, Las Vegas, Nevada, for Petitioner. Joseph H. Hunt, Assistant Attorney General, United States Department of Justice, Civil Division; Carl McIntyre, Assistant Director, Office of Immigration Litigation; and Nancy Ellen Friedman, Senior Litigation Counsel, Office of Immigration Litigation, Civil Division, United States Department of Justice, Washington, D.C., for Respondent. _________________________________ Before MATHESON, McKAY, and BACHARACH, Circuit Judges. _________________________________ McKAY, Circuit Judge. _________________________________ Petitioner Santos Raul Escobar-Hernandez has filed a petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ decision affirming the immigration judge’s denial of his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the United Nations Convention Against Torture (CAT). After examining the briefs and the appellate record, this panel has determined unanimously to honor the parties’ request for a decision on the briefs without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(f); 10th Cir. R. 34.1(G). The case is therefore ordered submitted without oral argument. The petition’s underlying facts rest on Petitioner’s testimony, which the immigration judge found to be credible. Petitioner is a native and citizen of El Salvador and entered the United States without a valid entry document. He fled El Salvador after he was assaulted by two men, resulting in injuries requiring medical treatment. The assault occurred when the men noticed some graffiti critical of a political party on a fence near Petitioner’s home. One of the men, whom Petitioner knew as Nelson, was fanatically devoted to the party. Although Petitioner is not politically active and told the men he did not paint the graffiti, Nelson said Petitioner was responsible for it because it was on his house and demanded he remove it. When Petitioner responded that he could not pay for removal, the men hit him and threatened to kill him. Petitioner is unsure if the men assaulted him because of the political graffiti or if they used it as an excuse to assault him merely because he was a vulnerable youth. Petitioner later removed the graffiti, but Nelson attacked him twice more and continued to threaten him. Petitioner reported the assaults to the police and was told -2- that they were taking the matter seriously. Petitioner then fled El Salvador, arriving in the United States less than two months after the initial assault. Petitioner is afraid to return to El Salvador. He testified that violence is prevalent in El Salvador and is used especially against youths to intimidate them. He fears returning to his home town because of Nelson’s threats, and he fears relocating elsewhere in El Salvador because other people could hurt him. The immigration judge denied Petitioner’s application, and the BIA ...
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