Ever Flores v. William Barr, U. S. Atty Gen


Case: 18-60495 Document: 00515043885 Page: 1 Date Filed: 07/22/2019 IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit No. 18-60495 FILED Summary Calendar July 22, 2019 Lyle W. Cayce Clerk EVER FLORES, also known as Ever Flores-Amaya, Petitioner v. WILLIAM P. BARR, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL, Respondent Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals BIA No. A205 567 720 Before REAVLEY, JONES, and COSTA, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: * Ever Flores, a native and citizen of Honduras, seeks review of an order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) dismissing his appeal and affirming the immigration judge’s (IJ’s) order removing him to Honduras and denying his application for asylum and withholding of removal. Flores’s request for relief was based on his claim that he feared being persecuted if he returned to Honduras “based on his familial relationship to his father who’s been * Pursuant to 5TH CIR. R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR. R. 47.5.4. Case: 18-60495 Document: 00515043885 Page: 2 Date Filed: 07/22/2019 No. 18-60495 threatened by his aunt’s domestic partner based on an inheritance that [his father] received.” The IJ and the BIA, which affirmed for the reasons set forth by the IJ, assumed that Flores articulated a valid social group, i.e., his membership in his family, but concluded that he nevertheless failed to establish the requisite nexus between that enumerated ground and the harm he feared, finding that the feared harm was based on the land that was inherited. Additionally, the IJ found that Flores “failed to establish the requisite harm sufficient to rise to the level of persecution” and failed to establish not only that his fear of future harm was objectively reasonable but also that he would be harmed by someone that government officials were unwilling or unable to control. We “review the BIA’s decision and only consider 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 affirmed the IJ’s decision for the reasons stated by the IJ, we may review both decisions. See id. We review the finding that an alien is not eligible for asylum or withholding of removal under the substantial evidence standard. Orellana-Monson v. Holder, 685 F.3d 511, 517- 18 (5th Cir. 2012); Zhang v. Gonzales, 432 F.3d 339, 344 (5th Cir. 2005). Regardless whether Flores can demonstrate a nexus between the alleged harm and an enumerated ground, see 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(42)(A); Milat v. Holder, 755 F.3d 354, 360 (5th Cir. 2014); see also Sealed Petitioner v. Sealed Respondent, 829 F.3d 379, 383 (5th Cir. 2016) (noting that an asylum applicant must establish that the enumerated ground “was or will be at least one central reason for persecuting the applicant”), Flores has failed to demonstrate that the evidence compels the conclusion ...

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