Yaroslav Yurivich Vikulia v. U.S. Attorney General


USCA11 Case: 20-10343 Date Filed: 02/17/2021 Page: 1 of 20 [DO NOT PUBLISH] IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT ________________________ No. 20-10343 Non-Argument Calendar ________________________ Agency No. A097-943-956 YAROSLAV YURIVICH VIKULIN, Petitioner, versus U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL, Respondent. ________________________ Petition for Review of a Decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals ________________________ (February 17, 2021) Before JILL PRYOR, BRANCH, and LUCK, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: USCA11 Case: 20-10343 Date Filed: 02/17/2021 Page: 2 of 20 Yaroslav Vikulin, a Russian national and citizen of Kazakhstan, seeks review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) order affirming the Immigration Judge’s (“IJ”) denial of his application for asylum, pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1158(a); withholding of removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1231(b)(3); and relief under the United Nations Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (“CAT”), see 8 C.F.R. § 1208.16(c). He challenges the BIA’s determination that he failed to show that he was persecuted on account of a protected ground or that he could not reasonably relocate within Kazakhstan to avoid persecution. He also asserts that he met the standard for withholding of removal and CAT relief and that the BIA violated his due process rights when it failed to consider all of the issues he raised on appeal from the IJ’s decision. Additionally, Vikulin seeks review of the BIA’s subsequent order denying his application for adjustment of status and his motion for remand based on new evidence. He argues that the BIA erred in its discretionary decision to deny him an adjustment of status by failing to use certain positive factors to offset negative factors, and the BIA abused its discretion when it denied his motion to remand. Because we conclude that we lack jurisdiction over some of Vikulin’s claims and he is not entitled to relief on the merits of his remaining claims, we dismiss the petition in part and deny it in part. 2 USCA11 Case: 20-10343 Date Filed: 02/17/2021 Page: 3 of 20 I. Background Vikulin is a Russian national who was born in Kazakhstan in 1981. He was admitted to the United States in January 2001 on an H-4 visa as a dependent of his mother, who was at that time in the United States on an H-1B visa. Vikulin was 19 at the time of his admission. In 2002, he changed his visa status to that of a student and started attending college in Georgia. In the fall of 2003, he stopped attending classes. As a result, in September 2004, Vikulin was served with a Notice to Appear, which charged him as being removable for failure to maintain or comply with the conditions of his non-immigrant status, pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(1)(C)(i). At a hearing in December 2004, Vikulin conceded his removability and the IJ granted his request for voluntary departure, ordering him to depart by September 20, 2005. Vikulin failed to depart, and his grant of voluntary departure became a final order of removal to ...

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