Justia U.S. 8th Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

The Eighth Circuit denied a petition for review of the denial of petitioner's application for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). The court held that the IJ's credibility finding was rooted in numerous inconsistencies between petitioner's testimony and the record, the implausibility of certain events, and a lack of corroborating evidence. Therefore, substantial evidence supported the denial of asylum. Because withholding of removal and CAT claims were based on the same discredited testimony, these claims also failed. View "Kegeh v. Sessions" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a native of Ethiopia and a former government official, petitioned for review of the BIA's denial of his application of asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). When petitioner attempted to narrow his social group, the Eighth Circuit held that it lacked jurisdiction to consider such arguments not clearly made before the agency. The court also held that petitioner did not experience past persecution on account of his political opinion, and his fear of future persecution was not objectively reasonable. Consequently, petitioner failed to meet the higher burden of proof required for withholding of removal. Therefore, the court denied the petition for review. View "Baltti v. Sessions" on Justia Law

The Eighth Circuit denied a petition for review of the BIA's decision affirming the IJ's denial of petitioner's request for asylum. The court held that the BIA did not engage in impermissible fact-finding; substantial evidence supported the BIA's conclusion that that there was an insufficient nexus between the threats and petitioner's membership in a community development organization that addressed gang problems in the area; and substantial evidence supported the conclusion that petitioner failed to demonstrate an objectively reasonable fear of future persecution. View "Gomez-Garcia v. Sessions" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a native and citizen of Nigeria, sought review of the denial of his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). The Eighth Circuit agreed with the IJ and the BIA that the harms petitioner described were not persecution because they were not inflicted by the government or private parties that the government was not able to control. In this case, petitioner asserted that supernatural forces inflicted much of the harm; to the extent petitioner asserted that the Nigerian government was unable or unwilling to control the devil's human agents, substantial evidence showed otherwise; substantial evidence supported the agency's determination that petitioner had no objectively reasonable fear of future persecution; and, given the record evidence showing the government's efforts to curtail the torture of suspected witches and wizards, substantial evidence supported the agency's denial of petitioner's request for CAT relief. Accordingly, the court denied the petition for review. View "Edionseri v. Sessions" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a native and citizen of Mexico, challenged the BIA's decision affirming the IJ's finding that he was not eligible for cancellation of removal or voluntary departure because he had a prior criminal conviction for a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). The Eighth Circuit denied the petition for review, holding that the BIA did not err by affirming the IJ's finding that petitioner had a conviction for Aggravated Forgery and that he was ineligible for cancellation of removal. The court held that petitioner's probation, community service, and fines constitute court-imposed penalties under 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(48). View "Mendoza-Saenz v. Sessions" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a citizen of Bosnia and Herzegovina, part of the former Yugoslavia, sought review of the BIA's affirmance of the IJ's finding that petitioner was ineligible for relief from removal because he failed to prove he was not an alien who committed, assisted, or otherwise participated in extrajudicial killings under color of law of any foreign nation pursuant to 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)(E)(iii). The IJ found petitioner removable because, at the time of his admittance and adjustment of status, he concealed that he had served in the Army of the Serb Republic, Vojska Republika Srpske (VRS). The court explained that DHS proved by clear and convincing evidence that petitioner was removable because he was inadmissible under section 1182(a)(6)(C)(i) for willful misrepresentation of a material fact, and thus the issue was whether he was eligible for waiver relief from that removal under section 1227(a)(1)(H). Because petitioner concedes that he was removable for willful misrepresentation and DHS's evidence indicates that he may have participated or assisted in extrajudicial killings at Srebrenica in July, 1995, the court denied the petition for review. The court lacked jurisdiction to grant petitioner's request for voluntary departure. View "Maric v. Sessions" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a native and citizen of Guatemala, sought review of the BIA's decision affirming the IJ's denial of his requests for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). The court concluded that the BIA applied the proper de novo standard for reviewing the IJ's finding that petitioner had not demonstrated an objectively reasonable fear of future persecution; substantial evidence supports the BIA's conclusion that petitioner failed to demonstrate past persecution and future persecution; substantial evidence supports the IJ and BIA's determination that petitioner failed to establish eligibility for asylum; and thus petitioner was not eligible for withholding of removal. Accordingly, the court denied the petition. View "Lemus-Arita v. Sessions, III" on Justia Law

Petitioner, a citizen of Mexico, challenged the denial of his motion to reopen an order of removal in absentia when he failed to appear for a removal hearing in an immigration court. The court concluded that petitioner failed to develop an argument explaining why his failure to appear was because of exceptional circumstances within the meaning of 8 U.S.C. 1229a(b)(5)(C). Assuming for the sake of analysis that petitioner's alleged absence from the United States could be an exceptional circumstance, the court concluded that the Board reasonably determined that petitioner was in the United States when the Department filed the Notice to Appear to initiate the removal proceedings, and the Board gave reasonable weight to the fact that petitioner's counsel verified the accuracy of the address and made no objection to the immigration court's jurisdiction. View "Alvarado-Arenas v. Sessions" on Justia Law

Defendant was convicted of illegally reentering the United States and sentenced to 51 months in prison. The court concluded that the occupant of the apartment where defendant was found voluntarily consented to entry; articulable facts warranted the agents' lawful protective sweep where the agents knew that defendant had a prior conviction for aggravated assault on a police officer and that he may be present in the apartment; the totality of the circumstances demonstrated that defendant voluntarily consented to the search of his bedroom; and defendant's requests for suppression of all evidence was without merit. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment. View "United States v. Ortega-Montalvo" on Justia Law

Petitioners Hernandez-Martinez and Dominguez-Herrera, non-permanent residents of the United States and a married couple, sought review of the denial of their consolidated applications for cancellation of removal under section 240A(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. 1229b(b)(1). The court concluded that petitioners failed to meet their burden under the REAL ID Act, 8 U.S.C. 1229a(c)(4), to establish their eligibility for cancellation of removal where both petitioners have committed a crime involving moral turpitude. In this case, Hernandez-Martinez had been convicted of theft in the municipal court of Hutchinson, Kansas, and Dominguez-Herrera had been convicted of theft in the municipal court of Great Bend, Kansas, which was a criminal offense, and the crimes were punishable by a year or more in prison. Accordingly, the court denied the petition for review. View "Dominguez-Herrera v. Sessions" on Justia Law