NON- PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT _____________ No. 17-3097 _____________ ANA LETICIA PADILLA-MALDONADO; E.J.P., Petitioners v. ATTORNEY GENERAL UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Respondent On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (Agency Nos.: A208-546-483 and A208-546-484) Immigration Judge: Honorable Lisa de Cardona Submitted under Third Circuit L.A.R. 34.1(a) on July 10, 2018 Before: SHWARTZ, NYGAARD, and RENDELL, Circuit Judges. (Opinion filed: October 9, 2018) ___________ O P I N I O N* ___________ RENDELL, Circuit Judge: Ana Leticia Padilla-Maldonado (“Padilla-Maldonado”), a Salvadoran victim of domestic abuse, petitions for review of an order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) denying her application, on behalf of herself and her minor son, E.J.P., for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). The BIA agreed with the Immigration Judge (“IJ”), who found that Padilla- Maldonado had failed: (1) to corroborate her testimony with statements from her current partner and aunt or sufficiently explain her failure to do so, and thus did not meet her burden of proof of eligibility for asylum and withholding, and (2) to demonstrate, for purposes of her CAT claim, a likelihood of torture by, or with the acquiescence of, the Salvadoran government. Because it appears that the IJ did not provide Padilla-Maldonado with notice of the corroboration the IJ would require from Padilla-Maldonado’s partner and aunt, we will grant the petition in part and remand as to the asylum and withholding claims. With respect to the CAT claim, however, because substantial evidence supports the BIA’s ruling, we will deny the petition. On remand, the IJ should also consider whether, in light of the Attorney General’s overruling of Matter of A-R-C-G-, Padilla- * This disposition is not an opinion of the full Court, and pursuant to I.O.P. 5.7, does not constitute binding precedent. 2 Maldonado has established membership in a particular social group in order to be eligible for asylum. I. Factual Background Padilla-Maldonado and her son are natives and citizens of El Salvador. They entered the United States near Hidalgo, Texas, in October of 2015, after escaping alleged domestic abuse at the hands of her former partner, Santos Pablo Almendarez (“Pablo”). Padilla-Maldonado and Pablo began dating in 2012, when Pablo lived with Padilla- Maldonado’s aunt, Petrona. They eventually moved in together and lived with E.J.P. (who is not Pablo’s son), Petrona, Petrona’s husband, and several cousins. In June or July of 2015, Padilla-Maldonado expressed to Pablo that she wished to end their relationship. Around the same time, she began a long-distance relationship with Ismael Turcios, a former acquaintance who lived in the United States, and with whom Padilla-Maldonado currently lives and has a U.S. citizen son. Padilla-Maldonado testified before the IJ that once Pablo learned that Padilla-Maldonado was communicating with Turcios in August of 2015, he became physically abusive toward her. The first assault occurred when Pablo woke Padilla-Maldonado up in the middle of the night, grabbed her by the neck, and threatened to ...
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