Ivette Garcia-Rojas v. Jefferson Sessions, III


Case: 16-60710 Document: 00514357690 Page: 1 Date Filed: 02/22/2018 IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT United States Court of Appeals No. 16-60710 Fifth Circuit FILED Summary Calendar February 22, 2018 Lyle W. Cayce IVETTE ALEJANDRA GARCIA-ROJAS, Clerk Petitioner v. JEFFERSON B. SESSIONS, III, U. S. ATTORNEY GENERAL, Respondent Cons. w/ No. 16-60719 CLAUDIA ELIZABETH GARCIA ROJAS, Petitioner v. JEFFERSON B. SESSIONS, III, U. S. ATTORNEY GENERAL, Respondent Petitions for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals BIA No. A206 632 808 BIA No. A096 172 323 Case: 16-60710 Document: 00514357690 Page: 2 Date Filed: 02/22/2018 No. 16-60710 c/w No. 16-60719 Before REAVLEY, PRADO, and GRAVES, Circuit Judges. PER CURIAM: * In these consolidated cases, sisters Ivette Alejandra Garcia-Rojas and Claudia Elizabeth Garcia-Rojas petition for review of their respective decisions from the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). They challenge the denial of their applications for asylum. According to the Garcia-Rojas sisters, the BIA and Immigration Judge (IJ) did not base their decisions on substantial evidence but rather made errors of fact and law. The Garcia-Rojas sisters claim a fear of return to Mexico on account of their membership in a particular social group of their immediate family. We review the final decision of the BIA and will also review the IJ’s ruling insofar as it affected the BIA’s decision. Zhu v. Gonzales, 493 F.3d 588, 593 (5th Cir. 2007). The BIA’s legal conclusions are reviewed de novo “unless a conclusion embodies [the BIA’s] interpretation of an ambiguous provision of a statute that it administers,” in which case Chevron 1 deference is required. Orellana-Monson v. Holder, 685 F.3d 511, 517 (5th Cir. 2012) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). We review findings of facts, including asylum eligibility, for substantial evidence, which requires that the decision (1) be based on the evidence presented and (2) be substantially reasonable. Sharma v. Holder, 729 F.3d 407, 411 (5th Cir. 2013). The BIA’s finding is conclusive under that standard unless any reasonable adjudicator would be compelled to conclude to the contrary. See id. Substantial evidence supports that the Garcia-Rojas sisters did not suffer past persecution. It is undisputed that they suffered no physical harm, * 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 R. 47.5, the court has determined that this opinion should not be published and is not precedent except under the limited circumstances set forth in 5TH CIR.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. 1 Chevron, U.S.A., Inc. v. Nat. Res. Def. Council, Inc., 467 U.S. 837, 842 (1984). 2 Case: 16-60710 Document: 00514357690 Page: 3 Date Filed: 02/22/2018 No. 16-60710 c/w No. 16-60719 and the sisters have not pointed to evidence that they received a direct threat. Even though persecution does not necessarily entail physical harm to the applicant, see Abdel-Masieh v. INS, 73 F.3d 579, 583 (5th Cir. 1996), the absence of (1) physical harm to or (2) another significant deprivation of an asylum applicant can support a finding that no past persecution occurred. See Eduard v. Ashcroft, 379 F.3d 182, 187 ...

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