Opinion ID: 790667
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Application of Matter of J-E to Petitioner's case

Text: 15 Finally, Theagene argues that the Board's en banc decision in Matter of J-E did not require the Board to deny his petition on his Convention Against Torture claim. We review de novo the Board's determinations as to purely legal questions. Molina-Estrada v. INS, 293 F.3d 1089, 1093(9th Cir.2002). The Board's initial October 30, 2001, decision, which granted Theagene asylum on the Convention Against Torture claim, rested on legal premises that the Board repudiated in Matter of J-E. See Matter of J-E, 23 I & nd. at 299-304. Theagene conceded in his administrative proceedings that he had no evidence that his family had ever been persecuted or that he had personally been a victim of persecution in Haiti. As his claim under the Convention Against Torture was based on reports of prison conditions and detention, just as in Matter of J-E, the Board's application of Matter of J-E was legally sound. Theagene fails to distinguish Matter of J-E on appeal. 16 Insofar as Theagene challenges the BIA's holding in Matter of J-E, we are required to defer to the Board's reasonable interpretation of immigration laws. Socop-Gonzalez v. INS, 272 F.3d 1176, 1187 (9th Cir.2001). The Board's decision in Matter of J-E is not unreasonable, so we defer to the Board's interpretation.