Court Opinion

ID: 9882096
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-10-05 00:00:31.444608+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:25:09.888343
License: Public Domain

Case: 22-60529        Document: 00516920657             Page: 1      Date Filed: 10/04/2023

             United States Court of Appeals
                  for the Fifth Circuit                                        United States Court of Appeals
                                                                                        Fifth Circuit
                                     ____________                                     FILED
                                                                                October 4, 2023
                                      No. 22-60529
                                     ____________                                Lyle W. Cayce
                                                                                      Clerk
   Evelin Johana Morales-Perez,

                                                                                Petitioner,

                                            versus

   Merrick Garland, U.S. Attorney General,

                                                                               Respondent.
                     ______________________________

                        Petition for Review of an Order of the
                            Board of Immigration Appeals
                              Agency No. A206 796 980
                     ______________________________

   Before Stewart, Dennis, and Wilson, Circuit Judges.
   Per Curiam: *
         Petitioner seeks review of an order of the Board of Immigration
   Appeals (“BIA”) affirming the Immigration Judge’s (“IJ”) decision that she
   is ineligible for immigration relief. Because we conclude that substantial
   evidence supports the BIA’s order denying relief to Petitioner, we DENY in
   part and DISMISS in part the petition for review.

         _____________________
         *
             This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5.
Case: 22-60529        Document: 00516920657             Page: 2      Date Filed: 10/04/2023

                                        No. 22-60529

                 I. FACTUAL & PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
           In 2014, Evelin Johana Morales-Perez, a native and citizen of
   Honduras, entered the United States without authorization. She was then
   placed in removal proceedings where she admitted the allegations and
   conceded removability. See 8 U.S.C. § 1182(a)(6)(A)(i) (“An alien present in
   the United States without being admitted or paroled, or who arrives in the
   United States at any time or place other than as designated by the Attorney
   General, is inadmissible.”). She applied for asylum, withholding of removal,
   and protection under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). In her
   application for relief, she claimed that she had been persecuted by a gang on
   account of her membership in the particular social group (“PSG”) of
   “perceived witnesses in Honduras.” 1
           Morales-Perez and her 13-year-old daughter Angie Nicole Castellano-
   Morales (“Angie”) testified at the merits hearing. Morales-Perez testified
   that she first came to the United States in 2008, returned to Honduras in
   2010, and once again returned to the United States in 2014. She claimed that
   in 2011, when she was living in Honduras, a gang member attempted to rob
   her near her house. The robbery was unsuccessful because a passerby
   intervened; however, she suffered an injury to her eye as a result of the
   incident. She further stated that she called the police, but they did not
   respond to her report of the incident.
           Morales-Perez further testified that three years later, in 2014, gang
   members attempted to recruit Angie, who was only eight years old at the

           _____________________
           1
            Although Morales-Perez characterized her proposed PSGs in several different
   ways before the IJ, the only proposed PSG that was considered by the BIA, and is thus
   reviewable on appeal, was her PSG of “perceived witnesses in Honduras.” See 8 U.S.C.
   § 1252(d)(1); Hernandez-De La Cruz v. Lynch, 819 F.3d 784, 786 (5th Cir. 2016) (declining
   to address Petitioner’s arguments that were not first presented to the BIA).

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                                     No. 22-60529

   time. The gang allegedly approached Angie outside of her school on two or
   three occasions and threatened to kill her family if she refused to join.
   Morales-Perez then removed Angie from school in an effort to protect her
   from further harassment by the gang.
          Later that year, Morales-Perez’s cousin was killed after being shot by
   an MS gang member nicknamed Banana. Morales-Perez heard the gunshots,
   so she went outside where she saw the shooter. Because she had seen Banana
   and knew his identity, he threatened to kill her family if she called the police.
   She did not report the incident to the police and left with Angie for the United
   States the following day.
          According to Morales-Perez, after she left Honduras, her partner and
   the father of her children remained there with their two sons. She alleged that
   the gang later tried to recruit one of her sons. Thereafter, the father and sons
   briefly relocated within Honduras but ultimately fled to the United States in
   2019 where they now live with Morales-Perez and Angie.
          Moralez-Perez conceded that the gang did not physically harm her
   after the 2011 attempted robbery and did not try to rob or attack her any other
   time. She also stated that the gang never physically harmed her partner or her
   children, and she never heard anything from or related to Banana after her
   cousin’s murder. Nevertheless, she claimed that she feared returning to
   Honduras because the gang could find her, and the police would not protect
   her.
          The IJ denied all requested relief and ordered that Morales-Perez be
   removed to Honduras. With respect to asylum and withholding of removal,
   the IJ concluded that she failed to state a cognizable PSG. It then denied CAT
   relief on the basis that she failed to demonstrate a likelihood of torture or that
   any potential torture would involve the requisite state action. The BIA
   adopted and affirmed the IJ’s decision for the reasons stated therein, with the

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   exception of certain alternative findings that the BIA deemed unnecessary to
   address. 2 Morales-Perez filed a timely petition for review.
                              II. STANDARD OF REVIEW
           This court reviews the BIA’s decision and considers the IJ’s decision
   only to the extent it influenced the BIA. Orellana-Monson v. Holder, 685 F.3d
   511, 517 (5th Cir. 2012). The BIA’s factual findings are reviewed for
   substantial evidence, and its legal conclusions are reviewed de novo. Id. at
   517–18. The substantial evidence test “requires only that the BIA’s decision
   be supported by record evidence and be substantially reasonable.” Omagah
   v. Ashcroft, 288 F.3d 254, 258 (5th Cir. 2002). This court will not reverse the
   BIA’s factual findings unless the evidence compels a contrary conclusion.
   Orellana-Monson, 685 F.3d at 518.
                                    III. DISCUSSION
           On appeal, Morales-Perez argues that the IJ erred (1) in holding that
   she was not entitled to asylum or withholding of removal because she did not
   suffer past harm rising to the level of persecution, or a well-founded fear of
   future persecution, based on her membership in a PSG, and (2) in concluding
   that she failed to demonstrate entitlement to protection under CAT. 3 We
   disagree.

           _____________________
           2
             See INS v. Bagamasbad, 429 U.S. 24, 25 (1976) (“As a general rule courts and
   agencies are not required to make findings on issues the decision of which is unnecessary
   to the results they reach.”).
           3
             Morales-Perez also argues that the gang imputed an anti-gang political opinion to
   her. During the IJ proceedings, however, she did not claim political opinion as a protected
   ground and the BIA did not address a claim based on political opinion. Thus, to the extent
   she now raises a claim of persecution based on political opinion on appeal, we lack
   jurisdiction to consider it because it is unexhausted. See 8 U.S.C. § 1252(d)(1); Hernandez-
   De La Cruz, 819 F.3d at 786. For these reasons, her claim on this issue is dismissed.

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                                      No. 22-60529

          A. Asylum & Withholding of Removal
          Asylum may be granted to a noncitizen who is unable or unwilling to
   return to her home country because of past persecution or a well-founded
   fear of persecution on account of “race, religion, nationality, membership in
   a particular social group, or political opinion[.]” Orellana-Monson, 685 F.3d
   at 518. The applicant must establish that a statutorily protected ground was
   or will be at least one of the central reasons behind her persecution. Id. The
   ground does not have to be the only reason for harm, but it cannot be
   “incidental, tangential, superficial, or subordinate to another reason for
   harm.” Shaikh v. Holder, 588 F.3d 861, 864 (5th Cir. 2009).
          For a PSG to be cognizable, it must be (1) comprised of persons who
   share a common immutable characteristic, (2) defined with particularity, and
   (3) socially visible or distinct within the society at issue. See Gonzales-Veliz v.
   Barr, 938 F.3d 219, 229 (5th Cir. 2019); Hernandez-De La Cruz v. Lynch, 819
   F.3d 784, 786, 787 n.1 (5th Cir. 2016). The third requirement of social
   distinction “is determined by the extent to which members of a society
   perceive those with the characteristic in question as members of a social
   group.” Hernandez-De La Cruz, 819 F.3d at 786 (internal quotation marks
   and citation omitted).
          To be entitled to withholding of removal, the applicant must
   demonstrate a clear probability of persecution if returned to his home country
   on account of the same statutory grounds applicable to asylum claims. Majd
   v. Gonzales, 446 F.3d 590, 595 (5th Cir. 2006). Because withholding of
   removal has a higher standard than asylum, “failure to establish eligibility for
   asylum is dispositive of claims for withholding of removal.” Id.
          Morales-Perez contends that she was targeted by the gang due to her
   immutable status as an identifiable Honduran witness to a gang killing
   because she received the death threat from Banana after witnessing him kill

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                                    No. 22-60529

   her cousin. With respect to social distinction, she asserts that a group
   consisting of “Honduran witnesses to MS gang murder” is “a discrete but
   visible class of persons . . . who are preyed upon by Honduran criminals due
   to their status within that discrete group.” The IJ and BIA disagreed and
   determined that Morales-Perez failed to establish that her proposed PSG was
   socially distinct within Honduran society. We agree and hold that substantial
   evidence supports the BIA’s conclusion that Morales-Perez failed to
   establish social distinction. See Orellana-Monson, 685 F.3d at 517–18.
          Morales-Perez’s claims that she witnessed a murder may explain why
   she was threatened, but they do not show that her proposed PSG was socially
   distinct. See Hernandez-De La Cruz, 819 F.3d at 787 (“Given this finding
   regarding the broad group of people who may be subjected to similar
   treatment from the [criminal syndicate], Petitioner’s proposed particular
   social group is not sufficiently particular.”). Moreover, as the BIA observed,
   the gang’s acts that she describes “are examples of criminal activity, which,
   without more, is insufficient to establish persecution for asylum purposes.”
   See Vasquez-De Lopez v. Lynch, 620 F. App’x 293, 295 (5th Cir. 2015)
   (unpublished) (explaining that “[c]onduct that is driven by criminal . . .
   motives does not constitute persecution”) (citing Thuri v. Ashcroft, 380 F.3d
   788, 792–93 (5th Cir. 2004)). Thus, she has failed to show that the record
   compels the conclusion that witnesses to a gang’s crimes are perceived in
   Honduras substantially differently than the general Honduran population
   that resists the gang or otherwise threatens the gang’s interests. See
   Hernandez-De La Cruz, 819 F.3d at 787 (“Although a local journalist
   reported that Petitioner had been beaten, it does not follow that his proposed
   group of former informants has ‘social distinction’ or would be perceived as
   a particular group, because . . . the members of Petitioner’s proposed group
   are not substantially different from anyone else in the general population who
   resists the [criminal syndicate] or otherwise threatens their interests.”); see

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   also Erazo-Flores v. Garland, No. 22-60177, 2023 WL 2612624, at *3 (5th Cir.
   Mar. 23, 2023) (unpublished) (“Groups based on being a witness lack the
   required social distinction to qualify as a PSG, as members of such groups are
   not substantially different from anyone else in the general population who
   resist criminal organizations.” (internal quotation marks and citation
   omitted)); Esquibel-Segovia v. Garland, No. 20-60890, 2022 WL 2752217, at
   *2 (5th Cir. July 14, 2022) (unpublished) (“We see nothing in the BIA’s
   decision or underlying record suggesting that the proposed PSG of
   ‘witnesses to [murder]’ possesses the requisite social distinction to support
   a viable asylum claim.”); Flores de Mundo v. Barr, 770 F. App’x 240, 241 (5th
   Cir. 2019) (unpublished) (“The record does not compel the conclusion that
   [Petitioner’s] society views witnesses to [the gang’s] crimes as substantially
   different from anyone else in the general population who resists [the gang] or
   otherwise threatens their interests, so we uphold the BIA’s rejection of her
   claim for withholding of removal.” (internal quotation marks and citation
   omitted)). 4 Because Morales-Perez fails on the issue of social distinction, she
   cannot show that the BIA erred in concluding that her proposed PSG was
   incognizable. See Hernandez-De La Cruz, 819 F.3d at 786–87. Consequently,
   she cannot demonstrate eligibility for asylum or withholding of removal, and
   we affirm the BIA’s denial of those forms of relief. 5 See Orellana-Monson, 685
   F.3d at 518; see also Majd, 446 F.3d at 595 (noting that withholding of removal

           _____________________
           4
            See Hernandez-De La Cruz, 819 F.3d at 787 (recognizing that unpublished cases
   are persuasive authority).
           5
             Although the Government contends that this court lacks jurisdiction to consider
   whether Morales-Perez failed to demonstrate past or potential harm rising to the level of
   persecution, we need not reach the issue because her failure to show that she presented a
   cognizable PSG is dispositive to her claims for asylum and withholding of removal. See
   Bagamasbad, 429 U.S. at 25 (explaining that courts and agencies are not required to make
   findings on issues that are not dispositive to the holding they reach).

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   has a higher standard than asylum thus the “failure to establish eligibility for
   asylum is dispositive of claims for withholding of removal”).
          B. Convention Against Torture
          Morales-Perez further maintains that the IJ failed to properly address
   the evidence showing that Honduran police officials were ineffective against
   death threats by gang members and would be unable or unwilling to protect
   her if she returned to Honduras. Noting that the police did nothing after she
   reported the attempted robbery in 2011, she contends that future torture
   would more likely than not occur based on the death threat she received after
   witnessing the killing of her cousin in 2014. We are unpersuaded by her
   arguments.
          To obtain protection under the CAT, the applicant must “establish
   that it is more likely than not that he or she would be tortured if removed to
   the proposed country of removal.” 8 C.F.R. § 1208.16(c)(2); accord Munoz-
   Granados v. Barr, 958 F.3d 402, 408 (5th Cir. 2020). Torture is defined, in
   relevant part, as “any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical
   or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person . . . by, or at the instigation of,
   or with the consent or acquiescence of, a public official acting in an official
   capacity or other person acting in an official capacity.” 8 C.F.R. §
   1208.18(a)(1); accord Ramirez-Mejia v. Lynch, 794 F.3d 485, 493 (5th Cir.
   2015). Thus, the applicant must show both that (1) she more likely than not
   would suffer torture if she returned to her country and (2) sufficient state
   action would be involved in that torture. See Tamara-Gomez v. Gonzales, 447
   F.3d 343, 350–51 (5th Cir. 2006).
          Threats that lack immediacy are insufficient to constitute persecution
   for asylum and withholding of removal. See Munoz-Granados, 958 F.3d at
   407; see also Gjetani v. Barr, 968 F.3d 393, 398–99 (5th Cir. 2020) (upholding
   determination that threats on three occasions, one of which resulted in

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   physical injury, did not qualify as persecution because no pattern of sustained
   pursuit was involved). It so follows that such threats also fail to meet the
   higher bar of torture. See Efe v. Ashcroft, 293 F.3d 899, 907 (5th Cir. 2002)
   (“[The] CAT does not require persecution, but the higher bar of torture.”);
   see also 8 C.F.R. § 1208.18(a)(2) (“Torture is an extreme form of cruel and
   inhuman treatment and does not include lesser forms of cruel, inhuman or
   degrading treatment or punishment that do not amount to torture.”).
          On this issue, the IJ determined that Morales-Perez failed to prove
   that it was more likely than not that she would be tortured, by or with the
   consent or acquiescence of a government official, if she returned to
   Honduras. See 8 C.F.R. § 1208.16(c)(2). The BIA upheld the IJ’s findings.
   We agree that she has failed to make the requisite showing.
          Morales-Perez testified that when Banana noticed that she witnessed
   the shooting, he told her that he would kill her family if she called the police.
   She satisfied Banana’s demand, however, by not reporting the killing to the
   police. Even though she fled the country with her daughter the day after the
   murder, her partner remained in Honduras with their two sons until 2019 and
   no one in the family was ever threatened again by Banana or anyone else with
   respect to the murder. Apart from Morales-Perez being hit in the eye during
   the unrelated attempted robbery incident in 2011, the record confirms that
   no one in Honduras ever physically harmed her or her children. In other
   words, the evidence does not “compel” the conclusion that the death threat
   from Banana was a continuing one. See Orellana-Monson, 685 F.3d at 518.
   Moreover, “[g]eneralized country evidence tells us little about the likelihood
   [that] state actors will torture any particular person,” including Morales-
   Perez. See Qorane v. Barr, 919 F.3d 904, 911 (5th Cir. 2019); Morales v.
   Sessions, 860 F.3d 812, 818 (5th Cir. 2017) (“Petitioner’s presentation of
   various news articles and reports describing [her country] as particularly
   dangerous for unnamed women and children warrants our sympathy, but the

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   allegations contained in those articles and reports are too general to warrant
   relief under the Convention Against Torture.” (internal quotation marks and
   citations omitted)). For these reasons, we conclude that substantial evidence
   supports the BIA’s holding that Morales-Perez has failed to show that, if she
   returns to Honduras, it is more likely than not that she will be tortured by or
   with the consent or acquiescence of a government official. See 8 C.F.R. §
   1208.16(c)(2); Tamara-Gomez, 447 F.3d at 350–51. She is therefore not
   entitled to CAT relief. See Munoz-Granados, 958 F.3d at 408.
                               IV. CONCLUSION
          For the foregoing reasons, the petition for review is DENIED in part
   and DISMISSED in part.

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