Court Opinion

ID: 9948270
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-03-06 19:01:45.296078+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T14:29:24.090905
License: Public Domain

NOT FOR PUBLICATION                           FILED
                    UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS                        MAR 6 2024
                                                                      MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
                                                                       U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
                           FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT

JOSE LUIS DIAZ-DAMIAN,                          No. 22-1926
                                                Agency No.
             Petitioner,                        A208-583-341
 v.
                                                MEMORANDUM*
MERRICK B. GARLAND, Attorney
General,

             Respondent.

                     On Petition for Review of an Order of the
                         Board of Immigration Appeals

                            Submitted March 4, 2024**
                              Pasadena, California

Before: CLIFTON, H.A. THOMAS, and DESAI, Circuit Judges.

      Jose Luis Diaz-Damian, a native and citizen of Mexico, petitions for review

of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ dismissal of his appeal of an Immigration

Judge’s denial of his applications for withholding of removal and relief under the

Convention Against Torture. We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252. We deny

      *
             This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
      **
             The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
the petition for review.

       When the BIA “review[s] the IJ’s credibility-based decision for clear error

and ‘relie[s] upon the IJ’s opinion as a statement of reasons’ but ‘[does] not merely

provide a boilerplate opinion,’” this court reviews “the reasons explicitly identified

by the BIA, and then examine[s] the reasoning articulated in the IJ’s oral decision

in support of those reasons.” Dong v. Garland, 50 F.4th 1291, 1296 (9th Cir. 2022)

(quoting Lai v. Holder, 773 F.3d 966, 970 (9th Cir. 2014)). The agency’s factual

findings, including credibility determinations, are reviewed for substantial

evidence. Id. The denial of CAT protection is also reviewed for substantial

evidence. Duran-Rodriguez v. Barr, 918 F.3d 1025, 1028 (9th Cir. 2019).

      Diaz-Damian challenges the agency’s denial of withholding of removal

based on the finding that he had not testified credibly. We conclude that the

adverse credibility finding is supported by substantial evidence. An adverse

credibility determination may be based on any nontrivial inconsistencies in an

applicant’s testimony, so long as the applicant is afforded the opportunity to

explain the inconsistencies. Dong, 50 F.4th at 1296-97. The record establishes that

Diaz-Damian testified inconsistently, was repeatedly offered the opportunity to

explain himself, and failed to do so persuasively. Certain inconsistencies, including

whether a “policeman in uniform” drove Diaz-Damian at any point and whether a

policeman was aboard the vessel that attempted to smuggle him into the United

                                         2                                     22-1926
States, directly relate to whether Mexican government officials were involved in

Diaz-Damian’s smuggling and thus strike at the core of his claim for relief. When

confronted with these inconsistencies, Diaz-Damian was unable to provide a

satisfactory explanation. These and other inconsistencies identified by the IJ

support the agency’s adverse credibility finding.

      Because “[a]n adverse credibility finding is not necessarily a death knell to

CAT protection,” Shrestha v. Holder, 590 F.3d 1034, 1048 (9th Cir. 2010), Diaz-

Damian remains eligible for CAT protection if the non-testimonial evidence shows

that he will more likely than not be subjected to torture, by or with the

acquiescence of a public official, in the country of removal. Park v. Garland, 72

F.4th 965, 980 (9th Cir. 2023). The agency’s conclusion that Diaz-Damian failed

to satisfy this standard is supported by substantial evidence. While the country

condition evidence contains disturbing information about the situation in Mexico,

“[g]eneralized evidence of violence and crime is insufficient to establish a

likelihood of torture.” Id. Diaz-Damian also fails to make the required showing

that he “will face a particularized and non-speculative risk of torture” in Mexico.

Id. Although Diaz-Damian cooperated with the prosecution of two Americans

arrested in connection with his smuggling, nothing in the record suggests that the

Mexican government is in league with the criminal enterprise involved or will

                                         3                                     22-1926
otherwise acquiesce to his torture. No other evidence compels a contrary

conclusion.

      PETITION DENIED.

                                       4                                   22-1926