Jose El-Amaya v. Eric Holder, Jr., No. 13-1384 (4th Cir. 2014)
Annotate this Case
Download PDF
UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 13-1384 JOSE ARMANDO AB EL-AMAYA, a/k/a Jose Armando Abel Amaya, Petitioner, v. ERIC H. HOLDER, JR., Attorney General, Respondent. On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals. Submitted: February 20, 2014 Before AGEE and Circuit Judge. FLOYD, Circuit Decided: Judges, and March 5, 2014 HAMILTON, Senior Petition denied by unpublished per curiam opinion. Stephen C. Fleming, LAW OFFICES OF STEPHEN C. FLEMING, State College, Pennsylvania, for Petitioner. Stuart F. Delery, Assistant Attorney General, Jennifer Levings, Song Park, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Respondent. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. PER CURIAM: Jose Armando Ab El-Amaya, a native and citizen of El Salvador, petitions for Appeals ( Board ) order immigration withholding judge s of review Against Torture ( CAT ). the dismissing order removal of of Immigration his appeal from the his denying and Board applications for protection under the Convention We deny the petition for review. El-Amaya first disputes the Board s agreement with the immigration judge s rejection of his claim that he was entitled to withholding of removal because he suffered past persecution, and feared future persecution, on account of his membership in the particular social group of individuals who resist and oppose gang membership. Our review is limited to evaluating whether the Board s denial of withholding of removal on this basis is manifestly contrary to the law or an abuse of discretion. Zelaya v. (stating Holder, F.3d of standard 668 159, 165, review as 167 set (4th forth See Cir. 2012) 8 U.S.C. in Zelaya Cir. 2011), in § 1252(b)(4)(D) (2012)). Unfortunately and Lizama v. Holder, for 629 El-Amaya, F.3d squarely foreclose his position. that opposition to gangs is our 440, decisions 447 (4th In Zelaya, we clearly held an amorphous characteristic providing neither an adequate benchmark for determining group membership nor embodying a concrete trait that would readily 2 identify a person as possessing such a characteristic. 668 F.3d at 166; see also Lizama, 629 F.3d at 447. proposed social group fails on the Zelaya, Thus, this particularity ground, articulated by the Board in In re S-E-G-, 24 I. & N. Dec. 579, 584-86 (BIA 2008), and to Zelaya, 668 F.3d at 166-67. which we accord deference. See We accordingly conclude that the Board s denial of withholding of removal on this basis is not manifestly contrary to the law or an abuse of discretion. See 8 U.S.C. § 1252(b)(4)(D). El-Amaya next argues that, taken together, his credible testimony and background evidence on conditions in El Salvador constitute substantial evidence of his claimed fear of future torture. We review for substantial evidence the denial of relief under the CAT. Dankam v. Gonzales, 495 F.3d 113, 124 (4th Cir. 2007). We have thoroughly reviewed the record in this case, including all of the background evidence, and conclude that it simply does not compel the conclusion that the gangs operate with the acquiescence of the Salvadoran government or even that the government turns a blind eye to their criminal activities. See 8 C.F.R. §§ 1208.16(c)(1), (2), 1208.18(a)(1), (7) (2013). We thus hold that substantial evidence supports the finding that El-Amaya was not eligible for relief under the CAT. 3 For these reasons, we deny the petition for review. We dispense contentions with are oral argument adequately because presented in the facts and the materials legal before this court and argument would not aid the decisional process. PETITION DENIED 4
Some case metadata and case summaries were written with the help of AI, which can produce inaccuracies. You should read the full case before relying on it for legal research purposes.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
