Guatemala-Pineda v. Wilkinson, No. 20-2248 (8th Cir. 2021)
Annotate this CaseThe Eighth Circuit denied a petition for review of the BIA's decision denying petitioner's request for asylum. Petitioner feared religious persecution by gangs if she returned to her home country of El Salvador. Because petitioner has not demonstrated past persecution, and the gangs she fears are not government or government sponsored, the court explained that she bears the burden to show that relocation would not be reasonable. The court concluded that substantial evidence supports the BIA's determination that petitioner could relocate to another part of El Salvador if forced to return. In this case, petitioner worked for months in San Salvador without trouble from gangs.
Court Description: [Arnold, Author, with Smith, Chief Judge, and Stras, Circuit Judge] Petition for Review - Immigration. Because petitioner has not demonstraed past persecution, the burden is on her to show that relocation in her country of origin would not be reasonable; here, substantial evidence supports the agency's determination that petitioner could safely relocate to another part of El Salvador if required to return.
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