Parada-Orellana v. Garland ( 2021 )

Case: 19-60645 Document: 00515968325 Page: 1 Date Filed: 08/06/2021
United States Court of Appeals
for the Fifth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals
Fifth Circuit
FILED
August 6, 2021
No. 19-60645 Lyle W. Cayce
Clerk
Mirian Margarita Parada-Orellana,
Petitioner,
versus
Merrick Garland, U.S. Attorney General,
Respondent.
Petition for Review of an Order of the
Board of Immigration Appeals
BIA No. A200 116 350
Before Higginbotham, Stewart, and Wilson, Circuit Judges.
Cory T. Wilson, Circuit Judge:
Mirian Margarita Parada-Orellana moved the Immigration Court of
Harlingen, Texas, to rescind her in absentia order of removal or, in the
alternative, to reopen her removal proceedings to allow her to apply for
cancellation of removal pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act
(INA) § 240A(b). The Immigration Judge (IJ) denied her request, and she
appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA), which dismissed her
appeal. She now petitions this court for review. We DENY the petition in
part and DISMISS in part.
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I.
Parada-Orellana is a native and citizen of El Salvador. She entered the
United States on October 1, 2005. While crossing the border, Parada-
Orellana was apprehended by border patrol agents. She was detained for
three days.
On October 2, 2005, Parada-Orellana was served while in detention
with a notice to appear (NTA). The NTA ordered her to appear before an IJ
in Harlingen, Texas, at a date and time to be set. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) agents asked Parada-Orellana for the address where she
would be living in the United States, but she only reported that she would be
staying with her uncle in Houston, Texas. The agents advised Parada-
Orellana that she needed to call and update her address with the immigration
court when she obtained a stable address.
After being released, Parada-Orellana went to her uncle’s house in
Houston. According to Parada-Orellana, she gave all her “immigration
papers” to her uncle’s wife after his wife told her that it was “risky” to travel
with them. Two months later, Parada-Orellana relocated to Maryland to live
with a friend. She did not contact the immigration court to update her
address. Parada-Orellana states this was because her uncle and his wife
misplaced her “immigration papers.”
Regardless, on March 9, 2006, the IJ called Parada-Orellana’s name
for a hearing. She was not present, so on March 20, 2006, the IJ ordered
Parada-Orellana to be removed in absentia. The IJ noted that Parada-
Orellana was advised that she was required by 8 U.S.C. § 1229(a)(1)(F) to
provide ICE and the court with her address, which she did not do. The IJ
concluded that because Parada-Orellana did not meet this requirement,
under § 1229a(b)(5)(B), the court was not required to provide her with
written notice of her hearing.
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On April 5, 2010, ICE detained Parada-Orellana in Jessup, Maryland.
According to Parada-Orellana, this is when she first became aware that the IJ
had entered a deportation order. After she was released, she consulted with
two lawyers but did not ultimately pursue any action to address the order. 1
On June 3, 2015, Parada-Orellana married Nelson Antonio Ferman
Barrera (Ferman), a United States citizen she had been dating since 2006.
According to Parada-Orellana, she helps Ferman run his business and
manage his medical conditions (high cholesterol and asthma). Parada-
Orellana and Ferman do not have children together.
In June 2016, Ferman filed an I-130 petition for alien relative on behalf
of Parada-Orellana, which was approved June 5, 2017. Parada-Orellana then
requested that the Department of Homeland Security join in a motion to
reopen her removal proceedings. That request was denied on June 22, 2018.
On September 20, 2018, Parada-Orellana filed an opposed motion to reopen
with the IJ, which she later supplemented with exhibits and briefing. In her
motion, Parada-Orellana sought to rescind her in absentia order of removal
or, in the alternative, to reopen her removal proceedings sua sponte to allow
her to apply for cancellation of removal for certain non-permanent citizens
pursuant to INA § 240A(b). The same day she filed her motion, she applied
for cancellation of removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1229b(b)(1). Along with her
application, she submitted evidence of her relationship with her husband.
She alleged that her husband would suffer exceptional and extremely unusual
hardship without her support due to his health conditions.
1
According to Parada-Orellana, the lawyers advised her that it would be “very
difficult to obtain a legal status with an order of deportation” and that “if [Parada-Orellana]
presented [herself] to ICE again, [she] was going to be deported.”
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The IJ denied the motion to reopen on January 28, 2019. First, the IJ
found that Parada-Orellana was personally served with a NTA that expressly
warned her of the requirement that she provide written notice of her full
mailing address and any address or telephone number changes. The IJ then
concluded that Parada-Orellana forfeited her right to receive notice of her
hearing by failing to fulfill this requirement. The IJ also determined that
because the motion to reopen was filed more than 180 days after the removal
order was issued, the removal order could not be rescinded if Parada-Orellana
did not show that her failure to appear was due to exceptional circumstances.
The IJ stated that Parada-Orellana had not established that the 180-day
deadline should be equitably tolled. The IJ noted that the record was unclear
as to why Parada-Orellana filed her motion to reopen in 2018, eight years after
she learned that that she had been ordered removed. And the IJ concluded
that Parada-Orellana failed to demonstrate reasonable diligence in filing her
motion to reopen with respect to the 180-day deadline.
Nonetheless, the IJ ultimately determined that Parada-Orellana was
entitled to equitable tolling of the deadline for a motion to reopen to apply for
cancellation of removal considering the Supreme Court’s decision in Pereira
v. Sessions, 138 S. Ct. 2105 (2018). Reaching the merits, the IJ denied the
motion to reopen, concluding that Parada-Orellana did not establish prima
facie eligibility for the relief of cancellation of removal. Specifically, the IJ
concluded that Parada-Orellana did not show that her husband would
experience exceptional and extremely unusual hardship in the event of her
removal.
Parada-Orellana appealed the IJ’s decision to the BIA. The BIA
dismissed the appeal on August 6, 2019. The BIA agreed with the IJ that
Parada-Orellana failed to establish that the removal order should be
rescinded because her lack of notice of her hearing. The BIA also agreed with
the IJ that, although Parada-Orellana established eligibility for equitable
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tolling regarding the motion to reopen to apply for cancellation of removal,
she did not establish prima facie eligibility for cancellation of removal. On
September 3, 2019, Parada-Orellana filed a timely petition for review with
this court. See 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(1), (b)(1), (b)(2).
II.
Parada-Orellana raises two issues in her petition for review. 2 First,
she contends the BIA erred by failing to apply and follow its own precedent
when it denied her motion to reopen. Second, she contends the BIA erred in
concluding that she had not presented evidence of prima facie eligibility for
cancellation of removal because she did not show that her husband would
experience the requisite hardship in the event of her removal.
In response, the Government asserts this court lacks jurisdiction to
review the BIA’s prima facie determination pursuant to 8 U.S.C.
§ 1252(a)(2)(B)(i), which precludes judicial review of any judgment regarding
cancellation of removal under § 1229b. The Government does not contest
that this court retains jurisdiction over questions of law, such as application
of the appropriate legal standard. But the Government asserts that Parada-
Orellana’s claim in this regard—that the BIA failed to apply and follow its
own precedent—is “simply [a] factual and discretionary dispute[] cloaked
with legal language” that should likewise fall under the jurisdictional bar.
Parada-Orellana acknowledges § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i)’s bar but counters
that it does not prevent our review of her claims because she has never had a
“full merits” hearing on her application for cancellation of removal. We
2
Parada-Orellana admits in her brief that her arguments regarding recission of her
in absentia removal order are foreclosed by this court’s decisions in Ramos-Portillo v. Barr,
919 F.3d 955, 961–62 (5th Cir. 2019) and Mauricio-Benitez v. Sessions, 908 F.3d 144, 148
(5th Cir. 2018). Accordingly, she does not press this issue on appeal.
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address both issues raised by Parada-Orellana, including our jurisdiction or
lack thereof, in turn.
A.
While we typically only review the final decision of the BIA, when the
IJ’s ruling plays into the BIA’s decision, as it does in this case, we review both
the IJ’s and the BIA’s decisions. Sealed Petitioner v. Sealed Respondent, 829
F.3d 379, 383 (5th Cir. 2016). This court reviews questions of law, such as
the BIA’s application of the appropriate legal standard, de novo. Rodriguez
v. Holder, 585 F.3d 227, 233 (5th Cir. 2009). Otherwise, we review the BIA’s
denial of a motion to reopen under “a highly deferential abuse-of-discretion
standard, regardless of the basis of the alien’s request for relief.” Gomez-
Palacios v. Holder, 560 F.3d 354, 358 (5th Cir. 2009). This means we will
“affirm the BIA’s decision as long as it is not capricious, without foundation
in the evidence, or otherwise so irrational that it is arbitrary rather than the
result of any perceptible rational approach.” Id.B.
Parada-Orellana first asserts that the BIA abused its discretion by
failing to follow its own precedent and apply the correct legal standard to her
motion to reopen. More specifically, she alleges the BIA “ignored its own
case law regarding the standard for evaluating prima facie evidence of
eligibility for relief in a motion to reopen that was announced in Matter of L-
O-G-[, 21 I & N Dec. 413, 418-19 (BIA 1996)].” According to Parada-
Orellana, “remand is necessary so that the [BIA] can clarify the standard
employed in evaluating [her] evidence for prima facie eligibility for
relief . . . .” We disagree.
To begin, as we previously noted, whether the BIA applied the correct
legal standard is a question of law over which this court has jurisdiction.
Hakim v. Holder, 628 F.3d 151, 155 (5th Cir. 2010); see also 8 U.S.C.
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§ 1252(a)(2)(D). We acknowledge the Government’s contention that this
issue is a factual (and thus discretionary, and non-appealable) dispute
disguised with legal language, but we conclude that Parada-Orellana’s
assertion is sufficient to require us to address the issue as a question of law.
For background, the BIA may deny a motion to reopen on one of three
grounds: (1) failure to establish a prima facie case for the underlying relief
sought, (2) failure to introduce previously unavailable, material evidence, or
(3) failure to establish entitlement to discretionary relief. I.N.S. v. Abudu,
485 U.S. 94, 104–05 (1988). Parada-Orellana’s appeal implicates Abudu’s
first ground for denying a motion to reopen—failure to establish a prima facie
case for the underlying relief sought. The underlying relief that Parada-
Orellana sought was cancellation of removal under 8 U.S.C. § 1229b(b)(1).
The BIA agreed with the IJ that Parada-Orellana had “not established
prima facie eligibility for cancellation of removal” under § 1229b(b)(1).
Section 1229b(b)(1) requires an applicant to establish, inter alia, “that
removal would result in exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” to the
applicant’s qualified family member, here, Parada-Orellana’s husband.
According to the BIA, Parada-Orellana failed to make this showing. More
specifically, the BIA concluded that she did not show “that her husband
could not obtain medical care, if she were removed, and emotional hardship,
without more, does not meet the standard for exceptional and extremely
unusual hardship.”
In her petition to this court, Parada-Orellana contends that the IJ and
the BIA held her to a higher standard than simply establishing prima facie
evidence of extreme and unusual hardship, as if she “had a full hearing on
the merits of her cancellation application.” She states that although the BIA
used the phrase “prima facie eligibility,” it did not actually apply the
standard set forth in Matter of L-O-G-, which requires that the BIA decide
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whether there is a “reasonable likelihood that relief will be granted in the
exercise of discretion.” Matter of L-O-G-, 21 I. & N. Dec at 419.
Parada-Orellana makes this assertion despite acknowledging that the
BIA opinion does not expound upon the standard of review beyond stating
that she must establish “prima facie eligibility” for relief. In other words,
Parada-Orellana does not point to any language in the BIA’s order that would
indicate that the BIA applied the incorrect standard. In fact, the record
reflects the opposite.
In her order, the IJ concluded that Parada-Orellana had “not shown
that there is a reasonable likelihood that she c[ould] demonstrate that her
removal to El Salvador would result in exceptional and extremely unusual
hardship to her husband.” (emphasis added). In reaching this conclusion,
the IJ cited In Re S-V-, 22 I. & N. Dec. 1306 (BIA 2000), a more recent case
that cited Matter of L-O-G- to support its use of the reasonable-likelihood
standard. And in its order dismissing Parada-Orellana’s appeal, the BIA
stated that it agreed with the IJ’s analysis and affirmed her decision.
The BIA’s failure expressly to denote the standard of review does not
make the BIA’s ruling incorrect. Indeed, failure to expound upon the law
and failure to apply the law (or failure to apply the law correctly) are not the
same. There is no requirement “that the BIA address evidentiary minutiae
or write any lengthy exegesis . . . .” Abdel-Masieh v. U.S. I.N.S., 73 F.3d 579,
585 (5th Cir. 1996) (citation omitted). Upon review of the record, we find no
indication that the BIA abused its discretion by applying an incorrect legal
standard. Accordingly, this issue lacks merit.
C.
Next, Parada-Orellana asserts that the BIA abused its discretion by
finding she had not presented prima facie evidence of eligibility for the relief
of cancellation of removal. As mentioned above, the Government counters
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that this court lacks jurisdiction to review the BIA’s prima facie hardship
determination pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i). We agree that we
lack jurisdiction to reach this issue.
Section 1252(a)(2)(B)(i) precludes judicial review of “any judgment”
regarding the grant or denial of cancellation of removal under § 1229b:
Notwithstanding any other provision of law . . . and except as
provided in subparagraph (D), and regardless of whether the
judgment, decision, or action is made in removal proceedings,
no court shall have jurisdiction to review any judgment
regarding the granting of relief under section . . . 1229b . . . of
this title.
(emphasis added); see also Sung v. Keisler, 505 F.3d 372, 377 (5th Cir. 2007). 3
Based on this proscription, we have routinely held that we are barred from
reviewing either the BIA’s initial denials of petitioners’ claims to cancellation
of removal or subsequent denials of motions to reopen the same. See, e.g.,
Assad v. Ashcroft, 378 F.3d 471, 475 (5th Cir. 2004); Rodriguez v. Ashcroft, 253
3
Section 1229b(b)(1) provides:
The Attorney General may cancel removal of, and adjust to the status of
an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence, an alien who is
inadmissible or deportable from the United States if the alien—
(A) has been physically present in the United States for a continuous
period of not less than 10 years immediately preceding the date of
such application;
(B) has been a person of good moral character during such period;
(C) has not been convicted of an offense under section 1182(a)(2),
1227(a)(2), or 1227(a)(3) of this title, subject to paragraph (5); and
(D) establishes that removal would result in exceptional and extremely
unusual hardship to the alien’s spouse, parent, or child, who is a
citizen of the United States or an alien lawfully admitted for
permanent residence.
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F.3d 797, 799–800 (5th Cir. 2001); see also Mata v. Lynch, 576 U.S. 143, 147
(2015).
According to Parada-Orellana, however, § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i)’s explicit
bar does not preclude our review here. She contends this case is different
because she has never had a “full merits” hearing on her application for
cancellation of removal. Parada-Orellana refers us to Manzano-Garcia v.
Gonzales, 413 F.3d 462 (5th Cir. 2005), to support her position that this
distinction makes her case reviewable. She posits that in Manzano-Garcia,
this court held that § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i)’s bar did not apply “where no
previous[] decision had been made on an application for discretionary relief
at a full merits hearing.” But this is an incorrect interpretation of Manzano-
Garcia.
While we concluded that we had jurisdiction to review the BIA’s
denial of the petitioner’s motion to reopen in Manzano-Garcia, our holding
was narrower than Parada-Orellana suggests. In reaching our decision, we
explained:
the BIA denied the Manzanos’ motion to reopen pursuant to 8
C.F.R. § 1003.2 and the “new evidence” ground of Abudu. . . .
The BIA thus ultimately affirmed its prior affirmance of the
Manzanos’ removability under § 1182(a)(6)(A)(i); it did not
make an adverse determination of the merits of Mr. Manzano’s
application for adjustment of status under § 1255.
Manzano-Garcia, 413 F.3d at 468. In other words, we determined that we
had jurisdiction there because the BIA’s judgment on the petitioner’s motion
to reopen was premised on the “new evidence” ground of Abudu and “did
not relate to any of the delineated subsections of title 8 we cannot review
under § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i).” Id. at 469. The same is not true here.
As discussed above, Abudu set forth three grounds for the BIA to deny
a motion to reopen: (1) failure to establish a prima facie case for the
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underlying relief sought, (2) failure to introduce previously unavailable,
material evidence, or (3) failure to establish entitlement to discretionary
relief. Abudu, 485 U.S. at 104–05. In Manzano-Garcia, the BIA denied the
petitioner’s motion to reopen on the second ground, requiring new evidence.
413 F.3d at 469. Here, the BIA denied Parada-Orellana’s motion to reopen
on the first ground, failure to establish a prima facie case for cancellation of
removal. This distinction is important because the BIA’s ultimate
determination in this case—that Parada-Orellana failed to make a prima facie
showing of hardship—falls within “the delineated subsections of title 8 we
cannot review under § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i).” Id. at 467; see also Fernandez v.
Gonzales, 439 F.3d 592, 599-600 (9th Cir. 2006) (analyzing distinction
between Abudu’s first two categories and concluding the same).
Section 1252(a)(2)(B)(i) specifically precludes judicial review of “any
judgment” regarding cancellation of removal under § 1229b. This
encompasses § 1229b(b)(1)(D)’s requirement that the petitioner establish
“that removal would result in exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to
the alien’s spouse, . . . who is a citizen of the United States . . . .” While it is
true that Parada-Orellana did not have a “full merits” hearing on her
application for cancellation, the BIA’s denial of her motion based on its
conclusion that she failed to establish a prima facie case for the underlying
relief of cancellation of removal is tantamount to a discretionary decision on
the merits barred by § 1252(a)(2)(B)(i).
The Government’s brief sums it up well:
the only way to evaluate whether Parada[-Orellana]’s evidence
demonstrated a reasonable likelihood that she could show the
necessary hardship in a reopened hearing would be to evaluate
the factual circumstances . . . and determine whether those
facts, when fully developed at a hearing, might rise to the
hardship standard. The discretionary determination of
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whether a given set of facts rises to the hardship standard is
precisely the determination Congress left in the agency’s
hands.
Accordingly, we lack jurisdiction to review this issue. See, e.g., Sung, 505
F.3d at 377; Rodriguez, 253 F.3d at 799; Moosa v. I.N.S., 171 F.3d 994, 1013
(5th Cir. 1999).
* * *
For the reasons stated herein, we DENY Parada-Orellana’s petition
as to her first issue. We DISMISS her petition for lack of jurisdiction as to
her second issue.
PETITION DENIED IN PART; DISMISSED IN PART.
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