Gnago v. Gonzales

Filing 920060911

Opinion

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 06-1086

SERGE GERVAIS GNAGO, Petitioner, versus ALBERTO R. GONZALES, U. S. Attorney General, Respondent.

On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals. (A73-712-933)

Submitted:

July 31, 2006

Decided:

September 11, 2006

Before WILKINSON, GREGORY, and DUNCAN, Circuit Judges.

Petition denied by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Randall L. Johnson, JOHNSON & ASSOCIATES, P.C., Arlington, Virginia, for Petitioner. Peter D. Keisler, Assistant Attorney General, James A. Hunolt, Senior Litigation Counsel, John J. Siemietkowski, Office of Immigration Litigation, Civil Division, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Respondent.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c).

PER CURIAM: Serge Gervais Gnago, a native and citizen of the Ivory Coast, petitions for review of a decision the of the Board of

Immigration

Appeals

(Board)

affirming

immigration

judge's

denial of his applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture. Gnago challenges

the Board's finding that he failed to meet his burden of proof to qualify for asylum. We will reverse this decision only if the

evidence "was so compelling that no reasonable fact finder could fail to find the requisite fear of persecution." Rusu v. INS, 296

F.3d 316, 325 n.14 (4th Cir. 2002) (internal quotation marks and citations omitted). We have reviewed the evidence of record and

the immigration judge's decision, and we conclude that substantial evidence supports the conclusion that Gnago failed to show past persecution or the well-founded fear of future persecution

necessary to establish eligibility for asylum.

See 8 C.F.R.

§ 1208.13(a) (2006) (stating that the burden of proof is on the alien to establish eligibility for asylum); INS v. Elias-Zacarias, 502 U.S. 478, 483 (1992) (same). Moreover, since Gnago cannot sustain his burden on the asylum claim, he cannot establish his entitlement to withholding of removal. See Camara v. Ashcroft, 378 F.3d 361, 367 (4th Cir. 2004)

("Because the burden of proof for withholding of removal is higher than for asylum--even though the facts that must be proved are the

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same--an applicant who is ineligible for asylum is necessarily ineligible for withholding of removal under [8 U.S.C.]

§ 1231(b)(3)."). We also find that substantial evidence supports the finding that Gnago fails to meet the standard for relief under the Convention Against Torture. To obtain such relief, an 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) (2006). Gnago failed to make the

requisite showing before the immigration judge. Accordingly, we deny the petition for review. We

dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. PETITION DENIED

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