Luzma Martinez-Ceron v. Eric Holder, Jr.

Filing

UNPUBLISHED PER CURIAM OPINION filed. Originating case number: A073-930-413 Copies to all parties and the district court/agency. [999618313].. [14-2211]

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UNPUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 14-2211

LUZMA KENIDA MARTINEZ-CERON, a/k/a Luzma Kenide Ceron,
a/k/a Luzma K. Ceron, a/k/a Luzma Kenida Martinezceron,
Petitioner,
v.
LORETTA E. LYNCH, Attorney General,
Respondent.

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

Submitted:

May 28, 2015

Decided:

July 10, 2015

Before SHEDD, FLOYD, and THACKER, Circuit Judges.

Petition denied by unpublished per curiam opinion.

Chester Smith, SMITH LAW GROUP, PLLC, Virginia Beach, Virginia,
for Petitioner.
Benjamin C. Mizer, Acting Assistant Attorney
General, Julie M. Iversen, Senior Litigation Counsel, James A.
Hurley,
Office
of
Immigration
Litigation,
UNITED
STATES
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Respondent.

Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit.

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PER CURIAM:
Luzma

Kenida

Martinez-Ceron

(“Martinez”),

a

native

and

citizen of El Salvador, petitions for review of the Board of
Immigration Appeals’ (“Board”) order dismissing her appeal from
the immigration judge’s denial of her applications for asylum,
withholding

of

removal,

Torture

record,

including

and

the

protection

(“CAT”). *

Against

court

and

the

We

evidence

transcript

of

have

under

the

thoroughly

presented

Martinez’s

to

reviewed

the

merits

Convention
the

immigration

hearing.

We

conclude that the record evidence does not compel any factual
findings contrary to those made by the immigration judge and
affirmed

by

the

Board,

particularly

as

to

the

finding

that

Martinez failed to satisfy the requisite nexus element, see 8
U.S.C. §§ 1158(b)(1)(B)(i),

1252(b)(4)(B)

(2012);

Hernandez-

Avalos v. Lynch, No. 14-1331, 2015 WL 1936721, at *3 (4th Cir.
Apr.

30,

2015)

(“[A]n

asylum

applicant . . . must

demonstrate

that [membership in a particular social group was] more than an
incidental,

tangential,

superficial

or

subordinate

reason

for

[the] persecution . . . .” (internal quotation marks omitted)),

*

Martinez did not substantively challenge the denial of her
application for protection under the CAT. Accordingly, Martinez
has waived appellate review of this issue.
See SuarezValenzuela v. Holder, 714 F.3d 241, 248-49 (4th Cir. 2013)
(failing to raise a challenge to the Board’s ruling or finding
in an opening brief waives the issue).

2

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and that substantial evidence supports the Board’s decision to
uphold the denial of Martinez’s applications for relief.

See

I.N.S. v. Elias–Zacarias, 502 U.S. 478, 481 (1992) (“The BIA’s
determination

that

asylum . . . can

be

presented . . . [is]
have

to

[an

conclude

applicant

reversed
such

that

that
the

is]

only
a

not
if

reasonable

requisite

eligible
the

evidence

factfinder

fear

of

for

would

persecution

existed.”).
Further, we reject Martinez’s claim that the immigration
judge erred in failing to continue her removal proceedings.

At

the master calendar hearing prior to the merits hearing, counsel
for Martinez informed the immigration judge that the state postconviction proceeding had not been successful, and counsel did
not pursue a continuance at any point thereafter.
Finally, we are not persuaded that the Board should have
remanded

this

case

to

the

U.S.

Citizenship

and

Immigration

Services (“USCIS”) because of an error in the USCIS’s decision
to withdraw Martinez’s temporary protected status (“TPS”).

To

be sure, the USCIS ruling referred to a felony conviction that
Martinez does not have.

But the USCIS also detailed Martinez’s

two misdemeanor convictions, which were conceded, and this is a
proper

basis

for

withdrawing

TPS.

See

8

U.S.C.

§ 1254a(c)(2)(B)(i) (2012) (an alien “convicted of any felony or
2 or more misdemeanors committed in the United States” is not
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eligible for TPS); 8 C.F.R. § 244.4(a) (2014) (same); 8 C.F.R.
§ 244.14(a)(1)
granted

to

(2014)

an

alien

(authorizing
who

“at

ineligible for such status”).

the

any

USCIS

time

to

withdraw

thereafter

TPS

becomes

We thus agree with the Board that

there was no basis for a remand in this case.
Accordingly,

we

deny

reasons stated by the Board.
Oct. 9, 2014).

the

petition

for

review

for

the

See In re: Martinez-Ceron (B.I.A.

We dispense with oral argument because the facts

and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials
before

this

court

and

argument

would

not

aid

the

decisional

process.
PETITION DENIED

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