Sonia Morales-Sican v. Attorney General United States
Sonia Morales-Sican v. Attorney General United States
Opinion
NOT PRECEDENTIAL
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT ____________
No. 19-2722 ____________
SONIA ARACELY MORALES-SICAN, Petitioner
v.
ATTORNEY GENERAL UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Respondent ____________
On Petition for Review of a Decision and Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA-1: A098 113 572) Immigration Judge: Esmeralda Cabrera ____________
Submitted on March 3, 2020
Before: SMITH, Chief Judge, HARDIMAN, and KRAUSE, Circuit Judges.
(Filed: March 26, 2020)
____________
OPINION* ____________
* This disposition is not an opinion of the full Court and pursuant to I.O.P. 5.7 does not constitute binding precedent. HARDIMAN, Circuit Judge.
Sonia Aracely Morales-Sican petitions for review of a decision of the Board of
Immigration Appeals denying her motion to reopen. A citizen of Guatemala, Morales-
Sican entered the United States without admission or inspection in 2004. That year, the
Department of Homeland Security charged her as removable and issued her a notice to
appear. She failed to appear, and the immigration judge (IJ) entered a removal order in
absentia on February 24, 2005.
In 2014, Morales-Sican moved to reopen, claiming she did not provide the address
to which the government sent the notice to appear. The IJ denied her motion. After the IJ
denied reconsideration in pertinent part, the BIA affirmed. Morales-Sican filed a second
motion to reopen in August 2018 seeking asylum based on changed country conditions in
Guatemala. Finding that Morales-Sican failed to show changed country conditions, the
BIA denied her petition as time- and number-barred. Morales-Sican petitions this Court
for review and we have jurisdiction under
8 U.S.C. § 1252.
We review the denial of a motion to reopen for abuse of discretion. See, e.g., Filja
v. Gonzales,
447 F.3d 241, 251(3d Cir. 2006). Generally, an alien may file one motion to
reopen, and must do so “within 90 days of the date of entry of a final administrative order
of removal.” 8 U.S.C. § 1229a(c)(7)(A), (C)(i). If an alien seeks rescission of a removal
order entered in absentia and can show “exceptional circumstances,” the time bar is
2 extended to 180 days. Id. § 1229a(b)(5)(C)(i). But these filing limitations do not apply
when the alien applies for asylum based on changed country conditions. See id.
§ 1229a(c)(7)(C)(ii); see also
8 C.F.R. § 1003.2(c)(3)(ii).
The IJ entered the final order of removal in Morales-Sican’s case on February 24,
2005. She previously moved to reopen in 2014. So her 2018 motion to reopen is time-
and number-barred, unless she can show the BIA abused its discretion in concluding she
failed to show changed country conditions. On appeal, Morales-Sican’s attorney does not
address this issue. He instead declares that “this matter should be remanded to the BIA
for further consideration of” the Attorney General’s decision in In re L-E-A-,
27 I. & N. Dec. 581(A.G. 2019), a case that has nothing to do with changed country conditions.
Opening Br. 10. Because Morales-Sican has forfeited any challenge to the BIA’s
conclusion that she failed to show changed country conditions, see, e.g., Khan v. Att’y
Gen.,
691 F.3d 488, 495 n.4 (3d Cir. 2012), and because her attorney has not presented
any other basis on which to find an abuse of discretion, we must deny her petition for
review.
3
Reference
- Status
- Unpublished