Zumel v. Gonzales
Zumel v. Gonzales
Opinion of the Court
MEMORANDUM
Peter and Gemma Zumel, married natives and citizens of the Philippines, petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) denial of their motion to reconsider the BIA’s denial of a motion to remand cancellation of removal proceedings, for the purpose of presenting new information regarding the health of their elder United States citizen son. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1252. Reviewing for abuse of discretion, see Cano-Merida v. INS, 311 F.3d 960, 964 (9th Cir. 2002), we grant the petition for review and remand for further proceedings.
The BIA abused its discretion in concluding that the Zumels’ motion to reconsider did not identify “any ... error in our previous analysis that would move us to reconsider our decision.” 8 C.F.R. § 1003.2(b)(1) requires that “[a] motion to reconsider ... specify[ ] the errors of fact or law in the prior Board decision.” The Zumels’ motion to reconsider contended that the BIA “failed to adequately consider all the evidence with respect to [Sean’s neurofibromatosis].” We agree. The Board’s statement that “there is nothing in the record to suggest that ... comparable medical care would not be available in the Philippines” ignores the absence of any Philippine clinics on the National Neurofibromatosis Foundation’s list of “International Clinical Care Centers.” Nor did the BIA address Sean’s physician’s opinion that removing Sean from his “medical community, which is familiar with [his] chronic diseases and has the technological capabilities to deal with potential complications, could have significant harmful consequences.”
Moreover, the BIA’s reference to a publication—written by a doctor at one of the United States’ preeminent pediatric hospitals—stating that “most individuals with NF1 live long and generally healthy lives” does not demonstrate that the BIA assessed the copious medical evidence submitted by the Zumels.
The BIA’s denial of the Zumels’ motion to reconsider was therefore an abuse of discretion. See Jara-Navarrete v. INS, 813 F.2d 1340, 1342 (9th Cir. 1986) (“In reviewing BIA decisions involving hard
In its prior decision denying the Zumels’ motion to remand, the BIA stated that they had not demonstrated “that the qualifying relative will suffer exceptional and extremely unusual hardship.”
PETITION FOR REVIEW GRANTED; REMANDED.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and may not be cited to or by the courts of this circuit except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3.
. Indeed, the next sentence of this source qualifies the preceding generalization: “Yet it must be recognized that some complications of neurofibromatosis can be life-threatening."
. We note that the BIA misread the record by stating in this order that "the children have learned to speak ... Tagalog.”
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.