Freddy Davila v. Eric Holder, Jr.

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
Freddy Davila v. Eric Holder, Jr., 464 F. App'x 587 (9th Cir. 2011)

Freddy Davila v. Eric Holder, Jr.

Opinion

MEMORANDUM ***

Freddy Martin Davila, a legal permanent resident of the Untied States and native and citizen of Nicaragua, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) order rejecting his claim for protection under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252. We review de novo questions of law and for substantial evidence findings of fact. Wakkary v. Holder, 558 F.3d 1049, 1056 (9th Cir. 2009). We grant the petition for review and remand.

We remand to the BIA because we cannot conduct a meaningful review of the BIA’s decision on the issue of whether the Nicaraguan government acquiesces in acts of torture, where the BIA failed to provide a reasoned explanation of its decision. See Movsisian v. Ashcroft, 395 F.3d 1095, 1098 (9th Cir. 2005) (“We have long held that the BIA abuses its discretion when it fails to provide a reasoned explanation for its actions.”). Davila asserts that the BIA failed to provide a “reasoned explanation” for denying his claim under the theory that the Nicaraguan government acquiesces in torture. 1 The BIA denied Davila’s CAT claim by issuing a general statement unsupported by any reasoning that Nicaragua does not consent to torture. See Sagaydak v. Gonzales, 405 F.3d 1035, 1040 (9th Cir. 2005) (“[T]he BIA [is] not free to ignore arguments raised by a [party].”). *588 We therefore instruct the BIA on remand to provide a reasoned explanation for its decision on Davila’s CAT claim.

We grant the petition for review, and remand to the BIA to provide a reasoned explanation for its decision on Davila’s CAT claim.

Petition GRANTED; REMANDED for further proceedings.

***

This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.

1

. The government failed to respond to this argument.

Reference

Full Case Name
Freddy Martin DAVILA, Petitioner, v. Eric H. HOLDER, Jr., Attorney General, Respondent
Status
Unpublished