MENDOZA v. SESSIONS III (2018)

MEMORANDUM **

Leonardo Soto Mendoza, a native and citizen of Mexico, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) order dismissing his appeal from an immigration judge’s (“IJ”) denial of his motion for administrative closure. We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252. We review de novo due process claims. Gonzalez-Caraveo v. Sessions, 882 F.3d 885, 889 (9th Cir. 2018). We deny the petition for review.

Although the IJ failed to explain his reasons for denying Soto Mendoza’s motion for administrative closure, the BIA reviewed the motion on appeal and sufficiently explained its reasons for denying under the factors applicable at the time of the agency’s final decision. See Ghaly v. INS, 58 F.3d 1425, 1430 (9th Cir. 1995) (“Any error committed by the IJ will be rendered harmless by the [BIA’s] application of the correct legal standard.”); Gonzalez-Caraveo, 882 F.3d at 891. Accordingly, Soto Mendoza’s due process contention fails. See Lata v. INS, 204 F.3d 1241, 1246 (9th Cir. 2000) (requiring error and substantial prejudice to prevail on a due process claim).

PETITION FOR REVIEW DENIED.