ALFARO MENJIVAR v. BARR (2020)

United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.

Douglas Alexis ALFARO-MENJIVAR, Petitioner, v. William P. BARR, Attorney General, Respondent.

No. 16-71738

Decided: October 29, 2020

Before: McKEOWN, RAWLINSON, and FRIEDLAND, Circuit Judges. Jerry Shapiro, Esquire, Attorney, Law Offices of Jerry Shapiro, Encino, CA, for Petitioner Bernard Joseph, Anthony Ogden Pottinger, Trial Attorney, Regina Byrd, Esquire, Attorney, DOJ - U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Division/Office of Immigration Litigation, Washington, DC, Chief Counsel ICE, Office of the Chief Counsel, Department of Homeland Security, San Francisco, CA, for Respondent

MEMORANDUM **

Douglas Alexis Alfaro-Menjivar, a native and citizen of El Salvador, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) order dismissing his appeal from an immigration judge's decision denying his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252. We deny the petition for review.

In his opening brief, Alfaro-Menjivar does not challenge the agency's dispositive bases for denying his claims for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under CAT. See Lopez-Vasquez v. Holder, 706 F.3d 1072, 1079-80 (9th Cir. 2013) (issues not specifically raised and argued in a party's opening brief are waived). Thus, we deny the petition for review as to his asylum, withholding of removal, and CAT claims.

We do not address Alfaro-Menjivar's contentions as to the cognizability of his proposed social group of “family members of police threatened with harm by organized gangs” because the BIA did not reach that issue. See Santiago-Rodriguez v. Holder, 657 F.3d 820, 829 (9th Cir. 2011) (review limited to the grounds relied on by the BIA).

As stated in the court's June 24, 2016 order, the temporary stay of removal remains in place until issuance of the mandate.

PETITION FOR REVIEW DENIED.