Background
Guatemalan citizens Angelica Romero-Romero and her children petitioned for review of a Board of Immigration Appeals order that affirmed an immigration judge’s denial of asylum and withholding of removal. The petitioner challenged the agency’s determination that she failed to show the Guatemalan government was or would be unable or unwilling to control the private actor she feared.
The court’s reasoning
The court concluded that substantial evidence supported the agency’s finding that the petitioner failed to show the government was unable or unwilling to control the private actor, considering her failure to report the abuse to authorities and the lack of documentary evidence indicating that the government had failed to protect evangelical Christians. The court also agreed with the government that the petitioner’s argument regarding the futility of reporting the abuse was unexhausted because it was based on facts and arguments not presented in the counseled agency proceedings.
What it means going forward
The denial of the petition for review leaves in place the Board of Immigration Appeals order denying asylum and withholding of removal, effectively preventing the petitioners from remaining in the United States on those grounds.