Background
Merari Baraona-Lira, a Nicaraguan national, was ordered removed for being present in the United States without admission. She filed a motion to reopen her removal proceedings based on changed country conditions more than ninety days after the Board of Immigration Appeals affirmed her final order of removal.
The court’s reasoning
The court reviewed the Board of Immigration Appeals decision under the highly deferential abuse-of-discretion standard. The court affirmed the denial because the petitioner failed to provide previously unavailable, material evidence. The Board properly dismissed background information on events occurring before the initial asylum application as previously available. The remaining evidence, including letter affidavits and country-conditions reports, did not establish a connection between threats and the petitioner’s claimed family-based particular social group.
What it means going forward
The denial of the motion to reopen stands, leaving the removal order in effect.