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asylum

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Ramos-Lopez v. Holder

Facts

Ramos was born and raised in Puerto Cortes, Honduras, where he faced threats from the MS-13 gang after refusing their recruitment attempts. He fled to Mexico in 2005 but was returned to Honduras, where he continued to receive threats from the gang. After entering the United States, he applied for asylum and withholding of removal, citing fear of persecution due to his refusal to join the gang.

Ramos was born and raised in Puerto Cortes, Honduras. Ramos' problems with the MS-13 began in January 2004, when he was sixteen years old. During his first encounter with the MS-13, a gang member approached him and a friend outside of Ramos' home. The MS-13 member told them that 'it was time to join,' took out a gun, and told the boys to come with him to rob some people.

Issue

Whether Ramos suffered or has a well-founded fear of persecution on account of a particular social group or political opinion.

The dispositive issue in this case is whether Ramos suffered or has a well-founded fear of persecution on account of a particular social group — young Honduran men who have been recruited by the MS-13, but who refuse to join — or political opinion.

Rule

The BIA's determination that a group is or is not a 'particular social group' is entitled to Chevron deference, and the persecution feared must be on account of one of the five protected grounds under the INA.

Applying the principles of deference established in Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc., we defer to the BIA's decision with respect to social group and deny the petition.

Analysis

The court applied the BIA's interpretation of 'particular social group' and found that young Honduran men who resisted gang recruitment did not meet the criteria for a cognizable social group. The court deferred to the BIA's reasoning that the group was too broad and lacked a shared political opinion, thus affirming the IJ's decision.

The BIA recently determined that young Salvadoran men who have resisted recruitment into the MS-13 do not constitute a particular social group and that the refusal to join the MS-13 does not amount to a political opinion.

Conclusion

The court denied the petition for review, agreeing with the BIA's conclusion that Ramos did not qualify for asylum or withholding of removal.

The court found that the BIA's determination that young Salvadoran men who have been recruited by gangs but refuse to join did not constitute a particular social group.

Who won?

The government prevailed in the case as the court upheld the BIA's decision to deny Ramos's asylum and withholding of removal applications.

The BIA's determinations that young Salvadoran men who had resisted recruitment into MS-13 did not constitute a particular social group and that the refusal to join MS-13 did not amount to a political opinion were entitled to Chevron deference.

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