HERNANDEZ-ORTIZ v. GONZALES
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals today released an opinion in HERNANDEZ-ORTIZ v. GONZALES, No. 04-71509, an administrative appeal. The panel consisted of John T. Noonan, Jay S. Bybee, and Milan D. Smith, Jr., Circuit Judges.
NOONAN, Circuit Judge:
Guillermo Hernandez-Ortiz (Guillermo) and his younger brother, Florentino Hernandez-Ortiz (Florentino), petition for review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals (the Board) affirming without opinion a decision of an Immigration Judge (the IJ) denying their requests for asylum and withholding of removal. As the Board’s affirmance was summary, we review the decision of the IJ. Acosta v. Gonzales, 439 F.3d 550, 552 (9th Cir. 2006). Holding that the IJ erred as a matter of law, we grant the petition and remand. FACTS AND PROCEEDINGS Guillermo and Florentino are natives of Guatemala and are of Mayan descent. They entered the United States from Mexico without documentation in 1991. Florentino applied for asylum on December 5, 1997, Guillermo on February 18, 1998. In 2000, the IJ consolidated their petitions. Evidentiary hearings followed on July 12, 2000, on November 30, 2001, and on September 12, 2002. The brothers submitted numerous documents on country conditions in Guatemala, including the report from the commission established by the Oslo Accord of June 23, 1994 (Comision para el Esclarecimiento Historico or CEH). These background documents were accepted into evidence. The brothers testified to the following events:
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