Edgar Escobar-Alarcon v. Eric Holder, Jr.

MEMORANDUM

Edgar Morris Escobar-Alarcon, a native and citizen of El Salvador, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) order denying his motion to reopen deportation proceedings based on ineffective assistance of counsel. We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review for abuse of discretion the denial of a motion to reopen. Mohammed v. Gonzales, 400 F.3d 785, 791 (9th Cir.2005). We deny the petition for review.

The BIA did not abuse its discretion in denying Escobar-Alarcon’s motion to reopen as untimely, where he filed the motion more than four years after his deportation order became final, see 8 C.F.R. § 1008.2 (c)(2) (a motion to reopen must be filed within 90 days of a final order), and failed to establish the due diligence required to warrant equitable tolling of the motions deadline, see Avagyan v. Holder, 646 F.3d 672, 679 (9th Cir.2011) (equitable tolling is available to a petitioner who is prevented from timely filing a motion to reopen due to deception, fraud or error, as long as petitioner exercises due diligence in discovering such circumstances).

Because the timeliness determination is dispositive, we do not reach…