Jin He-Chuan v. Loretta E. Lynch

MEMORANDUM

Jin He-Chuan, a native and citizen of China, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ order dismissing his appeal from an immigration judge’s decision denying his application for asylum and withholding of removal. We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review for substantial evidence the agency’s factual findings, Zehatye v. Gonzales, 453 F.3d 1182, 1184-85 (9th Cir. 2006), and we deny the petition for review.

He-Chuan contends Chinese officials persecuted him, and would arrest him upon his return, on account of his political activity in refusing the government’s demand for his parent’s land. Substantial evidence supports the agency’s determination that the government’s interest in He-Chuan derived from a legitimate prosecu-torial purpose after he kicked a government official and potentially vandalized government equipment. See Lin v. Holder, 610 F.3d 1093, 1097 (9th Cir. 2010) (“Ordinary prosecution for criminal activity is not persecution ‘on account of a protected ground.”); see also Parussimova v. Mukasey, 555 F.3d 734, 740-41 (9th Cir. 2009) (under the REAL ID Act, applicant must prove a protected ground is at least “one central reason”…