Perez-Mesa

MEMORANDUM **

Virna Cecilia Perez-Mesa (“Perez”) petitions for review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) denying her motion to reopen her deportation proceedings. We have jurisdiction under former Section 106(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1105a, as amended by Section 309(c)(4) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.

The BIA found that Perez failed to establish a prima facie case for withholding of deportation or asylum. To establish a prima facie case for withholding of deportation a petitioner must, inter alia, show a clear probability of persecution, and to establish a prima facie case for asylum, a petitioner must, inter alia, show a well-founded fear of persecution. See Kataria v. INS, 232 F.3d 1107, 1112-13 (discussing elements of asylum and withholding of removal claims). Denial of a motion to reopen deportation proceedings on the ground that the moving party has failed to establish a prima facie case for the relief sought is reviewed for an abuse of discretion. Dielmann v. INS, 34 F.3d 851, 852-53 (9th Cir.1994).

We conclude that the BIA did not abuse its discretion in determining that…