Zarate-Alcantara

MEMORANDUM ***

Arcenio Zarate-Alcantara (“Zarate”) seeks review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) dismissing his appeal from the decision of the Immigration Judge denying his motion to reopen to rescind a deportation order entered in absentia. Zarate bases his petition on both lack of notice and exceptional circumstances.

Zarate claims that he did not receive adequate notice of the deportation hearing date because the prior hearing was conducted in English, and the written notice was provided to attorney Camille Cook, who was making a “one-time special appearance” on Zarate’s behalf, rather than to attorney Robert Perez, whom Zarate claims was his retained counsel. However, Zarate did not raise the issue of language difficulties before the BIA, and he does not assert here that he did not understand the proceedings, but only that he “was not likely to have understood.” Were we able to consider this claim, such an assertion would be insufficient to carry Zarate’s burden of proving lack of notice. See 8 U.S.C. § 1252b(c)(3) (1995).

Further, Zarate concedes that attorney Cook was provided with written notice of the hearing date in his presence, and was…