Marroquin-Orantes

MEMORANDUM **

Samuel Marroquin-Orantes, a native and citizen of Guatemala, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) summary affirmance of an immigration judge’s (“IJ”) denial of his application for asylum and withholding of deportation. Because the transitional rules apply, Kalaw v. INS, 133 F.3d 1147, 1150 (9th Cir.1997), we have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1105a(a). We review the denial of asylum and withholding of deportation for substantial evidence, Lata v. INS, 204 F.3d 1241, 1245 (9th Cir.2000), and will uphold the IJ’s decision unless the evidence compels a contrary conclusion. INS v. Elias-Zacarias, 502 U.S. 478, 483-484 , 112 S.Ct. 812 , 117 L.Ed.2d 38 (1992). We grant the petition for review.

The IJ’s determination that the evidence was insufficient to establish eligibility for asylum through a well-founded fear of future persecution is not supported by substantial evidence. In addition to offering generalized information on country conditions in Guatemala, Marroquin-Orantes testified that he was in personal and particular danger due to his family’s affiliation with the government. In the year before Marroquin-Orantes left Guatemala, two of…