Cite-Rodriguez
Cite-Rodriguez v. Gonzales
Opinion
Lead Opinion
Clifton, J.
MEMORANDUM **
Luis Manuel Cite Rodriguez (“Cite”) petitions for review of a summary affirmance by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) denying his petition for asylum. Because substantial evidence does not support the finding of the Immigration Judge (IJ) that Cite did not have a well-founded fear of persecution, and the IJ failed to analyze the reasonableness of internal relocation, we grant the petition and remand.
I. STANDARD OF REVIEW
The BIA affirmed without opinion, so we look to the decision of the IJ as the Attorney General’s final decision. Falcon Carriche v. Ashcroft, 350 F.3d 845, 849 (9th Cir.2003). 1 We review the IJ’s factual findings for substantial evidence, but questions of law regarding Cite’s statutory eligibility for relief de novo. Baballah v. *817 Ashcroft, 367 F.3d 1067, 1073 (9th Cir.2004).
II. DISCUSSION
A. Credibility
We must first ascertain if the IJ made a credibility finding regarding Cite. If not, we must take Cite’s testimony to be true. See Lopez-Alvarado v. Ashcroft, 381 F.3d 847, 851 (9th Cir.2004).
We cannot infer from an ambiguous opinion that an IJ made an adverse credibility determination. Hartooni v. INS, 21 F.3d 336, 342-44 (9th…