Gaspar Mendez v. Gonzales

MEMORANDUM **

Miguel Fernando Gaspar Mendez, a native and citizen of Guatemala, petitions pro se for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ order summarily affirming an Immigration Judge’s (“LJ”) order denying his applications for asylum and withholding of removal. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . We review the IJ’s decision for substantial evidence, Ramos-Vas *627 quez v. INS, 57 F.3d 857, 861 (9th Cir.1995), and we deny the petition for review.

Gaspar Mendez contends that the IJ unfairly found him not to be credible. Even assuming his testimony is credible, substantial evidence supports the IJ’s conclusion that Gaspar Mendez did not meet the burden of proof for past persecution or establish a well-founded fear of future persecution in Guatemala. The documents submitted as evidence support the IJ’s determination that crime, not political turmoil, is currently the major cause of violence in Guatemala, as the armed struggle between the guerillas and the government has largely ended. Additionally, Gaspar Mendez renewed his passport after coming to the United States and his parents and nine siblings continue to reside unharmed in Guatemala. Under these…