Fernandez
Fernandez v. Gonzales
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM **
Carlos Fernandez, a native and citizen of Peru, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) opinion which summarily affirmed the Immigration Judge’s (“IJ”) denial of his application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252 . Where, as here, the BIA affirms without an opinion, we review directly the IJ’s decision. See Falcon Carriche v. Ashcroft, 350 F.3d 845, 849 (9th Cir.2003). We review for substantial evidence and may reverse only if the evidence compels such a result, see INS v. Elias-Zacarias, 502 U.S. 478 , 481 n. 1, 112 S.Ct. 812 , 117 L.Ed.2d 38 (1992), and we deny the petition.
Substantial evidence supports the IJ’s finding that Fernandez failed to establish past persecution because he did not show that the Shining Path guerillas targeted him on account of a protected ground. See Sangha v. INS, 103 F.3d 1482, 1490-91 (9th Cir.1997). Accordingly, Fernandez’s asylum claim fads because he has not shown a nexus to a protected ground. See Tecun-Florian v. INS, 207 F.3d 1107, 1109-10 (9th Cir.2000).