Bringas-Rodriguez v. Sessions

Under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, the attorney general could withhold the removal of applicants in the United States who qualified as refugees. A refugee was defined as someone unable or unwilling to return to his home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution on the basis of race, religion, nationality, or membership in a political or social group. Carlos Alberto Bringas-Rodriguez (plaintiff), a gay man, grew up in Mexico. Bringas-Rodriguez suffered horrible physical and sexual abuse from his family members and neighbors. These abuses included a rape by Bringas-Rodriguez’s uncle and regular beatings from his father. Fearing retribution, Bringas-Rodriguez never reported the abuse to his mother, his teachers, or the police. Bringas-Rodriguez fled Mexico for the United States in 2004 at age 14. Bringas-Rodriguez entered the country without inspection and began to live with his mother. In August 2010, Bringas-Rodriguez was convicted of contributing to the delinquency of a minor after hosting a small party at which a minor became intoxicated. During his 90-day jail sentence, Bringas-Rodriguez finally told his mother and a doctor about the abuse he had suffered. The Department of Homeland Security issued Bringas-Rodriguez a notice to appear after his release. Shortly after, Bringas-Rodriguez applied for asylum, withholding of removal, and Convention against Torture protection. In his application, Bringas-Rodriguez mentioned his past abuse and his fear that he would endure future persecution as a gay man in Mexico. Bringas-Rodriguez cited the experiences of his gay friends and submitted newspaper articles and reports detailing violence against homosexuals in Mexico. The Board of Immigration Appeals rejected Bringas-Rodriguez’s application, finding that he had failed to establish past persecution and to show that the Mexican government was unable or unwilling to control private individuals responsible for the persecution. A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit affirmed. En banc review was granted.