Edwin Rocael Tercero Ramirez v. ERIC H. HOLDER, Jr., Attorney General

NOT FOR PUBLICATION
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
EDWIN ROCAEL TERCERO RAMIREZ,
Petitioner,
v.
ERIC H. HOLDER, Jr., Attorney General,
Respondent.
No. 11-71219
Agency No. A072-109-862
MEMORANDUM*
On Petition for Review of an Order of the
Board of Immigration Appeals
Argued and Submitted May 13, 2014
San Francisco, California
Before: D.W. NELSON, McKEOWN, and M. SMITH, Circuit Judges.
Edwin Rocael Tercero Ramirez (Ramirez), a native and citizen of
Guatemala, petitions for review of a decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals
(BIA) affirming the Immigration Judge’s denial of his applications for asylum and
withholding of removal. The BIA concluded that Ramirez failed to establish an
objectively reasonable fear of future persecution on account of a protected ground.
FILED
MAY 19 2014
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
* This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.

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Because the parties are familiar with the facts and procedural history of this case,
we repeat only those facts necessary to resolve the issues raised on appeal. We
deny the petition for review.
Even assuming “family members of journalists” qualifies as a particular
social group, substantial evidence supports the BIA’s conclusion that Ramirez
failed to establish the requisite nexus between the persecution feared and a
protected ground. See Li v. Holder, 559 F.3d 1096, 1102 (9th Cir. 2009); Navas v.
INS, 217 F.3d 646, 654 (9th Cir. 2000). The testimony of Ramirez’s brother,
Domingo Tercero (Tercero), and the reasonable inferences taken from it, see
Ornelas-Chavez v. Gonzales, 458 F.3d 1052, 1056 (9th Cir. 2006); Lopez-Alvarado
v. Ashcroft, 381 F.3d 847, 851 (9th Cir. 2004), do not compel the conclusion that
Ramirez will be harmed on account of his membership in a group consisting of
family members of journalists or on account of imputed political opinion. More
specifically, the BIA did not err in finding that the evidence did not establish that
Tercero’s mother or any other family member was harmed on account of Tercero’s
work as a journalist. The BIA also did not err in concluding that there is
insufficient evidence that Ramirez is at risk of harm due to his relationship to
Tercero.
PETITION DENIED.
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