Thewodros Wolie Birhanu, a/k/a Thewodros Birhanu v. MERRICK B. GARLAND, United States Attorney General

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE TENTH CIRCUIT
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THEWODROS WOLIE BIRHANU, a/k/a
Thewodros Birhanu,
Petitioner,
v.
MERRICK B. GARLAND, United States
Attorney General,
Respondent.
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DAVID BALUARTE; JASON CADE;
KRISTINA M. CAMPBELL; KATE
EVANS; JOANNE GOTTESMAN;
CESAR CUANCHTEMOC GARCIA
HERNANDEZ; MARY HOLPER;
ELIZABETH KEYES; JENNIFER LEE
KOH; FRANCES KREIMER; EVAN
TSEN LEE; PETER MARKOWITZ; M.
ISABEL MEDINA; HIROSHI
MOTOMURA; CARRIE L.
ROSENBAUM; ERICA B. SCHOMMER;
ANITA SINHA; DOUGLAS SMITH;
ELISSA STEGLICH; MAUREEN A.
SWEENEY; SUSANNAH VOLPE;
ANNA WELCH; AMERICAN
IMMIGRATION LAWYERS
ASSOCIATION; ROCKY MOUNTAIN
IMMIGRANT ADVOCACY NETWORK;
FLORENCE IMMIGRANT & REFUGEE
RIGHTS PROJECT; BROOKLYN
DEFENDER SERVICES; IMMIGRANT
DEFENDERS LAW CENTER; REFUGEE
AND IMMIGRANT CENTER FOR
EDUCATION AND LEGAL SERVICES;
No. 19-9599
(Petition for Review)
FILED
United States Court of Appeals
Tenth Circuit
August 2, 2022
Christopher M. Wolpert
Clerk of Court
Appellate Case: 19-9599 Document: 010110719190 Date Filed: 08/02/2022 Page: 1

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IMMIGRANT LEGAL DEFENSE; THE
CAPITAL AREA IMMIGRANTS
RIGHTS COALITION; NORTHWEST
IMMIGRANT RIGHTS PROJECT;
MARIPOSA LEGAL; IMMIGRATION
SERVICES & LEGAL ADVOCACY;
ALAMEDA PUBLIC DEFENDER;
CAPITAL AREA IMMIGRANTS’
RIGHTS COALITION,
Amici Curiae.
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ORDER AND JUDGMENT*
_________________________________
Before TYMKOVICH, Chief Judge, BRISCOE, and BACHARACH, Circuit Judges.
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Our ruling in this case, in which Judge Bacharach concurred and dissented, has
been vacated by the Supreme Court and the matter remanded for our consideration of
the Attorney General’s recent decision in Matter of B-Z-R-, 28 I&N Dec. 563 (A.G.
2022). The panel majority relied on Matter of G-G-S-, 26 I&N Dec. 339 (BIA 2014),
which has now been overruled by Matter of B-Z-R-. We in turn remand the matter to
the Board of Immigration Appeals to reconsider Mr. Birhanu’s eligibility for asylum
and withholding of removal in light of Matter of B-Z-R-, which permits immigration
authorities to determine in the first instance the relevance of mental health evidence
on a case-by-case basis.
* This order and judgment is not binding precedent, except under the doctrines
of law of the case, res judicata, and collateral estoppel. It may be cited, however, for
its persuasive value consistent with Fed. R. App. P. 32.1 and 10th Cir. R. 32.1.
Appellate Case: 19-9599 Document: 010110719190 Date Filed: 08/02/2022 Page: 2

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As is relevant here, the Board may consider Mr. Birhanu’s mental health in
determining whether he, “having been convicted by a final judgment of a particularly
serious crime, constitutes a danger to the community of the United States.” 8 U.S.C.
§ 1158(b)(2)(A)(ii); see id. § 1231(b)(3)(B)(ii).
Remanded for further consideration in light of Matter of B-Z-R-.
Entered for the Court
Mary Beck Briscoe
Circuit Judge
Appellate Case: 19-9599 Document: 010110719190 Date Filed: 08/02/2022 Page: 3

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