Iskenderian v. Holder ( 2010 )

FILED
NOT FOR PUBLICATION JAN 20 2010
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
RITA ISKENDERIAN; ARMEN No. 04-76516
EJDARYAN; et al.,
Agency Nos. A078-105-913
Petitioners, A078-105-885
A078-105-957
v.
ERIC H. HOLDER Jr., Attorney General, MEMORANDUM *
Respondent.
On Petition for Review of an Order of the
Board of Immigration Appeals
Submitted January 11, 2010 **
Before: BEEZER, TROTT, and BYBEE, Circuit Judges.
Rita Iskenderian and her husband and daughter, all natives and citizens of
Armenia, petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ order
dismissing their appeal from an immigration judge’s decision denying their
*
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.
**
The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision
without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).
KV/Research
application for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention
Against Torture (“CAT”). We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. § 1252. We
review for substantial evidence, Li v. Ashcroft, 378 F.3d 959, 962 (9th Cir. 2004) ,
and we deny the petition for review.
Substantial evidence supports the agency’s adverse credibility determination
because Iskenderian’s testimony was inconsistent with her asylum application and
her asylum interview statements regarding whether Armenian police raped her
during an arrest in March 1998, see id. at 962-63, 964 (adverse credibility
determination is supported where at least one of the identified grounds is supported
by substantial evidence and goes to the heart of the claim), and her explanation
does not compel a contrary conclusion, see Lata v. INS, 204 F.3d 1241, 1245 (9th
Cir. 2000). In the absence of credible testimony, Iskenderian’s asylum and
withholding of removal claims fail. See Farah v. Ashcroft, 348 F.3d 1153, 1156
(9th Cir. 2003).
Because Iskenderian’s CAT claim is based on testimony the IJ found not
credible, and there is no evidence in the record that compels a finding that it is
more likely than not she would be tortured if returned to Armenia, her CAT claim
fails. See id. at 1156-57.
PETITION FOR REVIEW DENIED.
KV/Research 2 04-76516