Sandra Ramirez Mazariegos v. Eric Holder, Jr.

FILED
NOT FOR PUBLICATION MAR 13 2012
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
SANDRA VIOLETA RAMIREZ No. 09-70543
MAZARIEGOS,
Agency No. A070-956-004
Petitioner,
v. MEMORANDUM *
ERIC H. HOLDER, Jr., Attorney General,
Respondent.
On Petition for Review of an Order of the
Board of Immigration Appeals
Submitted March 6, 2012 **
Before: B. FLETCHER, REINHARDT, and TASHIMA, Circuit Judges.
Sandra Violeta Ramirez Mazariegos, a native and citizen of Guatemala,
petitions pro se for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) decision
denying her motion to reopen. We have jurisdiction under 8 U.S.C. §1252. We
*
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).
review for abuse of discretion the denial of a motion to reopen, and we review de
novo claims of ineffective assistance in immigration proceedings, Mohammed v.
Gonzales, 400 F.3d 785, 791-92 (9th Cir. 2005). We grant the petition for review
and remand.
The BIA abused its discretion when it denied Mazariegos’s motion to reopen
for failure to establish prejudice, because Mazariegos presented a plausible claim
for relief, and her notary’s failure to file a brief to the BIA may have affected the
outcome of her removal proceedings. See Singh v. Holder, 658 F.3d 879, 887 (9th
Cir. 2011).
PETITION FOR REVIEW GRANTED; REMANDED.
2 09-70543