Woldemariam v. Ashcroft

UNPUBLISHED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT No. 03-1251 ELSA TEKLE WOLDEMARIAM, Petitioner, versus JOHN ASHCROFT, United States Attorney General, Respondent. On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals. (A78-612-529) Submitted: September 24, 2003 Decided: February 23, 2004 Before LUTTIG, GREGORY, and SHEDD, Circuit Judges. Petition denied by unpublished per curiam opinion. Aragaw Mehari, Washington, D.C., for Petitioner. Peter D. Keisler, Assistant Attorney General, Margaret J. Perry, Senior Litigation Counsel, Lisa A. Watts, Office of Immigration Litigation, UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, Washington, D.C., for Respondent. Unpublished opinions are not binding precedent in this circuit. See Local Rule 36(c). PER CURIAM: Elsa Tekle Woldemariam, a native and citizen of Ethiopia, petitions for review of an order of the Board of Immigration Appeals affirming the denial of asylum based on the reasoning of the Immigration Judge (IJ). We have reviewed the administrative record and find no error in the IJ’s conclusion that Woldemariam was firmly resettled in Italy and is thus ineligible for asylum. See 8 U.S.C. § 1252(b)(4)(B), (D) (2000); 8 U.S.C. § 1158(b)(2)(A)(vi) (2000); Mussie v. INS, 172 F.3d 329, 331-32 (4th Cir. 1999). As the firm resettlement bar applies here, Woldemariam’s contentions that she has a well-founded fear of future persecution and challenges to the IJ’s findings that the fear is not objectively reasonable are misplaced. We accordingly deny the petition for review. We dispense with oral argument because the facts and legal contentions are adequately presented in the materials before the court and argument would not aid the decisional process. PETITION DENIED - 2 -