FILED
NOT FOR PUBLICATION OCT 25 2012
MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS U .S. C O U R T OF APPE ALS
FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT
MARIA SENAIDA SANTOS-MENDEZ, No. 08-73712
Petitioner, Agency No. A071-575-872
v.
MEMORANDUM *
ERIC H. HOLDER, Jr., Attorney General,
Respondent.
On Petition for Review of an Order of the
Board of Immigration Appeals
Argued and Submitted October 10, 2012
Pasadena, California
Before: FERNANDEZ and BERZON, Circuit Judges, and HERNANDEZ, District
Judge.**
Maria Senaida Santos-Mendez, a native and citizen of Guatemala, petitions
for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (“BIA”) order dismissing her
appeal from an immigration judge’s denial of her motion to reopen removal
*
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent
except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.
**
The Honorable Marco A. Hernandez, U.S. District Judge for the
District of Oregon, sitting by designation.
proceedings conducted in absentia. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 8 U.S.C.
§ 1252. We review for abuse of discretion the denial of a motion to reopen.
Celis-Castellano v. Ashcroft, 298 F.3d 888, 890 (9th Cir. 2002). We grant the
petition and remand for further proceedings.
The BIA abused its discretion in determining that Santos-Mendez did not
provide evidence of exceptional circumstances to excuse her failure to appear. See
Singh v. INS, 213 F.3d 1050, 1053 (9th Cir. 2000). Santos-Mendez submitted a
declaration stating that on the day of the hearing, she suffered from an extreme
headache, vomiting, dizziness, and weakness. There is evidence in the record that
the symptoms she suffered on that day were consistent with hydrocephalus—a
potentially life-threatening pathology. Santos-Mendez also provided evidence that
she was later admitted to the hospital, was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, and
underwent surgery to relieve the pressure on her brain. Her doctor wrote a letter
requesting that Santos-Mendez be excused from earlier appointments and
obligations, presumably because of the seriousness of her condition. Under these
particular facts, Santos-Mendez has provided evidence of exceptional
circumstances to excuse her failure to appear.
PETITION FOR REVIEW GRANTED; REMANDED.
2 08-73712