Case Explained: BUSTOS-ALONSO V. BLANCHE

Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Filed: 2026-08-05 The ninth-circuit granted the petitions regarding Rafael Bustos-Alonso’s applications for asylum and withholding of removal, dismissed the petition challenging the denial of Convention Against Torture (CAT) relief, and denied the petitions concerning motions to reopen or reconsider cancellation of removal. The court held that while the petitioner was previously ineligible for asylum due to a conviction under California Penal Code section 245(a), the en banc decision in *United States v. Gomez* overruled the precedent categorically barring such convictions, and a subsequent state court vacated the convictions under California Penal Code section 1473.7(a)(1) for procedural defects, meaning the petitioner no longer stands convicted of an aggravated felony or particularly serious crime for immigration purposes. Additionally, the court found that the petitioner did not forfeit his challenge to the withholding of removal ruling because his pro se filings sufficiently put the Board of Immigration Appeals on notice regarding mental health factors, and exhaustion was excused as futile given the binding precedent at the time. Consequently, the agency must reconsider the asylum and withholding of removal applications on remand. Regarding CAT relief, the court affirmed the denial based on substantial evidence that the petitioner failed to demonstrate a likelihood of future torture given the age of the threat and the possibility of safe relocation within Mexico. The petitions regarding cancellation of removal were denied because the BIA did not abuse its discretion in rejecting motions to reopen due to procedural failures, such as missing required application forms, and in finding the petitioner failed to establish the “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” required by statute for his daughter’s potential deportation or relocation. Do It For The Case Law is a news reporting service. Nothing in this episode constitutes legal advice.