Martinez v. United States Attorney General

On September 25, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit issued a per curiam decision in Martinez v. U.S. Attorney General. Elder Martinez, a native of Honduras, petitioned for review of a Board of Immigration Appeals order denying his applications for asylum, withholding of removal, and protection under the Convention Against Torture. Martinez testified that he fled Honduras after receiving death threats for refusing to join a gang. The immigration judge and BIA concluded that he failed to demonstrate persecution on account of a protected ground, rejecting his proposed particular social group of “young Honduran males who refuse to join gangs.” The court upheld the agency’s determination, finding that substantial evidence supported the conclusion that the group lacked the requisite particularity and social distinction to qualify for asylum.

The petition for review was denied. The court upheld the BIA’s decision that Martinez failed to establish eligibility for asylum, withholding of removal, or CAT protection.

Whether the proposed particular social group of “young Honduran males who refuse to join gangs” met the legal standards of particularity and social distinction required for asylum and withholding of removal.

The case reinforced the stringent evidentiary requirements for asylum claims grounded in gang-related violence and exemplified the judicial reluctance to recognize broad social groups defined by resistance to criminal recruitment, affecting similarly situated Central American asylum seekers.