Hidalgo Escobar v. Bondi

NOT FOR PUBLICATION FILED UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS DEC 11 2025 MOLLY C. DWYER, CLERK U.S. COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE NINTH CIRCUIT ANTONIO HIDALGO ESCOBAR, No. 25-2391 Agency No. Petitioner, A209-209-225 v. MEMORANDUM* PAMELA BONDI, Attorney General, Respondent. On Petition for Review of an Order of the Board of Immigration Appeals Submitted December 8, 2025** Pasadena, California Before: M. SMITH, CHRISTEN, and FORREST, Circuit Judges. Antonio Hidalgo Escobar, a native and citizen of El Salvador, petitions for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (BIA) decision affirming an Immigration Judge’s (IJ) denial of his claims for asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (CAT). We deny the petition. * This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by Ninth Circuit Rule 36-3. ** The panel unanimously concludes this case is suitable for decision without oral argument. See Fed. R. App. P. 34(a)(2).  Issues not “specifically and distinctly” argued in the opening brief are generally deemed forfeited. Hernandez v. Garland, 47 F.4th 908, 916 (9th Cir. 2022) (as amended) (citation omitted). Here, Hidalgo Escobar failed to challenge in his Opening Brief the BIA’s findings that his asylum application was untimely, that he had not suffered past persecution, and that none of his proposed particular social groups was cognizable. He also failed to challenge the agency’s denial of CAT protection. Therefore, he forfeited his ability to challenge these dispositive issues. PETITION DENIED. 2 25-2391