AAO Extreme Hardship Victory; Violence In Mexico A Factor

"According to Mr. Y, he does not know much about Mexico and when he has traveled there, he has both witnessed and personally experienced violence. The AAO takes administrative notice that the U.S. Department of State urges U.S. citizens to defer non-essential travel to parts of Mexico, including Sinaloa, where the applicant and Mr. Y contend they would live, due to ongoing violence and persistent security concerns. The U.S. Department of State recognizes that one of Mexico's most powerful transnational criminal organizations (TCOs) is based. in the state of Sinaloa. U.S. Department of State, Travel Warning, Mexico, dated April 22, 2011. Considering all of these factors cumulatively, the AAO finds that the hardship Mr. Y would experience if he had to move to Mexico is extreme, going well beyond those hardships ordinarily associated with inadmissibility or exclusion. The AAO therefore finds that the evidence of hardship, considered in the aggregate and in light of the Cervantes-Gonzalez factors cited above, supports a finding that Mr. Y faces extreme hardship if the applicant is refused admission."  Matter of X-, Aug. 10, 2011. [Hats off to Philip Hornik!]