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Parada Chavez v. Blanche — 9th Cir. (Oct 28, 2026)

No. 25-6336 Argued October 28, 2026 Published October 29, 2026

A Salvadoran man with past gang ties challenges the loss of protection against torture. Milton Parada Chavez says he joined MS-thirteen while in prison in two thousand nine, then left the gang in twenty thirteen and received death threats. An immigration judge ordered his removal but granted protection from being sent to El Salvador under the Convention Against Torture, or CAT. The government appealed, and the Board of Immigration Appeals took that protection away. He is now asking the Ninth Circuit to review that denial. CAT requires showing that torture is more likely than not, not simply that prison conditions are harsh. Deferral of removal prevents sending someone to the country where that standard is met; it does not grant lawful immigration status or necessarily mean release from detention. The regulations require all evidence relevant to future torture to be considered. Listen for how evidence about a country's prisons bears on this person's risk.

Parada Chavez v. Blanche (No. 25-6336) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, argued October 28, 2026.

Sources
Argument audio — official Ninth Circuit original, October 28, 2026. Both sides and rebuttal are complete; the file cuts off during the judge's administrative words after announcing submission. The original gap is preserved, not reconstructed:https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/media/2026/10/28/25-6336.mp3
Official recording archive:https://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/cases/streams-videos/archive?case=25-6336&hearingDate=2026-10-28
Official case-specific audio and date metadata:https://oldrbx80f5.execute-api.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/prod/media/25-6336?hearingDate=2026-10-28
Official Pasadena argument calendar and CAT-review synopsis:https://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/cases/calendar/calendar-week/?date=2026-10-28&loc=PAS
Independent factual and agency-procedure background — August 18, 2026 habeas findings and recommendations, pages 1–3; a separate detention proceeding, not the result of this appeal:https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCOURTS-caed-1_26-cv-05229/pdf/USCOURTS-caed-1_26-cv-05229-0.pdf
Reopening and prima facie eligibility — actual published Parada Calderon v. Blanche opinion, August 28, 2026, pages 11–12 and 24–26; a different petitioner:https://cdn.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2026/08/28/24-7433.pdf
CAT proof and consideration of all relevant evidence — 8 C.F.R. § 1208.16(c):https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/8/1208.16
Deferral does not confer lawful status or necessarily require release — 8 C.F.R. § 1208.17:https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/8/1208.17
Legal definition of torture — 8 C.F.R. § 1208.18(a):https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/8/1208.18
Current petition and appeal docket — older caption names Bondi:https://dockets.justia.com/docket/circuit-courts/ca9/25-6336

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