The House has voted to pass the Laken Riley Act, a critical piece of immigration law inspired by the tragic murder of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student who was murdered by an illegal immigrant in Georgia.
The vote came on Tuesday, with 216 Republicans voting in favor of the measure and 48 Democrats supporting it. The only opposition came from 159 Democrats who voted against the bill.
The bill would mandate the detention of migrants charged with theft-related crimes while residing in the country.
BREAKING: U.S. House of Representatives has passed The Laken Riley Act, which requires the detention of illegal aliens who commit theft related crimes with 159 Democrats voting against it. pic.twitter.com/vN261PELC3
— America (@america) January 7, 2025
The act would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) to include crimes such as burglary, theft, larceny, and shoplifting under its mandatory detention provisions and mandates that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) detain migrants charged with these offenses.
If passed, the bill would empower state attorneys general to “bring an action against the Secretary of Homeland Security…to obtain appropriate injunctive relief” if a migrant commits one of these crimes against a resident.
Riley was murdered on February 22, 2024, while jogging on the University of Georgia campus. Her body was later found in Oconee Forest Park and the cause of death was identified as blunt force trauma to the head and asphyxiation.
The authorities arrested 26-year-old José Antonio Ibarra, a Venezuelan national living in the United States illegally. He was accused of assaulting the student while trying to sexually assault her.
On November 20, 2024, a jury found Ibarra guilty of malice murder, felony murder, kidnapping with bodily injury, and aggravated assault with intent to rape. He was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
Riley’s murder garnered national attention amid an ongoing debate about immigration and the border crisis. It exacerbated frustrations about the Biden administration’s inability to stem the flow of illegal immigrants and asylum seekers crossing the southern border.
President-elect Donald Trump commented on the verdict in a post on X.
JUSTICE FOR LAKEN RILEY! The Illegal who killed our beloved Laken Riley was just found GUILTY on all counts for his horrific crimes. Although the pain and heartbreak will last forever, hopefully this can help bring some peace and closure to her wonderful family who fought for Justice, and to ensure that other families don’t have to go through what they have. We love you, Laken, and our hearts will always be with you. It is time to secure our Border, and remove these criminals and thugs from our Country, so nothing like this can happen again!
JUSTICE FOR LAKEN RILEY! The Illegal who killed our beloved Laken Riley was just found GUILTY on all counts for his horrific crimes. Although the pain and heartbreak will last forever, hopefully this can help bring some peace and closure to her wonderful family who fought for…
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 20, 2024
The Senate is expected to take up the bill on Friday, according to Politico. It would require 60 votes to pass in the upper chamber, which means at least eight Democrats would have to vote for the measure to pass it.
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