Members of the House GOP, alongside several dozen Democrats, recently approved the “Laken Riley Act,” which would require the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain illegal immigrants. The push for this legislation comes just weeks after the horrific death of 22-year-old Laken Riley, who was allegedly kidnapped and murdered by illegal alien Jose Antonio Ibarra.
Riley, who was a nursing student at Augusta University, was found dead in a wooded area near the University of Georgia campus in Athens, Georgia after she had embarked on a morning run. The next day, Ibarra, an illegal migrant from Venezuela, was arrested and charged with the murder.
According to reports, just months prior, Ibarra was issued a citation for shoplifting in Athens and then a bench warrant for failure to appear in court. Despite these infractions, the illegal immigrant was not detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
In light of this heartbreaking tragedy, Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) introduced the Laken Riley Act, which would force DHS to take illegal immigrants into custody if they are arrested, charged, or convicted for crimes such as burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting.
Before Joe Biden’s State of the Union Address, Rep. Collins urged his fellow members of the House to vote in favor of passing the Laken Riley Act, citing the desperate need for immigration reform in America. The Georgia Representative simultaneously called out the Biden administration for its role in allowing the ensuing illegal immigration crisis.
“Colleagues, I’m proud to have introduced the Laken Riley Act and urge you to join me in voting to pass this bill today. As Joe Biden comes to the Capitol tonight to defend his atrocious record. The house is voting to rebuke Him for the open border policies that led directly to Lincoln Riley’s murder,” he said.
“So enough is enough. The President and the DHS Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas have released millions of illegal aliens into this country and they refuse to secure our border and keep Americans safe. Unfortunately, the man who murdered Lakin was among those millions. Despite committing several crimes and multiple jurisdictions, he was allowed to roam free in America before brutally murdering Miss Riley on the campus of the University of Georgia On February the 22nd,” Collins continued.
She would be with us today if elected of leaders who took an oath to preserve our Constitution and faithfully execute our laws and kept their word, but they didn’t. While we can’t bring Lincoln back, we must now turn our focus to doing everything we can to prevent this from happening to another American,” Collins concluded.
House Speaker Mike Johnson echoed similar sentiment as Rep. Collins, illustrating a dire need to take legislative action in the interest of protecting innocent American from being victimized. “Innocent Americans from Laken Riley in Georgia to the 14-year-old r*pe victim of an illegal immigrant in our home state of Louisiana,” Speaker Johnson (R-LA) said before the legislation was passed. “They’ve all been victimized by those whom the Biden administration has released into our country. He is releasing them into your state.”
Watch footage of Rep. Collins discussing the Laken Riley Act below.
Note: The featured image is a screenshot from the embedded video.
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