Legislation can change lives. Sometimes it can save them.
In May, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed legislation enforcing current state law when it comes to cracking down on sheriffs who do not report criminal illegal immigrants to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement by charging them with a misdemeanor.
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Jose Ibarra, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, was convicted last week of murdering Laken Riley, a student at Augusta University’s College of Nursing, near the University of Georgia campus where she was out for a run.
Lawmakers introduced the bill almost a month before Riley’s tragic death, showing that sheriffs not reporting criminal illegal aliens to ICE was already an issue in the state. Bill sponsor Rep. Jesse Petrea, R-Savannah, said the bill was drafted last year, and it was heard twice in committee before Riley’s tragic death.
If there had been earlier action on the legislation, Ibarra would have been detained and Riley might still be alive today.
This failure to act is particularly surprising considering the polls showed there are sheriffs that do not report criminal illegal immigrants to ICE, despite it being law for 18 years.
Last year, an informal poll by the Georgia Sheriffs’ Association showed that 19 sheriffs admitted they did not report criminal illegal immigrants to ICE. A poll taken after Riley’s death showed 111 sheriffs out of 159 said they report criminal illegal immigrants to ICE, the executive director of the GSA said. Forty-eight sheriffs did not respond to it.
In 2019, Georgia was home to 339,000 illegal immigrants, according to the Migration Policy.
Back in 2017, ICE operations targeting criminal illegal immigrants in Georgia, North and South Carolina resulted in the arrest of nearly 200 individuals. According to the ICE website, 190 of those arrested had prior criminal convictions in addition to their illegal immigrant status. Several of these individuals arrested included Mexican nationals wanted in their home country “on charges of homicide and attempted homicide,” cocaine distribution and sexual contact with a child.
So how does that relate to Ibarra?
A data visualization chart by the Heritage Foundation explained that Ibarra entered the United States unlawfully back in September 2022, and he was released into the country before going to New York City.
Almost a year later, in August 2023, Ibarra was charged in New York with reckless endangerment of a child for driving an unregistered and uninsured vehicle with a child inside. He was released from custody before ICE could issue a detainer against him.
In October 2023, Jose Ibarra and his brother, Diego Ibarra, were arrested for shoplifting from a Walmart in Athens, Georgia, and they were issued only a citation before they were released. Law enforcement officers failed to act further and did not report them to ICE. The brother was also arrested a month prior for driving under the influence of alcohol without a license.
Despite his extensive criminal history, he had not been detained. He roamed around free until he killed Riley. He even failed to report to ICE about his move from New York to Georgia last year.
Criminal illegal aliens unfairly overshadow the contributions of immigrants who come here legally, as I did. In fact, they put all illegal immigrants under suspicion.
Had the Georgia law requiring sheriffs to report criminal illegal immigrants to ICE been enforced sooner, Riley’s life might have been spared and Ibarra would be imprisoned. Hopefully, with enforcement of current law, more lives will be spared in the state of Georgia from criminal illegal immigrants.
Frances Floresca is a policy analyst and reporter living in Georgia. She has been featured in the Washington Examiner, the Daily Wire and the Augusta Press. Floresca has appeared on Fox News Radio, One America News Network, Real America’s Voice, WJBF and WRDW. Her work has been cited by members of Congress, and she worked in Washington, D.C., for conservative policy organizations.
About the Author
