Today, Congressman Ken Calvert (CA-41) cast his vote in favor of the Laken Riley Act, H.R. 29, which was passed by the House of Representatives with a majority vote of 264 to 159. The legislation aims to protect Americans from criminal illegal immigrants by mandating that the Department of Homeland Security detain those charged with, arrested for, or convicted of theft offenses until they can be deported.
“The murder of Laken Riley, and countless others like her, could have been prevented if we enforced our immigration and public safety laws,” stated Rep. Calvert. “I voted for the Laken Riley Act to protect Americans from violent criminals and those who have demonstrated time and time again that they cannot abide by our laws. We are a nation that welcomes immigrants who follow the law and come here to better their lives. We are not a nation that blindly welcomes criminals into our communities.”
The act is named after Laken Riley, a nursing student from Georgia who was murdered on February 22, 2024. Her killer, Jose Antonio Ibarra, had entered the U.S. illegally and had been arrested twice before committing the crime. Ibarra was convicted last year on multiple charges including murder and kidnapping with bodily injury.
Ibarra's entry into Texas occurred on September 8, 2022, where he was paroled and released due to what has been described as an abuse of immigration parole statute requirements by the Biden Administration. He was later arrested in New York but remained free as ICE did not detain him. In Georgia, he faced arrest for shoplifting but again avoided detention by ICE.