By Jose Ibarra was sentenced to life in prison without parole Wednesday after being convicted of murdering Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, concluding a case that intensified national debate over immigration policy and campus safety.
Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard found Ibarra, 26, guilty on all ten counts, including malice murder, felony murder, kidnapping with bodily injury, and attempted sexual assault, following a bench trial that the defendant chose over a jury proceeding. The Venezuelan national was charged in the February 22 killing that occurred on the University of Georgia campus.
During an emotional sentencing hearing, Riley’s family delivered heart-wrenching impact statements. “This sick, twisted and evil coward showed no regard for Laken or human life. We are asking that the same be done for him,” said Allyson Phillips, Riley’s mother, describing “no end to the pain, suffering and loss we have experienced.”
Lauren Phillips, Riley’s younger sister and a University of Georgia freshman, spoke of her ongoing trauma. “I cannot walk around my own college campus because I’m terrified of people like Jose Ibarra,” she testified, calling her sister her “favorite person” and “biggest role model.”
Prosecutors presented extensive evidence linking Ibarra to the crime, including DNA found under Riley’s fingernails and on a discarded jacket recovered from his apartment complex’s trash bin. Surveillance footage and witness testimony placed him in the area before the attack, with prosecutor Sheila Ross arguing he was “out prowling and hunting females.”
The prosecution contended Riley, 22, an Augusta University College of Nursing student, was killed while resisting a sexual assault attempt. Evidence showed her running clothes had been forcibly displaced, and the attack occurred after Ibarra allegedly attempted to enter another woman’s apartment.
Defense attorneys John Donnelly and Kaitlyn Beck challenged the circumstantial nature of the evidence and questioned DNA testing methods. They attempted to create reasonable doubt by suggesting Ibarra’s brother Diego as an alternative suspect, but failed to convince the judge.
The case gained national political significance when federal authorities revealed Ibarra had entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and remained while pursuing an immigration case. President-elect Donald Trump celebrated the verdict on social media, calling for stricter border security “so nothing like this can happen again!”
Riley’s murder occurred about 70 miles east of Atlanta at the Athens campus, where she was jogging when encountered by her attacker. The Augusta University nursing student’s death has sparked renewed debate about campus security measures and immigration enforcement policies.
The judge imposed maximum sentences on all counts, ensuring Ibarra will never be eligible for release, a decision prosecutors argued was necessary to provide comfort to Riley’s family.
