In a pivotal moment for the Trump administration, Congress passed the Laken Riley Act Wednesday, the first legislative win in the president's immigration agenda. Michigan Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib expressed her outrage at the bill in a statement on X.
"It is shameful that the first bill of the new Congress will put a target on the back of millions of our neighbors and increase the militarization of our neighborhoods," Tlaib wrote.
My statement on the Laken Riley Act: pic.twitter.com/Az1TWnGIox
— Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (@RepRashida) January 22, 2025
Signed into law after a 263-156 vote in the House and a 64-35 vote in the Senate, this controversial measure signals a marked shift in Washington's approach to immigration enforcement.
Named after a Georgia nursing student killed by an undocumented Venezuelan immigrant, the act allows federal authorities to detain and deport individuals without legal status for crimes as minor as shoplifting. An amendment added by the Senate extends the measure to include offenses causing serious harm or targeting law enforcement.
"What's dangerous about this bill is that it takes away some of the basic fundamental due process tenets of our legal system," Marielena Hincapié, a distinguished immigration visiting scholar at Cornell Law School, told NPR.
Passage of the Laken Riley Act reflects a shifting political landscape. While many Democrats dismissed the bill as partisan posturing last year, Trump's victory and focus on border security changed the status quo. Twelve Senate Democrats broke ranks to join their Republican colleagues in support of the legislation.
Some users took to X to express their dismay at the passing of the controversial bill. "Everyone in this photo died in a school shooting. Would be great if Republicans talked about them 1/10th as much as Laken Riley," one user wrote.
Everyone in this photo died in a school shooting. Would be great if republicans talked about them 1/10th as much as Laken Riley. pic.twitter.com/uUo4UDYs0Z
— Warren (@swd2) January 17, 2025
The act's namesake, Laken Riley, became a rallying cry for Republicans, who argue that stricter deportation laws might have prevented her death.
Riley's life ended last year near a University of Georgia trail she was known to run at. She was struck in the head with a rock several times and asphyxiated, according to court documents. José Ibarra, the man convicted of her murder, reportedly had a history of shoplifting offenses that went unaddressed by immigration authorities.
Although research from the National Institute of Justice suggests undocumented immigrants commit fewer crimes than U.S.-born individuals, the narrative tying immigration to public safety gained traction during Trump's campaign. He frequently referred to immigrants as criminals and made unfounded claims, including the baseless assertion that undocumented Haitian immigrants were eating pets.
Though soon to become law, the Laken Riley Act faces logistical and financial challenges. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) warned that enforcing the bill could cost $27 billion in its first year due to a lack of resources and detention space.
"If supplemental funding is not received... tens of thousands of noncitizens would need to be released by the end of the fiscal year, resulting in the potential release of public safety threats," ICE stated in a December memo.
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