NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A Venezuelan man has been convicted of murder in the killing of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, a case that fueled the national debate over immigration during this year's presidential race.
Jose Ibarra was charged with murder and other crimes in Riley's February death, and the guilty verdict was reached on Wednesday by Athens-Clarke County Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard. Ibarra, 26, had waived his right to a jury trial, meaning Haggard alone heard and decided the case.
Haggard found Ibarra guilty of all 10 counts against him: one count of malice murder; three counts of felony murder; and one count each of kidnapping with bodily injury, aggravated assault with intent to rape, aggravated battery, obstructing an emergency call, evidence tampering and being a peeping Tom.
After reading the ruling, the judge said he was ready to proceed with sentencing immediately, but prosecutors asked for a break. The judge said he would proceed after an hour-long break.
Riley's parents, roommates and other friends and family cried as the verdict was read. Ibarra didn't visibly react.
The judge said that as he listened to the closing arguments, he wrote down on a legal pad two things the lawyers had said. He noted that prosecutor Sheila Ross called the evidence "overwhelming and powerful" and that defense attorney Kaitlyn Beck reminded him he was "required to set aside my emotions" in making his ruling.
The killing added fuel to the national debate over immigration when federal authorities said Ibarra illegally entered the U.S. in 2022 and was allowed to stay in the country while he pursued his immigration case.
The trial began Friday, and prosecutors called more than a dozen law enforcement officers, Riley's roommates and a woman who lived in the same apartment as Ibarra. Defense attorneys called a police officer, a jogger and one of Ibarra's neighbors on Tuesday and rested their case Wednesday morning.
Prosecutor Sheila Ross told the judge that Ibarra encountered Riley while she was running on the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22 and killed her during a struggle. Riley, 22, was a student at Augusta University College of Nursing, which also has a campus in Athens, about 70 miles (115 kilometers) east of Atlanta.
Defense attorney Dustin Kirby said in his opening that Riley's death was a tragedy and called the evidence in the case graphic and disturbing. But he said there was not sufficient evidence to prove that his client killed Riley.
Riley's parents, roommates and other friends and family packed the courtroom throughout the trial.
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There are still so many families in East Tennessee hurting following the floods from Hurricane Helene in September. That made this year's running of the Santa Train extra special for many families in the northeast part of the state. This special Santa Express has been making an annual run in part of Appalachia for over 80 years.
-Lelan Statom
