(NewsNation) — The House of Representatives has passed the Laken Riley Act, which would require the Department of Homeland Security to lock up undocumented immigrants if they are charged with theft or similar crimes.
The act is named in honor of 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley, who was killed while jogging on the University of Georgia campus in Athens, Georgia. Her body was found and investigators say she was beaten to death.
The suspect in her case is Jose Ibarra, an immigrant from Venezuela who crossed into the U.S. illegally. Questions have surfaced wondering how Ibarra was free despite having previously been arrested.
NewsNation’s Brian Entin traveled to Oconee County, Georgia, where a county that borders Athens, Georgia.
Sheriff James Hale explained that for undocumented people who are arrested for misdemeanor charges like shoplifting, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is notified and the suspects are booked into jail. But Hale said ICE rarely shows up to pick up the detained people.
After 48 hours, local law enforcement are required to release the prisoners if ICE hasn’t taken custody of them.
“My understanding from our jail commander is if it’s a misdemeanor charge they have with us, ICE won’t come get them,” Hale said.
Hale told NewsNation the situation causes a lot of frustration for local officers.
“In something like the case with Laken Riley, you have that undocumented person and everybody assumes that law enforcement dropped the ball on that,” Hale said. “And in practicality, the local law enforcement didn’t really drop the ball on it.”
In Georgia, offenses like shoplifting are also non-fingerprintable offenses, where law enforcement are not allowed to take the suspect’s fingerprints. Without prints, they don’t know anything about the suspect’s history and may not know they are undocumented, something that could also have come into play in the Riley case.