Kawundo.com
(NewsNation) — A judge ruled that prosecutors can use crucial evidence, including cell phone data and DNA samples, in the upcoming trial of Jose Ibarra, who is accused of killing college student Laken Riley.
Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard denied a motion from Ibarra’s defense team that sought to suppress evidence collected after Riley’s death on Feb. 22. The 22-year-old nursing student was killed while jogging on the university’s campus.
Defense attorneys had argued that police unlawfully entered Ibarra’s apartment and that subsequent search warrants lacked probable cause. The disputed evidence included two cell phones, DNA samples, social media records from Snapchat, TikTok, and Instagram, and Google location data.
In his ruling, Haggard determined that Ibarra was “lawfully detained and arrested” and that all search warrants were “valid and properly executed.” The judge found that police were justified in conducting a protective sweep of Ibarra’s apartment, where they discovered him the day after Riley’s death.
Police allege that Ibarra attacked Riley, causing blunt force trauma, and attempted to conceal her body in a secluded area off the jogging path. A grand jury has indicted him on 10 counts, including murder.
Jury selection is scheduled to begin Wednesday, with opening statements expected on Nov. 18. Prosecutors aim to conclude the trial before Thanksgiving.
The case has drawn widespread attention, partly due to Ibarra’s status as an undocumented immigrant from Venezuela who entered the U.S. in 2022 and had a history of minor criminal offenses before moving to Georgia.
Multiple law enforcement agencies, including the University of Georgia Police Department, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and FBI, collaborated on the investigation and executed search warrants on 10 electronic devices.
Who is Jose Ibarra?
NewsNation confirmed Ibarra entered the United States illegally in September 2022 in El Paso, Texas. He came from Venezuela and lived in New York before moving to Georgia.
Ibarra had previously been arrested in connection with other minor crimes, including shoplifting.
What happened to Laken Riley?
The investigation into Riley’s death began when a friend reported her missing on Feb. 22 after she didn’t return home from a run.
Investigators soon after discovered a body on the University of Georgia campus in a forested area. Emergency responders tried to revive Riley, a 22-year-old who had studied at Augusta University’s nursing college but determined she died before officers discovered her body.
The University of Georgia Police Department arrested Ibarra in connection to Riley’s death the following day.
Prosecutors allege Ibarra beat Riley with an object and dragged her body to a secluded area off the jogging path in an attempt to conceal her body.
Preliminary autopsy reports suggest Riley died of blunt force trauma to the head.
GOP support for Laken Riley Act
Some Republican senators have since urged lawmakers to pass the Laken Riley Act, which would require the Department of Homeland Security to detain immigrants in the country illegally for crimes such as theft, as part of an upcoming funding bill.
The legislation already passed the House, where it was sponsored by Rep. Mike Collins, R-Ga. The bill requires anyone who is arrested for theft, burglary or similar crimes and who is not legally in the country to be detained by DHS. It would also allow state attorneys general to sue federal officials for failing to enforce immigration policies.
The bill still faces challenges in the Senate.
Laken Riley’s father, Jason Riley, told NBC News he fears her death is being exploited as a political wedge.
NewsNation’s Katie Smith, Steph Whiteside and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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