Man accused of killing nursing student Laken Riley on college campus waives jury trial

ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — A man waived his right to a jury trial Tuesday in the killing of a nursing student in Georgia, a case that became a flashpoint in the national immigration debate.

Jose Ibarra was charged in the February murder of Laken Hope Riley, whose body was found on the University of Georgia campus. In a 10-count indictment, Ibarra was accused of hitting the 22-year-old Augusta University College of Nursing student in the head, choking her and planning to sexually assault her.

Prosecutor Sheila Ross told the judge that Ibarra’s attorneys had contacted her last week to say he wanted to waive his right to a jury trial, meaning it would be heard alone by the judge. Ibarra’s attorney Kaitlyn Beck then presented the judge with a signed waiver.

After questioning Ibarra with the help of a translator, Athens-Clarke County Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard said he found Ibarra had made the decision to voluntarily forego a jury trial.

Prosecutors had opted not to seek the death penalty but said in a court filing that they planned to seek a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Jury selection was expected to begin Wednesday, but attorneys asked for a delay because they had not had enough time for an expert to analyze DNA evidence.

Shortly after his arrest, federal immigration officials said Ibarra, a Venezuelan citizen, had entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and was allowed to stay to continue his immigration case.

Immigration was already a major issue in the presidential campaign, and Republicans seized on Riley’s killing, with now President-elect Donald Trump blaming Democratic President Joe Biden’s border policies for her death.

While speaking about border security during his State of the Union address just weeks after Riley’s killing, Biden mentioned Riley by name.

Riley’s body was found near running trails on February 22 after a friend told police she had not returned from a morning run. Police have said her killing appeared to be a random attack. Ibarra was arrested the next day and is being held in the Athens-Clarke County Jail without bond.

The indictment charged Ibarra with one count of malice murder, three counts of murder and one count of kidnapping, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, obstructing an emergency telephone call, tampering with evidence and peeping on Tom.

The indictment stated that on the day of Riley’s murder, Ibarra peered through the window of a university apartment building, which is the basis for the peeping tom charge.

Defense attorneys had tried unsuccessfully to have the trial moved out of Athens, have the charges against Peeping Tom heard separately and exclude some evidence and expert testimony.

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