The trial for the man accused of killing Georgia nursing student Laken Riley begins

ATHENS, Ga. — Opening statements are expected Friday in the trial of the man accused of killing a nursing student in Georgia, in a case that fueled the immigration debate during the last election cycle.

Jose Ibarra is charged with murder and other crimes in the February slaying of Laken Hope Riley, whose body was found on the University of Georgia campus. Ibarra has waived his right to a jury trial, meaning his case will be heard and decided by Athens-Clarke County Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard.

Prosecutors are expected to try to prove that Ibarra struck the 22-year-old Augusta University College of Nursing student in the head, choked her and intended to sexually assault her. They opted not to seek the death penalty, but they said in a court filing that they planned to seek a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

The killing has fueled the national debate over immigration as federal authorities said Ibarra, a Venezuelan, entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and was allowed to stay there to continue his immigration case.

Republicans, including President-elect Donald Trump, blamed 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 the 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.

Ibarra is charged with one count of malice murder, three counts of murder and one count of kidnapping, aggravated assault, aggravated assault, obstructing an emergency telephone call, tampering with evidence and being a peeping tom.

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

Before the trial, lawyers tried unsuccessfully to move the proceedings from Athens, a city of about 130,000 in northeastern Georgia. They also wanted the charges against the peeping Tom to be tried separately and to exclude any evidence and expert testimony.