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Indiana prosecutor uses Laken Riley Act for the first time to deport undocumented immigrant

By FOX Digital Staff
Published  February 19, 2025 5:01pm CST
Indiana
FOX 32 Chicago

The Brief

    • An Indiana prosecutor used the Laken Riley Act for the first time to deport an undocumented immigrant, marking a significant test of the new law.
    • The Laken Riley Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump, mandates the detention of immigrants charged with certain crimes and allows states to sue the federal government over immigration policies.

INDIANAPOLIS - An Indiana prosecutor used the Laken Riley Act for the first time to deport an undocumented immigrant, according to FOX59.

Authorities say Domingo Juan Juan, a Guatemalan citizen in the U.S. illegally, was driving without a license when he caused the death of a 27-year-old man. In response, officials applied the provisions of the Laken Riley Act to deport him. 

The undocumented immigrant couldn't be charged with homicide or murder because he wasn't speeding or driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol. So, officials turned to the Laken Riley Act instead.

Juan Jan was taken into custody on Feb. 12 by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

What is the 'Laken Riley Act?'

The backstory:

President Donald Trump signed the Laken Riley Act into law in his administration’s first piece of legislation since taking office.

The law is named for Laken Riley, a 22-year-old Georgia nursing student who went out for a run in February 2024 and was killed by Jose Antonio Ibarra, a Venezuelan national in the U.S. illegally. Ibarra was found guilty in November and sentenced to life without parole.

Under the Laken Riley Act, federal officials are required to detain any immigrant arrested or charged with crimes like theft or assaulting a police officer, or offenses that injure or kill someone. It further gives legal standing to state attorneys general to sue the U.S. government for harm caused by federal immigration decisions — potentially allowing the leaders of conservative states to help dictate immigration policy set by Washington.

Ibarra had been arrested for illegal entry in September 2022 near El Paso, Texas, amid an unprecedented surge in migration, and released to pursue his case in immigration court. Federal officials say he was arrested by New York police in August 2023 for child endangerment and released. Police say he was also suspected of theft in Georgia in October 2023 — all of which occurred before Riley's killing.

The law swiftly passed the Republican-controlled Congress with some Democratic support.

The Source: Information from this article came from previous FOX Digital coverage, FOX59 (linked) and from FOX 5 Atlanta. 

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