Judge sentences man to life without parole for murder of Laken Riley

Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard on Wednesday handed down the sentence of life without the possibility of parole for Jose Ibarra in an Athens, Ga. courtroom Wednesday afternoon. That decision came shortly after Haggard found Ibarra guilty of 10 charges related to the February murder of 22-year-old Laken Riley. Those charges included malice murder and felony murder.

Prosecutors on Tuesday rested their case against Ibarra while the defense concluded Wednesday morning. The case has drawn national attention after it was revealed that the suspect is an illegal alien.

What happened in the trial? During the trial, the prosecution called more than a dozen law enforcement officers and experts to testify. Prosecutors pointed to video footage, the presence of Riley and Ibarra’s DNA on a jacket discarded at Ibarra’s apartment complex, and the presence of his DNA under Riley’s fingernails as evidence that he committed the crime.

Ibarra’s defense called three witnesses and suggested that he may have been an accomplice rather than the killer. His attorney had planned to call his brother Diego Ibarra to testify who is in federal custody on charges of possessing a fraudulent green card. Diego Ibarra’s attorney advised him not to testify.

Ahead of the sentencing, Laken’s friends and family shared memories with her and asked the judge to give Ibarra the maximum sentence. Her parents, roommates, and sister shared that she was a dedicated nursing student with a strong faith in Christ.

Dig deeper: Read my report in The Sift about the beginning of the trial.