In a significant move, the Republican-led House passed the Laken Riley Act, a strict immigration detention measure named after a Georgia nursing student who tragically lost her life in 2024. The bill, aimed at tougher enforcement against undocumented immigrants involved in nonviolent crimes, is set to become the first legislation signed into law by President Donald Trump in his new term.
What is the Laken Riley Act?
The Laken Riley Act is a new immigration measure requiring ICE to detain undocumented immigrants involved in crimes such as burglary, theft, shoplifting, and other nonviolent offenses. Named after Laken Riley, a young nursing student tragically murdered by an undocumented immigrant, the law aims to strengthen immigration enforcement and prevent similar tragedies.
Proposed by Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.), the act has sparked bipartisan support but also faced criticism for its strict approach and potential costs. It’s set to be the first bill signed into law by President Donald Trump in his current term.
What the Act Does
The legislation, spearheaded by Rep. Mike Collins (R-Ga.), mandates ICE to detain undocumented immigrants involved in offenses like burglary, theft, and shoplifting. Additional amendments broadened its scope, including crimes causing harm to others and assaults on law enforcement officers.
(ICE stands for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. It's a federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.)
The 2024 elections revealed shifting voter sentiment. Immigration ranked as a top concern, with Trump capturing significant support from Latino voters and a majority of Latino men. For Democrats, this bill underscores the challenge of balancing progressive ideals with voter demands for stricter border policies.
For Laken Riley’s family, the legislation is bittersweet. Her father, Jason Riley, expressed gratitude for lawmakers’ efforts, despite the pain of his daughter’s tragic death becoming a national issue. “We’re very happy with how things turned out,” he said, acknowledging the impact her story has had on shaping policy.
This is an extreme and reactive bill that will authorize the largest expansion of mandatory detention we have seen in decades, sweeping in children, Dreamers, parents of US-citizen children and other longtime members of their communities who even Ice thinks should not be detained,”
--Sarah Mehta, senior border policy counsel with the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), said last week as the bill made its way through Congress
As the first major immigration bill of Trump’s presidency, the Laken Riley Act marks a decisive shift in America’s approach to border enforcement and immigration policy. Whether this will unite or further divide the nation remains to be seen.
118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7511
To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to take into custody aliens who have been charged in the United States with theft, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 8, 2024
Received; read the first time
March 11, 2024
Read the second time and placed on the calendar
AN ACT
To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to take into custody aliens who have been charged in the United States with theft, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. Short title.
This Act may be cited as the “Laken Riley Act”.
SEC. 2. Findings; sense of Congress.
(a) Findings.—Congress finds that the Nation—
(1) mourns the devastating loss of Laken Riley and other victims of the Biden administration’s open borders policies;
(2) honors the life and memory of Laken Riley and other victims of the Biden administration’s open borders policies; and
(3) denounces the open-borders policies of President Joe Biden, “Border Czar” Vice President Kamala Harris, Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, and other Biden administration officials.
(b) Sense of Congress.—It is the sense of Congress that—
(1) the Biden administration should not have released Laken Riley’s alleged murderer into the United States;
(2) the Biden administration should have arrested and detained Laken Riley’s alleged murderer after he was charged with crimes in New York, New York, and Athens, Georgia;
(3) President Biden should publicly denounce his administration’s immigration policies that resulted in the murder of Laken Riley; and
(4) President Biden should prevent another murder like that of Laken Riley by ending the catch-and-release of illegal aliens, increasing immigration enforcement, detaining and removing criminal aliens, reinstating the Remain in Mexico policy, ending his abuse of parole authority, and securing the United States borders.
SEC. 3. Detention of certain aliens who commit theft.
Section 236(c) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1226(c)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1)—
(A) in subparagraph (C), by striking “or”;
(B) in subparagraph (D), by striking the comma at the end and inserting “, or”; and
(C) by inserting after subparagraph (D) the following:
“(E) (i) is inadmissible under paragraph (6)(A), (6)(C), or (7) of section 212(a), and
“(ii) is charged with, is arrested for, is convicted of, admits having committed, or admits committing acts which constitute the essential elements of any burglary, theft, larceny, or shoplifting offense,”;
(2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (4); and
(3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following:
“(2) DEFINITION.—For purposes of paragraph (1)(E), the terms ‘burglary’, ‘theft’, ‘larceny’, and ‘shoplifting’ have the meaning given such terms in the jurisdiction where the acts occurred.
“(3) DETAINER.—The Secretary of Homeland Security shall issue a detainer for an alien described in paragraph (1)
(E) and, if the alien is not otherwise detained by Federal, State, or local officials, shall effectively and expeditiously take custody of the alien.”.
SEC. 4. Enforcement by attorney general of a State.
(a) Inspection of applicants for admission.—Section 235(b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1225(b)) is amended—
(1) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
“(3) ENFORCEMENT BY ATTORNEY GENERAL OF A STATE.—The attorney general of a State, or other authorized State officer, alleging a violation of the detention and removal requirements under paragraphs (1) or
(2) that harms such State or its residents shall have standing to bring an action against the Secretary of Homeland Security on behalf of such State or the residents of such State in an appropriate district court of the United States to obtain appropriate injunctive relief. The court shall advance on the docket and expedite the disposition of a civil action filed under this paragraph to the greatest extent practicable. For purposes of this paragraph, a State or its residents shall be considered to have been harmed if the State or its residents experience harm, including financial harm in excess of $100.”.
(b) Apprehension and detention of aliens.—Section 236 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1226), as amended by this Act, is further amended—
(1) in subsection (e)—
(A) by striking “or release”; and
(B) by striking “grant, revocation, or denial” and insert “revocation or denial”; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
“(f) Enforcement by attorney general of a State.—The attorney general of a State, or other authorized State officer, alleging an action or decision by the Attorney General or Secretary of Homeland Security under this section to release any alien or grant bond or parole to any alien that harms such State or its residents shall have standing to bring an action against the Attorney General or Secretary of Homeland Security on behalf of such State or the residents of such State in an appropriate district court of the United States to obtain appropriate injunctive relief. The court shall advance on the docket and expedite the disposition of a civil action filed under this subsection to the greatest extent practicable. For purposes of this subsection, a State or its residents shall be considered to have been harmed if the State or its residents experience harm, including financial harm in excess of $100.”.
(c) Penalties.—Section 243 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1253) is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(e) Enforcement by attorney general of a State.—The attorney general of a State, or other authorized State officer, alleging a violation of the requirement to discontinue granting visas to citizens, subjects, nationals, and residents as described in subsection (d) that harms such State or its residents shall have standing to bring an action against the Secretary of State on behalf of such State or the residents of such State in an appropriate district court of the United States to obtain appropriate injunctive relief. The court shall advance on the docket and expedite the disposition of a civil action filed under this subsection to the greatest extent practicable. For purposes of this subsection, a State or its residents shall be considered to have been harmed if the State or its residents experience harm, including financial harm in excess of $100.”.
(d) Certain classes of aliens.—Section 212(d)(5) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(d)(5)) is amended—
(1) by striking “Attorney General” each place it appears and inserting “Secretary of Homeland Security”; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
“(C) The attorney general of a State, or other authorized State officer, alleging a violation of the limitation under subparagraph (A) that parole solely be granted on a case-by-case basis and solely for urgent humanitarian reasons or a significant public benefit, that harms such State or its residents shall have standing to bring an action against the Secretary of Homeland Security on behalf of such State or the residents of such State in an appropriate district court of the United States to obtain appropriate injunctive relief. The court shall advance on the docket and expedite the disposition of a civil action filed under this subparagraph to the greatest extent practicable. For purposes of this subparagraph, a State or its residents shall be considered to have been harmed if the State or its residents experience harm, including financial harm in excess of $100.”.
(e) Detention.—Section 241(a)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1231(a)(2)) is amended—
(1) by striking “During the removal period,” and inserting the following:
“(A) IN GENERAL.—During the removal period,”; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
“(B) ENFORCEMENT BY ATTORNEY GENERAL OF A STATE.—The attorney general of a State, or other authorized State officer, alleging a violation of the detention requirement under subparagraph (A) that harms such State or its residents shall have standing to bring an action against the Secretary of Homeland Security on behalf of such State or the residents of such State in an appropriate district court of the United States to obtain appropriate injunctive relief. The court shall advance on the docket and expedite the disposition of a civil action filed under this subparagraph to the greatest extent practicable. For purposes of this subparagraph, a State or its residents shall be considered to have been harmed if the State or its residents experience harm, including financial harm in excess of $100.”.
(f) Limit on injunctive relief.—Section 242(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1252(f)) is amended by adding at the end following:
“(3) CERTAIN ACTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not apply to an action brought pursuant to section 235(b)(3), subsections (e) or (f) of section 236, or section 241(a)(2)(B).”.
Passed the House of Representatives March 7, 2024.
Attest:
Kevin F. McCumber, https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/7511/text |
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