(The Center Square) – The U.S. House on Wednesday agreed to Senate amendments to the Laken Riley Act and voted to send the deportation measure to President Donald Trump’s desk.
All 217 House Republicans were joined by 46 Democrats in approving the act, which is expected to be the first law Trump enacts in his second term. The final vote was 263 in favor, with 156 Democrats voting against it. One Republican was absent and did not vote.
The Laken Riley Act empowers the Department of Homeland Security to detain and deport any foreign nationals in the U.S. illegally who are accused of theft-related crimes, assaulting law enforcement officers, or committing acts that cause serious injury or death.
The U.S. Senate passed the Laken Riley Act 64-35 on Monday after making some amendments, as The Center Square previously reported.
The act is named after University of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, who murdered in February 2024 by Venezuelan national Jose Antonio Ibarra, who had a prior record of shoplifting in the U.S. but was released from law enforcement custody before committing the murder.
Many Democrats opposed the bill because they claimed it violates due process laws by applying mandatory detention statutes on people who are only charged with, and not convicted of, committing crimes.
U.S. immigration law already requires that migrants illegally entering the U.S. be detained and usually deported, even if they are not charged with additional crimes. ICE has not always been able to enforce the law in recent years due to certain immigration parole and sanctuary policies of the Biden administration, all of which Trump rescinded in executive orders he issued on his first day in office Monday.
