The heart-wrenching tale of Laken Riley, it seems, is not quite over yet. Laken’s killer, Jose Ibarra, has been sentenced to life behind bars without the possibility of parole, and you would think that would to be the end of it. But a Georgia state senator, Republican Colton Moore, is calling on the Georgia Attorney General to intervene and call for the death penalty for Ibarra:
Jose Ibarra, a 26-year-old illegal immigrant who received taxpayer-funded flights, was found guilty Wednesday of stalking, raping and murdering Riley in February. The nursing student, out for an early morning run on the University of Georgia campus, fought her attacker for approximately 18 minutes but died from blunt force trauma. Ibarra bashed her skull with a rock after dragging her off a wooded trail, prosecutors said.
“I am officially calling on Attorney General Chris Carr to file an emergency motion to intervene and demand the death penalty for the murderer of Laken Riley,” state Sen. Colton Moore, a Republican, wrote on X. “District Attorney Deborah Gonzalez let her radical political agenda stand in the way of justice. By refusing to seek the death penalty, she denied Laken’s family, friends, and community the full measure of justice they deserve.”
The X post ends with:
Join me in calling on AG Chris Carr to demand the death penalty for Jose Ibarra.
There would appear to be enough evidence to preclude any risk of executing the wrong man. Ibarra’s DNA was found under Laken Riley’s fingernails, and Ibarra had scratches on his neck that appeared to have been made by Laken’s fingernails as she fought her attacker. The death penalty question then becomes one of the state of Georgia’s processes.
Previously on RedState: Laken Riley’s Family and Friends Give Heartbreaking Impact Statements; Judge Sentences Jose Ibarra
Riley Gaines Asks Whether Dems Will Now Take a Knee for Laken Riley
The Attorney General’s office is claiming that they have no authority to intercede, Fox News Digital reported (linked above):
A spokesperson for Carr’s office claimed the state attorney general does not have jurisdiction and, therefore, cannot intervene, but Moore argued otherwise.
“I can send you a copy of the Constitution of Georgia, section 3, paragraph 4. It clearly states that the attorney general has jurisdiction in any felony case,” Moore told Fox News Digital. “And the state, I mean the attorney general’s office, has intervened in cases before. You know, he is the chief law enforcement officer of our state. He should have known that the district attorney is one of the most liberal district attorneys in the country, that she wasn’t going to pursue the death penalty. Why even have capital punishment in our state?”
It’s hard to preclude an emotional response to a crime of this nature. Even so, this seems like a case that would warrant the extreme penalty in a state that has capital punishment as an option. The evidence against the killer was sound and convincing, and the nature of the crime, a brutal, unprovoked attack against an innocent young woman, would seem to merit the death penalty.
But there’s another factor that must be considered: Laken Riley’s family. As of the sentencing, they finally had some closure, and can now try to resume their lives. A death penalty proceeding, with all of the hearings and appeals that this entails, would just re-immerse them in the memories of that horrible day. Is it crueler to subject Laken Riley’s family to these constant reminders of their loss than it is for them to move on, knowing that Jose Ibarra is imprisoned for life with no hope of parole?
Jose Ibarra will never breathe free air again. He will spend the rest of his life looking at prison bars from the wrong side. That, also, is an appropriate punishment – and accepting that allows Laken Riley’s family and friends to move on without having the case rubbed in their faces, repeatedly, for months and years to come.
