Georgia GOP Cracks Down on Sanctuary Cities that Sheltered Laken Riley’s Murderer

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed recent legislation to restrict state and federal funding from local law enforcement agencies that refuse to report illegal aliens to the proper authorities

As Joe Biden opens the floodgates to millions of illegal aliens, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed legislation May 1 that will require state and local law enforcement agencies to work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to report and deport illegal aliens convicted of crimes. It’s a major step toward combating sanctuary cities in the Peach State and preventing illegal alien crimes.

The law, HB 1105, will allow the state to withhold state and federal funding from agencies that continue to operate as sanctuary cities, municipalities that limit or block cooperation with the government to defy immigration laws, as “lawlessness will find no safe haven in Georgia,” according to Kemp.

To no surprise, every Democrat lawmaker other than one voted against the necessary legislation to restore order in Georgia. Four Democrats did not vote.

HB 1105 follows the murder of 22-year-old University of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley, who was murdered by illegal alien and Venezuelan national Jose Antonio Ibarra in Athens-Clarke County, a sanctuary city.

Ibarra, who was helped into the country by Biden’s border agents, had previously been detained in New York before moving to Athens, and ultimately was paroled authorities decided due to detention center “spacing issues.” Riley’s murder shook Georgians, and Republican legislators responded by introducing the Laken Riley Act—a bill that provides ICE and state governments with more tools to fight illegal aliens.

(RELATED: Swing State Dems Oppose Laken Riley Act, Shielding Criminal Aliens)

Georgia originally outlawed sanctuary cities—localities where Democrats have ordered police not to cooperate with federal immigration authorities—in 2009 under SB 20. This latest legislation goes further, mandating that local police work with immigration authorities to remove illegal aliens from Georgia communities.

“Georgians have witnessed the disastrous impact lawlessness is having on communities across the country. Thanks to the work of our legislative partners in the General Assembly, we are able to once again send the message that such lawlessness will find no safe haven in Georgia,” Kemp said in a release.

Like many southern states, Georgia has struggled to keep up with an ever-growing illegal non-citizen population while also fighting the associated crime that follows. There are currently 339,000 illegal aliens in Georgia which cost the state an additional $2 billion due to a 51 percent increase in fentanyl activity, ER visits, and taxpayer burden, according to the Governor.

Kemp’s slew of signatures also included legislation that aims to increase punishment for violent criminals (SB 159), prevent inmates from receiving dangerous or prohibited items (SB 421), and enhance law enforcement recruitment (HB 130).

“I am proud to sign legislation that boosts our recruitment of law enforcement officers, makes our communities safer, and provides our judicial system with even tougher tools to bring violent offenders to justice,” Kemp said in the release.

Rising Crime

“Progressive” activists frequently distort the narrative regarding illegal aliens, asserting that there is a lack of evidence showing crimes committed by illegal aliens are increasing, but the numbers speak for themselves.

A Department of Justice (DOJ) report from 2021 revealed that despite comprising only 7 percent of the total population, illegal aliens accounted for 64 percent of all federal arrests in 2018. Border Patrol data since 2017 indicates that 68,793 illegal aliens have been convicted of crimes.

Among these, 5,873 were convicted of assault, battery, or domestic violence, 4,217 were charged with burglary, robbery, larceny, theft, or fraud, while 180 faced manslaughter charges, and 1,687 were convicted of sexual offenses.

Throughout former-President Donald Trump’s first term, only 11 illegal immigrants were convicted of murder, a figure sharply contrasted by the 169 convictions under the Biden Administration. This staggering 1,437 percent increase correlates directly with shortcomings in border security under President Joe Biden’s leadership.

During Trump’s first term, Border Patrol encountered nearly 2 million illegal aliens at the border. However, in just the initial three years of Biden’s term, this number has surged by an alarming 200 percent, reaching 5.9 million encounters —arguably due to illegal aliens knowing Biden will let them stay.

Since 2020, nearly 2.3 million illegal immigrants have been reported by the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR). This figure accounts for approximately 16 percent of the estimated 16.8 million illegal immigrants in the United States, according to the group.

Well done, Biden.

(RELATED: Border Patrol Has Seized Enough Fentanyl to Kill 6 Billion People)

Drug Trafficking

In 2021, nearly 107,000 Americans lost their lives to drug overdoses, with opioids, particularly fentanyl, emerging as the leading cause. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid 50 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine.

A substantial portion of the fentanyl in circulation originates from Mexico or China, often subsidized by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). Under President Biden, the southern border remains a primary entry point for this lethal drug, contributing to over 70 percent of overdose cases in 2022.

“We’ve called on the Biden Administration to declare fentanyl a Weapon of Mass Destruction.” said a coalition of 18 Republican attorneys general in 2022.

Despite the evident threat posed by illegal immigration and the influx of dangerous drugs, Biden and his allies prioritize arming illegal immigrants(not a joke) over safeguarding Americans, seemingly turning a blind eye to the ongoing crisis at the border.

In February, California reported a record seizure of 62,224 pounds of fentanyl through the efforts of the California National Guard’s counter-drug operations in 2023. This amount is sufficient to wipe out the global population twice over.

Since 2021, fentanyl seizures by the California National Guard have skyrocketed by 1,066 percent. Nationally, U.S. law enforcement has seen a 463 percent increase in the amount of fentanyl seized, rising from 4,800 pounds to 27,000 pounds.

The surge in drug busts and the mortality rate of overdoses highlights the need to intercept fentanyl before it enters the country, but Biden turns a blind eye, preferring to ramble about “gun violence” than safeguarding Americans from a full-blown invasion.

(BIDENVASION: 528 Illegal Alien Crimes In April & Counting)