Senate Passes Amended Version Of The Laken Riley Act

On Monday, the GOP-led Senate passed an amended version of the “Laken Riley Act,” a bill that would require federal officials to arrest non-citizens who are charged with crimes in the United States.

The legislation was approved by a 65-34 vote in the upper chamber. Twelve Democrats joined with Republicans to vote in favor of the bill, including Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) and others from battleground states.

Senate approves Laken Riley immigration bill as amended. Now goes to the House.

12 Dems YES: Cortez Masto NV, Fetterman PA, Gallego AZ, Hassan NH, Kelly AZ, Ossoff GA, Peters MI, Rosen NV, Shaheen NH, Slotkin MI, Warner VA, and Warnock GA. pic.twitter.com/FmtK5DgkUm

— Jamie Dupree (@jamiedupree) January 20, 2025

Now the legislation heads to the Republican-controlled House, which passed a clean version of the bill earlier this month. If the lower chamber approves the bill in its amended form, the measure can be sent to the White House.

“This critical legislation will strengthen public safety and protect our communities. I’m looking forward to President Trump signing this life-saving legislation,” Sen. Katie Britt (R-AL) said in a post to X.

As originally written, the bill would direct the secretary of Homeland Security to detain illegal immigrants charged with, convicted of, or who admits to theft-related crimes.

One amendment from Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) that passed added “the assault of a law enforcement officer offense, or any crime that results in death or serious bodily injury to another person” to the list.

The Senate also broadened the scope of the bill with “Sarah’s Law,” a provision sought by Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) and named after an Iowan killed by an illegal immigrant nine years ago.

“It requires detention and bars bail [for] illegal immigrants who have been accused of killing someone, such as via drunk driving,” Fox News reporter Chad Pergam said of “Sarah’s Law” in a post to X.

Another part of the bill allows states to sue federal officials for “injunctive relief” if certain immigration actions or policies harm their citizens. The Senate rejected a Democrat amendment that sought to rein in this section.

The bill was named after Laken Riley, a 22-year-old Georgia nursing student who was killed last year. A 26-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela, Jose Ibarra, was convicted of murdering Riley and sentenced to life in prison.

Earlier this month, Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) reintroduced the “Laken Riley Act” for the new Congress after it passed the House and didn’t get a Senate vote last year, when the upper chamber was controlled by the Democrats.