ATHENS, Ga. — "He ripped away every beautiful memory we will be able to make with her again. This horrific individual robbed us all of our hopes and dreams for Laken," said Allison Phillips, the mother of a Georgia nursing student who was killed on UGA's campus as her killer learned his sentence on Wednesday.
Laken Riley's family's heartbreak and tears filled the courtroom as they urged the judge to give her convicted killer, Jose Ibarra, the maximum sentence for her murder.
Athens-Clarke County Judge Patrick Haggard found Ibarra guilty of all charges on Wednesday after hearing evidence in a bench trial that lasted four days.
Several of Riley's family and friends stepped up to the podium during victim impact statements, giving the judge a glimpse of the type of person she was and the unfathomable loss her family had to endure.
Riley's mother, Allison Phillips, spoke first. She choked back her tears as she asked the judge to sentence Ibarra to life without parole.
"She fought for her life and dignity and to save herself from being brutally raped. This sick, twisted and evil coward showed no regard for Laken or human life. We are asking the same be done to him," Allision Phillips added.
Watch her full statement to the judge below.
Her stepfather, John Phillips, spoke to the judge regarding the defense's opening statements.
"I heard in the opening statements from the defense that the loss of a life that was apparently full of promise is tragic. Laken's life was not apparently full of promise but instead was abundantly and exceptionally full of promise. She was a shining beacon in the life of everyone who knew her and ever came in contact with her," said her stepfather, John Phillips.
He shared Riley's last journal entry, in which she wrote a letter to her future husband.
"I'm working every day to become the best wife I can be. I am working through my current relationships to best prepare me for ours and our kids one day. I'm focusing on God and what he defines as a faithful Christian life, and so that I can best embody those characteristics," John Phillips said as he read Laken's entry aloud to the judge.
Lauren Phillips, Riley's sister, then went up to the podium, sharing the pain that Ibarra's actions left on her family.
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"Laken was and will forever be my favorite person. She was my biggest role model, and I looked up to her in every way. She brought the joy that I needed into my life and never failed to make me laugh. There was absolutely nothing that I wouldn't do for Laken and nothing that she wouldn't do for me," she said.
Her younger sister described that the most significant moments of her life felt empty without her sister.
"I had to walk the stage of my high school graduation without my biggest supporter and cheerleader in the crowd," she added. "I had to get accepted into my dream school, the University of Georgia, without my sister telling me how proud of me she is and finally getting, getting to live in the same town together again."
Laken's biological father, Jason Riley, also spoke to the judge on Wednesday.
"She was the light of my life, the person who brought joy to every room she entered, and now that light has been extinguished forever, taken from us in the most senseless and violent way imaginable. The pain I feel is unexplainable," he said.
He added that the thought of reimagining her last moments haunts him.
Laken's roommates and friends also spoke before the judge, painting a picture of who she was and the moments they spent with her.
Ibarra did not react as an interpreter relayed their words to him.
Judge Haggard ultimately sentenced Ibarra to life without the possibility of parole after finding him guilty of all counts. His charges are all below.
- Malice murder - guilty
- Felony murder - guilty
- Felony murder - guilty
- Felony murder - guilty
- Kidnapping with bodily injury - guilty
- Aggravated assault with intent to rape - guilty
- Aggravated battery - guilty
- Obstruction or hindering a person making emergency telephone call - guilty
- Tampering with evidence - guilty
- Peeping Tom - guilty
The bench trial ended after four days.
Before announcing his decision, the judge said that as he listened to the closing arguments, he wrote down on a legal pad two things the lawyers had said. He noted that prosecutor Sheila Ross called the evidence “overwhelming and powerful” and that defense attorney Kaitlyn Beck reminded him he was “required to set aside my emotions” in making his ruling.
Riley's killing added fuel to the national debate over immigration when federal authorities said Ibarra illegally entered the U.S. in 2022 and was allowed to stay in the country while he pursued his immigration case. But there was no mention of Ibarra's immigration status during the trial.