In the courtroom in downtown Athens, Georgia, just two blocks from the University of Georgia campus, Jose Ibarra 22-year-old man on trial for murder Laken RileyA former UGA student who transferred to the nursing program at Augusta University's Athens campus.
At the end of February, Riley was attacked During a morning walk on a trail near the inner fields of the University of Georgia. As the investigation and trial unfolded, members of the Athens community struggled with their sense of safety.
“Just because we're on campus doesn't mean the bad parts of the world can't get in,” said fourth-year student Alison Mawan. “She did everything right. She told friends where she was going, she walked along a popular path during the day. Her tracking location was on. She even managed to call for help, but still it Wasn't enough.”
The case made national headlines when authorities arrested Ibarra, an undocumented Venezuelan immigrant who entered the country two years ago, and charged him with Riley's murder. Midway through the election cycle, his death became an issue in the immigration debate with former President Donald Trump and his supporters. raise it up More President Biden at rallies answer Yelling about it in his State of the Union address.
“In an instant, the entire nation's eyes are on us,” Maughan said. “Now you can't mention Laken Riley without thinking about undocumented immigrants and illegal immigration.”
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Students have organized vigils and prayer groups, and participated in protests, rallies, and races in memory of Riley. A GoFundMe set up by his family has collected more than $250,000 in donations that will go to Laken Hope FoundationAn organization that would promote “safety awareness for women, support and tuition assistance for nursing students, and health care for children…all causes about which Lecan felt strongly.”
For many students, Athens no longer feels like the safe haven they once thought. To ease fears, University of Georgia President Jere Morehead announced a $7.3 million campus security initiative. The campus has been reinforced by an expanded University Police force, hundreds of additional lights and security cameras, and multiple emergency call stations and license plate readers.
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In past months, “the expectation was that we would increase those efforts,” said P. Daniel Silk, the University of Georgia's associate vice president for public safety. “We want to be safer and more secure tomorrow than we were yesterday.”
While the Athens community waits for justice to be served, students are bustling around campus, walking under newly installed street lights, going through additional emergency call systems and relaxing under the heightened security presence. Classes may go on, but the campus and community have changed.
“No matter what the decision is, unfortunately we still lost a student. We still lost a life and nothing is going to change that,” Maughan said. “Things will never be 100 percent the same for any of us here.”