What is Laken Riley Act against ‘illegal aliens’? Are Indian immigrants at risk? Why is it criticised?

Laken Riley Act was the first law US President Donald Trump signed after assuming office on Monday, January 20. Before becoming an Act, it was known as the immigrant detention bill. The House gave its final approval to a bill on Wednesday. What is this Laken Riley Act all about? How will it impact illegal immigrants? Will it affect Indians residing in the US illegally? Here's all you need to know:

What is Laken Riley Act?

Under the Laken Riley Act, unauthorised immigrants accused of theft and violent crimes would be detained. One of the section refers to “Detention of certain aliens who commit theft.” Aliens here refers to non-US citizens or illegal immigrant.

As per the new law, federal officials would be required to detain any migrant arrested or charged with crimes like shoplifting or assaulting a police officer or crimes that injure or kill someone.

The bill also empowers state attorneys general to sue the federal government for harm caused by failures or decisions in immigration enforcement that harm states or people. That includes releasing migrants from custody or failing to detain migrants who have received deportation orders.

Why is this Act controversial?

The Act will likely to make it easier for federal immigration officials to detain and deport those without legal status who are charged with crimes — ranging from minor theft to assault on law enforcement.

According to the New York Times, the Laken Riley Act directs the authorities to deport immigrants who are accused — not yet convicted — of specific crimes, if they are in the country illegally.

Many fear that this Act would force immigration officers to indefinitely detain and deport non-citizens “who pose no public safety risk, without access to basic due process.”

“This bill does nothing to improve safety or fix our broken immigration system," said Nayna Gupta, policy director at the American Immigration Council.

Meanwhile, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez, a New York Democrat, was quoted by the Associated Press as saying, “In this bill, if a person is so much as accused of a crime, if someone wants to point a finger and accuse someone of shoplifting, they would be rounded up and put into a private detention camp and sent out for deportation without a day in court."

US Senator Patty Murray said the "harmful bill" may "throw our immigration system into chaos, punish legal immigrants while diverting resources from true threats, and undermine due process and civil liberties in America—all while costing taxpayers billions of dollars."

Will this Act impact Indian immigrants?

Indian migrants in the US, particularly those on temporary visas, undocumented workers, or individuals in violation of visa conditions, may face trouble under the new act.

Indian nationals involved in minor legal infractions are at the risk of deportation as under the new law, federal authorities would be required to detain any migrant arrested or charged with crimes like shoplifting.

Indian students, workers, and their families in the US on non-immigrant visas could also feel the ripple effects as the bill adds more pressure on the immigration system, the Economic Times reported.

Why it's called Laken Riley Act?

The Laken Riley Act is named after a slain Georgia nursing student whose name became a rallying cry during his White House campaign. Her case had become a centerpiece of the national immigration debate.

Laken Riley was a 22-year-old student at Augusta University College of Nursing. She was allegedly killed by one Jose Antonio Ibarra when she had gone out for a jog at the University of Georgia’s campus on February 22, 2024.

Ibarra waived his right to a jury trial and was found guilty in November of murder and other crimes by a judge, who alone heard and decided the case. He was sentenced to life without parole.

Ibarra had also been arrested for illegal entry in September 2022 near El Paso, Texas, amid an unprecedented surge in migration and released to pursue his case in immigration court, the Associated Press reported. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.