Laken Riley's parents decline invite to State of the Union by Rep. Mike Collins
WASHINGTON - Georgia Rep. Mike Collins said he will be leaving his guest seat at the State of the Union vacant in honor of Laken Riley, the 22-year-old college student who was killed on the University of Georgia's campus.
Collins said he invited Riley's parents to President Joe Biden's SOTU address on Thursday, but they declined.
"As Joe Biden attempts to paint a rosy picture of the crime-ridden country he has created, he will look up at an empty seat that memorializes those we’ve lost because of his open border policies," he posted to X late Wednesday afternoon.
Politicians have been accused of using Riley's death to gain political points after learning her suspected killer, Jose Antonio Ibarra, entered the U.S. illegally in 2022.
Dueling immigration protests at Athens City Hall
On Tuesday, separate groups held two dueling protests outside an Athens-Clarke County Commission meeting. One side blamed Athens officials and the Biden administration for her death, accusing the entities of embracing lenient immigration policies. They believed Ibarra came to Athens because he knew he would be safe from ICE.
Dueling protests in Athens heighten tensions
Protesters held dueling rallies at Athens City Hall over immigration at the death of Augusta University nursing student Laken Riley. One group argued her murder was a result of Democrats' immigration policies. The other group accused politicians of using her death to score political points and spread anti-immigrant hate.
"We were expecting this to happen any day. We’ve been sitting on pins and needles. We know that we’ve got some bad people here and our mayor refuses to budge," said Athens resident Linda Krotzki.
The other side accused Republicans of politicizing Riley's death and stoking racism in an election year.
Laken Riley
Totally inappropriate. This should be a time of mourning. Showing respect to the family and to support each other," one protester said.
State of the Union 2024: Who's on the guest list?
President Joe Biden’s 2024 State of the Union audience will include a long list of invited guests, including the parents of a Wall Street Journal reporter who’s been jailed in Russia and a mother who sued the state of Texas for the right to have an abortion. Read more.
This story was reported from Atlanta.