On Wednesday, the House of Representatives approved the Laken Riley Act, endorsing changes made by the Senate to a piece of legislation designed to broaden the federal government’s authority to detain immigrants in the country illegally.
The legislation passed the House with a 263 to 156 vote. It will now be sent to President Trump, where it is anticipated to be the first bill he signs during his new term.
Named after Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student who was tragically murdered by an undocumented Venezuelan immigrant last year, the bill seeks to expand mandatory detention.
It includes noncitizens who have been convicted of or charged with crimes such as burglary, larceny, theft, or shoplifting, as well as those who admit to committing these offenses.
The legislation also introduces a provision that allows state attorneys general to sue the federal government if they believe their states or residents have been harmed by immigration policies.
“This legislation would simply say that we have to detain some of the worst people that are here illegally,” Republican Rep. Chip Roy of Texas remarked on the House floor on Wednesday.
During the floor debate, some Democrats focused on President Trump’s pardons of individuals convicted for their roles in the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. They criticized Republicans who supported those pardons for pushing this bill, arguing it was hypocritical.
Speaker Mike Johnson
“These are the people who want you to believe, want us to believe, that they are keeping violent criminals off the streets,” said Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York.
Earlier this month, the House had already passed an earlier version of the bill in a 264 to 159 vote, with 48 Democrats joining Republicans in support. The bill then moved to the Senate, where an amended version was passed with bipartisan support on Monday.
The changes made by the Senate broadened the scope of the bill to include assaulting a law enforcement officer and crimes that lead to the death or serious injury of another person as criteria for mandatory detention.
Democrats had hoped to make further amendments, such as protecting DACA recipients and removing the provision that empowers state attorneys general. Despite these concerns, 12 Senate Democrats ultimately supported the legislation, helping it to pass.
The measure had previously stalled in the Democratic-controlled Senate last year when the House first approved it. However, after the 2024 election, where immigration emerged as a key issue, Democrats seemed more inclined to engage with the bill in the new Congress.
Nevertheless, the legislation has raised concerns among some Democrats, particularly regarding whether Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would be able to effectively enforce the new mandate without additional funding.
