WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), Angus I. King (I-ME), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Mark Warner (D-VA), and Peter Welch (D-VT) unveiled an amendment to the Laken Riley Act to improve the ability of the legislation to protect our communities.
This amendment would ensure that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers can use their limited time and detention facilities to detain truly dangerous individuals who pose an immediate risk to the public. The senators’ amendment would help improve the Laken Riley Act by ensuring that only those undocumented individuals who are found guilty of a crime—or have been charged with, or arrested for, a crime and failed to appear for court appointments—will be detained under this bill.
“My thoughts are with Laken Riley’s family in the wake of her horrific murder. Americans have a right to be safe in their communities and—for many reasons—deserve commonsense steps to fix our broken immigration system,” said Kaine. “But in its current form, I have serious concerns that the Laken Riley Act—which did not receive a single hearing or vote from its committee of jurisdiction in the Senate—will burden our law enforcement officers in a way that will make it impossible to get truly dangerous individuals off the street and ultimately make Virginians less safe. I’m glad to have worked with my colleagues on this amendment to try to fix that, and urge Senate leadership to put it up for a vote.”
“The murder of Laken Riley was horrific, and my prayers are with her family and loved ones. I have always been supportive of immigration policies that are tough, fair, and keep Americans safe. It’s why I voted for the bipartisan border security agreement last year,” said Luján. “But this legislation as it stands would divert resources from serious threats, risk abuse by the incoming administration, endanger DACA holders, and cost American taxpayers billions. That’s why I’m joining my colleagues to introduce this amendment to strengthen the bill, and I urge Senate leadership to consider it for a vote.”
“Mandatory lockup of adults who are convicted of a crime and pose a threat to the community or a flight risk makes a lot of sense. But mandatory lockups of children accused of minor offenses? Permanent imprisonment of kids accused of stealing lollipops? This is twisted. And super damaging to the children. The Kaine amendment strikes the right balance for community safety,” said Merkley.
“Laken Riley’s tragic murder should never have occurred, and while our thoughts continue to be with her loved ones, the Laken Riley Act is a bipartisan attempt to help prevent future tragedies. For too long, Congress has failed to address our broken immigration system and border security. I was deeply disappointed when last year’s bipartisan border security agreement failed because it would have increased protections at the border and stemmed the flow of fentanyl into the United States. That’s why I voted to proceed with consideration of the Laken Riley Act and why I’m proud to help introduce this amendment to strengthen the bill. Our amendment would improve our enforcement mechanisms to better ensure we can keep offenders off the streets and strengthen public safety,” said Shaheen.
“We must keep our communities safe and prioritize the detention of violent offenders. I support Senator Kaine’s amendment because it directly addresses the circumstances that led to the terrible murder of Laken Riley, without creating a system that diverts resources away from the detention of violent offenders. If Republicans are serious about working with us to improve public safety, they will help ensure this amendment – which would improve the bill significantly – is considered and passed,” said Van Hollen.
“Laken Riley should be here today, and my heart goes out to her family and loved ones. It’s clear that we need to take steps to reform our broken immigration system — and that includes enforcement,” said Warner. “I’m proud to introduce this amendment to help strengthen public safety and improve the Laken Riley Act to make sure we dedicate our resources to getting dangerous individuals off our streets.”
“Laken Riley’s murder was heartbreaking, and my thoughts go out to her family and loved ones. Democrats believe we need serious reform on immigration, and that includes enforcement. But this bill has significant problems, and that’s why we’re partnering together to bring commonsense, pragmatic changes through the amendment process. This bill, in its current form, includes no requirement that a person be convicted of a property offense before they are held indefinitely, which diminishes due process. It grants unprecedented power to state attorneys general to control our immigration system and threatens to overwhelm our federal courts. And it also puts children in danger of mandatory detention,” said Welch. “I believe our amendment to fix the issues outlined is fair and strengthens the Laken Riley Act. It should earn quick bipartisan support, and I urge my colleagues in Senate Leadership to bring it up for a vote on the Senate floor.”
Full text of the amendment is available here. A one page summary of the amendment is available here.
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