Since the recent tragic murder of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student from the University of Georgia, numerous media outlets have been working overtime to conceal the background of her alleged murderer, Jose Antonio Ibarra.

Ibarra is an illegal immigrant from Venezuela who arrived via El Paso, Texas, in 2022. Like the vast majority of others who’ve made it into our nation illegally, he was released into the country due to lack of law Border Patrol capacity, but he ran afoul of the law even before the horrors of last week. Since entering the United States, he also was arrested and charged with endangering a child, as well as driving an unregistered car without a driver’s license.

AP Hides Ibarra’s Illegal Status

Yet if you depend on the Associated Press for your news, good luck hearing about any of those details. In a report about the murder, the agency referred to Ibarra as “a resident of Athens” — but made no mention of his illegal status. Instead, the story cited the risks female runners face while jogging alone.

Implying even remotely that Ms. Riley bore some of the responsibility for her murder is beyond the pale. As a father, this infuriates me. As Americans, it should serve as a wake-up call to an ongoing campaign to gloss over tragedy for the sake of political expediency. 

It’s true that unaccompanied women are targets for increased violence and assault, but it seems that’s especially been the case since January 2021. Whether you view former President Donald Trump’s policies favorably or unfavorably, the facts speak for themselves.

Heinous Trends Emerging on Biden’s Watch

Since President Joe Biden took office on January 20, 2021, approximately 7.3 million people have entered America illegally. Media like to cast these individuals as refugees in search of a better life — a stereotype that, even when true, belies the heinous trends that are quickly emerging and that cannot be ignored.

The latest reporting from U.S. Customs Border and Protection reveal that illegal immigrants have committed 165 murders in the slightly more than three years since Joe Biden has been president. During all four years of Donald Trump’s presidency, illegal immigrants committed 11 murders. That’s a 1400% increase in killings by people who jumped the line and, in many cases, literally, the border fence.

Sexual assaults (rapes) by illegals have increased exponentially. Between 2017 and 2020, there were 431 criminal convictions for rapes committed by illegal immigrants, compared to 1,210 between 2021 and 2024. Other forms of assault and domestic violence convictions have likewise skyrocketed from 1,723 between 2017 and 2020 to 3,946 these last three years. 

Why Aren’t Women’s Groups Up in Arms?

The troubling and tragic trends begs the question: Where are the women’s groups decrying this unprecedented increase in violence against females? Why are they not demanding that something be done? Their silence is absolutely deafening.

If you visit the press page for the National Organization for Women (NOW), considered the most prominent women’s group in America, you’ll see them decrying the Alabama IVF ruling and celebrating 51 years of abortion since Roe — but making no reference to the catastrophic attacks on women at the hands of illegals entering America.

In addition to the slaughter of Laken Riley, mainstream media may also want you to forget the killers of Kate Steinle, Mollie Tibbetts, and Lizbeth Medina. These are all young women whose deaths came at the hands of illegal immigrants. And do you remember the name of Alexis Saborit? He’s an illegal immigrant from Cuba who beheaded his girlfriend, America Thayer.

The Existential Threat to Women

Weak and reckless border policies pose an existential threat not only to our country, but especially to our women. Millions of people, including many with nefarious motives and violent backgrounds, have sensed and seized the moment these last few years and are flooding into our country — and with the cooperation of current leadership. It’s outrageous, heartbreaking — and deadly.

Historically, our southern border has been run by impressive teams of upstanding individuals. They carry the burdens of those in their care empathetically and seriously. I visited them in 2019 and was favorably impressed. But now the situation is untenable — and American women are acutely feeling the impact. 

A Humane and God-Honoring Solution

Regardless of our political affiliation, our faith demands that we urge our elected representatives to find a humane and God-honoring solution to protect our borders and ensure the safety of all our citizens. It’s also high time that groups like NOW, which purportedly represent and exist to protect women, use their money and muscle to serve the very people they claim as constituents.

Jim Daly is president of Focus on the Family.