ATHENS, Ga. (AP) — Attorneys for a man accused of killing a nursing student whose body was found on the University of Georgia campus have asked a judge to move the case to another county.
Finding an impartial jury in Athens-Clarke County to consider the murder and other charges against Jose Ibarra for the killing of Laken Hope Riley is impossible, attorneys John Donnelly and Kaitlyn Beck said in a court filing. A shackled Ibarra appeared in court on Friday dressed in a button-front shirt and slacks.
Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard said during the brief hearing that he was planning to start jury selection on Nov. 13 and then proceed with the trial the following week.
He gave prosecutors 10 days to respond to the request for a change of venue, which was filed on Thursday.
In the filing, Donnelly and Beck noted Riley was killed on the campus of the University of Georgia, a “prominent institution” in Athens, and said the case had received extensive media coverage locally.
A 2013 Georgia court decision found that a change of venue is proper in cases where media coverage is "'unduly extensive, factually incorrect, inflammatory, or reflective of an atmosphere of hostility,'" according to the filing.
A grand jury in early May returned an indictment charging Ibarra, 26, with murder, aggravated assault, kidnapping and other crimes in the February killing of Riley. The 10-count indictment accuses him of hitting the 22-year-old Augusta University College of Nursing student in the head, asphyxiating her and pulling up her clothing with the intent to rape her.
He pleaded not guilty in May.
The killing immediately became a flashpoint in the national debate over immigration because Ibarra, who is from Venezuela, entered the U.S. illegally in 2022 and was allowed to stay to pursue his immigration case. Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, blamed Riley’s death on President Joe Biden and his border policies.
Riley’s body was found Feb. 22 near running trails after a friend told police she had not returned from a morning run, and police have said her killing appeared to be a random attack. Ibarra was arrested the next day and has been held in the Athens-Clarke County Jail without bond since then.
The indictment charges Ibarra with one count of malice murder, three counts of felony murder and one count each of kidnapping, aggravated assault, aggravated battery, hindering an emergency telephone call, tampering with evidence and peeping Tom.
The indictment says that on the day of Riley’s killing, Ibarra had peered into the window of an apartment in a university housing building, which is the basis for the peeping Tom charge.
In a separate filing on Thursday, Ibarra's attorneys said that charge should be tried separately from the others because the alleged victim is different.
FILE - Defense attorneys Kaitlyn Beck and John Donnelly present the not guilty plea for Jose Ibarra to sign during Ibarra's court appearance on Friday, May 31, 2024, in Athens, Ga. A man accused of killing a nursing student whose body was found on the University of Georgia campus pleaded not guilty Friday, Aug. 2, 2024, to murder and other charges in her death. A grand jury in early May returned an indictment charging Jose Ibarra, 26, with murder, aggravated assault, kidnapping and other crimes in the February killing of Laken Hope Riley. (Nell Carroll/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File, Pool)
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Rams are off to their first 0-2 start to a season since before Les Snead became their general manager 12 years ago.
They're coming off their worst loss under coach Sean McVay, a 41-10 thrashing from an Arizona Cardinals team the Rams had thoroughly dominated in McVay's eight-year career.
The Rams' extensive injury problems already encompass their top two receivers, their entire offensive line and two key members of their secondary.
And now they're about to play their biggest rivals and toughest opponents in McVay's career: The powerhouse San Francisco 49ers visit SoFi Stadium on Sunday.
Outside of an injury to Matthew Stafford, who's fully healthy, it's tough to imagine a way in which the first two weeks could have gone a whole lot worse for McVay or the team he led to six winning records in his first seven seasons.
“This league, nobody cares,” McVay said. “I feel terrible for those (injured) guys, and we certainly care, but the outside world doesn’t, and the games are going to go on.”
The Rams have fallen apart just two weeks into a season that began with hopes of playoff contention, even without retired star Aaron Donald.
Instead, the Rams are struggling to field a competitive team after just two games. The whole scenario has strong echoes of the 2022 season, when McVay's team went 5-12 amid major injury woes in the worst season by a defending Super Bowl champion in NFL history.
Several of the Rams' most important players will watch Sunday's game in street clothes. The injured list now includes receivers Puka Nacua (knee) and Cooper Kupp (ankle); starting offensive linemen Steve Avila (knee), Jonah Jackson (shoulder) and Joseph Noteboom (ankle); and starting defensive backs Darious Williams (hamstring) and John Johnson (shoulder). Several other key contributors will be playing hurt, including starting offensive linemen Kevin Dotson and Rob Havenstein.
“We’ve had some unfortunate breaks,” McVay said drily. “It’s nothing like I’ve been exposed to. This is unique, but this is an opportunity for us to be what we say we want to be.”
The Rams addressed their defense in last spring's draft, and the earliest returns are promising. Snead used his top two picks on Florida State's Jared Verse and Braden Fiske, and both have been key contributors in the front seven. Verse is already a problem on the edge, with four tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble in his first two NFL games. Third-round safety Kam Kinchens could be up for more playing time in Johnson's absence as well.
The Rams rebuilt their offensive line in the offseason to be tough up the middle, protecting Stafford and keying their running game. With two of those interior O-line starters out and a third playing injured, that plan will have to be set aside indefinitely. No team can have a backup plan for as many injuries as the Rams are facing on the line, but their backup tackles have not been sharp. They'll count on rookie Beaux Limmer, who played every snap at center last weekend, to step up again in Jackson's absence.
Safety Quentin Lake has led the Rams in tackles in each of the first two games, although that's also a criticism of Los Angeles' poor play at the line of scrimmage, as McVay noted. The Rams have allowed 394 yards rushing already this season.
The Rams' decision to dump linebacker Ernest Jones right before the regular season for a minuscule 2026 late-round draft pick upgrade looks even weirder now that Troy Reeder and Christian Rozeboom are struggling to fill his shoes with much less ability and talent. McVay and Snead have yet to provide an explanation for why the Rams didn't just allow their leading tackler to play out his rookie contract for 2024, and Los Angeles' linebacker play has been noticeably bad.
On top of the new injuries for Kupp, Jackson and Johnson, Rams rookie kicker Joshua Karty injured his groin. McVay said that injury isn't thought to be serious.
32 — The Rams' NFL rank in total defense after allowing 426.0 yards per game this season. Everyone suspected the defense would need a complete reset after losing Donald and coordinator Raheem Morris, but rookie coordinator Chris Shula's group has been bad, even with marginally better injury luck than the offense.
The Rams will be significant underdogs against the Niners, who have won 10 of McVay's past 13 regular-season meetings with Kyle Shanahan. If they can avoid losing several more starters to injury, they'll have a chance to regroup against less daunting opponents in the following few weeks.
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Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Tyler Johnson (18) runs against the Arizona Cardinals during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford (9) throws in the pocket against the Arizona Cardinals during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Tutu Atwell (5) makes a catch against Arizona Cardinals safety Jalen Thompson (34) during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray (1) runs out of the pocket against the Los Angeles Rams during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams (23) scores a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
