Georgia Democrat Mayor's Presser on Laken Riley Murder Case Does Not Go Well As Tensions Boil Over

I think it's safe to say that the Laken Riley murder case has struck a nerve with people across the country who have hit their breaking point with the illegal immigration revolving door, and how it has continually resulted in innocent, law-abiding citizens becoming victimized.

Riley, as RedState previously reported, was a 22-year-old University of Georgia nursing student who was found dead on campus last Thursday after a friend reported her missing over concerns that she hadn't made it back from her morning run.

Twenty-six-year-old Jose Antonio Ibarra, who authorities say is in the country illegally, has been charged with her kidnapping and murder.

READ: The More We Learn About the Alleged Murderer of GA Nursing Student, the Worse It Gets

As we have been learning more about the victim and the alleged murderer, the mainstream media and Democrats on up to the Biden White House have, predictably, been doing their part to dodge, deflect, and to try and change the subject when it comes to questions about Riley's tragic death and how it could have been prevented.

In part due to existing frustrations and in part due to the new ones that have cropped up in the aftermath of Riley's murder, tensions boiled over during a press conference held Wednesday by Athens-Clarke County Mayor Kelly Girtz (D), who sought to counter accusations of Athens being a sanctuary city but who was instead confronted by angry residents who called him a "liar" and who demanded he resign immediately, all as he was giving his speech:

However, protesters interrupted him as he attempted to dismiss "the notion of a sanctuary city."
"You're a liar," a man shouted, repeatedly. "You're the one who is guilty and got blood on your hands for this murder, sir!"
Other protesters gathered quietly in the back of the room, holding signs that read "Blood on your hands" and "Make Athens safe again." Several voices chimed in at times demanding the mayor resign.

Watch:

Athens Mayor Girtz (D) just tried to shift away blame over Laken Riley's death

Angry residents were NOT having any of it: pic.twitter.com/V6uXFqQAh6
— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) February 28, 2024

Tempers flare from community members at a press conference by the Mayor of Athens giving an update to the death of Laken Riley. They are calling for the Mayor to resign. ⁦@FOX5Atlanta⁩ pic.twitter.com/aVEZaZwn3y
— Eric Perry (@Ericperrytv) February 28, 2024

"I caution against conflating immigration and crime," Girtz also proclaimed. "The data demonstrates that the two are not connected."

That will certainly be news to those who have lost loved ones to illegal immigrants, like the family of this child:

#BREAKING DHS sources confirm Nilson Noel Trejo-Granados, an illegal immigrant from El Salvador arrested in connection with the murder of a 2-year-old child in DC Feb. 8th is an MS-13 gang member.

Sources say the 25-year-old entered into the Hidalgo area as an unaccompanied… pic.twitter.com/QDwcH6N3yx
— Ali Bradley (@AliBradleyTV) February 28, 2024

And this teenaged girl and her family:

Can't keep up w/ these stories at this point. Now media in Louisiana are reporting an illegal alien from Honduras has been arrested for the rape of a 14-year-old girl at knifepoint, and stabbing another man repeatedly during a robbery. ICE detainer lodged.https://t.co/WF4HQKVSLy
— Bill Melugin (@BillMelugin_) February 28, 2024

I could go on and on, but I think the point has been made.