OAN Staff Blake Wolf
2:12 PM – Friday, November 22, 2024
MSNBC is facing significant backlash yet again after publishing a sympathetic opinion piece on Jose Ibarra, the illegal immigrant who brutally murdered 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley in February.
The title of the article originally was “Laken Riley’s killer never stood a chance,” before the outlet edited the headline to “The guilt of Laken Riley’s killer was never in doubt.”
In a few excerpts of the article, MSNBC columnist Danny Cevallos wrote many troubling lines that stood out, in addition to his original title.
“Saving the judge from a pointless jury trial might have been Ibarra’s best chance at life with the possibility of parole… in Ibarra’s case, the judge cut him no breaks — jury or no jury.”
Or maybe his line that reads: “Sometimes defense counsel just gets handed a truly awful, unwinnable case.”
Soon after, journalist Kyle Becker posted on X, highlighting the distasteful and morally bankrupt opinion piece.
“MSNBC got *CAUGHT* trying to defend Laken Riley’s illegal alien murderer. Now, it has backtracked and changed its headline. Too late. We see you, MSNBC. We know this is who you are,” posted Becker on X.
The MSNBC article was released after a judge sentenced Ibarra to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
Riley, a college nursing student who had her whole life ahead of her, was brutally murdered while out on a run on the University of Georgia campus on February 22nd. However, she was a student at Augusta University’s College of Nursing at the time.
The attack was initially thought to be random, but a Georgia grand jury found that Ibarra had attempted to asphyxiate Riley, bashed her head with a large rock, and then attempted to rape her.
“When Laken Riley refused to be his rape victim, he bashed her skull in with a rock repeatedly,” stated prosecutor Sheila Ross.
Evidence from the attack further confirmed Ibarra, who is said to be connected to the Tren de Aragua gang, murdered Riley, as his DNA was found under the victim’s fingernails. His fingerprints were also left on Riley’s cellphone.
“Riley’s murder became a political rallying cry at this summer’s Republican National Convention because Ibarra entered the country illegally in 2022. But for all the political controversy, the outcome of this trial was never in doubt,” MSNBC columnist Danny Cevallos wrote.
“Of course, in Ibarra’s case, the judge cut him no breaks,” he continued.
Users took to social media to express their outrage after Cevallos expressed sympathy and insinuated that Ibarra was doomed due to GOP political pressure, characterizing the case as “hopeless” for the defense.
“You mean Laken Riley never stood a chance! Here’s another sickening article from morally bankrupt @MSNBC,” one social media user wrote, adding that “The author seems to imply his conviction was purely based on politics, acts like Ibarra did nothing wrong, while ignoring the fact he’s a cold blooded killer. There’s millions of journalists in America, and MSNBC decides to hire sympathizers of rapists and murderers to write for them.”
Meanwhile, Donald Trump Jr. joined in on the outrage, posting a screenshot of the original title of the article and condemning MSNBC’s “depravity.”
“You literally can’t make up this level of depravity. These people are sick. The guy is a murderer. He’s an illegal alien that killed an innocent young woman but MSNBC would rather go to bat for him. However, much you hate MSNBC it’s not enough!” he wrote.
Riley’s murder became a focal point for Republicans who opposed President Joe Biden’s relaxed, “catch and release” border policies, arguing that the increase in illegal immigration ultimately leads to higher crime rates, including murder, rape, and robberies.
“The illegal who killed our beloved Laken Riley was just found GUILTY on all counts for his horrific crimes,” President-elect Donald Trump wrote on Truth Social in response to the verdict. “It is time to secure our Border, and remove these criminals and thugs from our Country, so nothing like this can happen again!”
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