WASHINGTON – Tears flowed at the White House on Monday as an announcer read the names of the victims of crimes by illegal migrants and a military choir sang “Amazing Grace.”
The solemn moment was part of President Trump’s event hosting family members of Laken Riley and other victims as he declared an “Angel Family Day” in their honor.
The president, surrounded by the family members, signed a proclamation designating Feb. 22 as Angel Family Day, honoring two survivors and 62 individuals killed by illegal immigrants. Riley was killed on Feb. 22, 2024.
“I’ll never forget them,” Trump said of the victims. The president has become a champion of angel families, vowing to help them find justice, and turning them into a political force.
After he signed the proclamation, he joined them, sitting in the audience as names of each victim were read.
During the emotional ceremony, Allyson Phillips, the mother of Laken Riley, and Marie Vega, whose son was killed by illegal migrants, offered emotional stories about their loss and thanked Trump for his support.
The president, who had brought them on stage in the East Room to share their story, offered them hugs of condolence.
Phillips, in particular, had strong words of warning, saying what happened to her daughter could happen to any family.
Laken Riley, a 22-year-old Georgia nursing student, was murdered while out jogging by a Venezuelan man in the country illegally. Her murder inspired the Laken Riley Act, which requires federal detention of illegal immigrants arrested for burglary or theft. Trump signed the act into law on January 29, 2025 — the first bill of his second term.
“This could be any family,” Phillips warned. “This happened to my family, this could be any one of your families.”
And Phillips praised Trump.
“You have said from the beginning, literally, the day after this happened, that you would not forget about Laken,” she said. “You weren’t president at that time, and you have not forgotten, you have fought a fight that most people would not want to have to fight. Most people wouldn’t.”
“President Trump – you are doing a thankless job that most people just wouldn’t do, and I just can’t thank you enough.”
Laken Riley’s name became a rally cry for Republicans who were critical of then-President Biden for not doing enough to halt illegal crossings at the border.
Vega, whose son was killed by illegal migrants, also thanked Trump.
She described how her family was ambushed by illegal migrants at their home in Texas in a 2014 robbery attempt. Growing emotional, she talked about how she watched her son get killed as he tried to defend them. Her husband was wounded in the encounter.
“Without you, America and the world would not know the consequences of open borders,” she told the president.
Former NYPD officer Ethan Curreri used his remarks to slam New York’s “sanctuary” immigration policies, noting he arrested Laken Riley’s murderer, José Antonio Ibarra, in the Big Apple and that he should have been deported instead of being released to commit more crime.
“While serving the New York City Police Department, I personally arrested Jose Ibarra for endangering the welfare of a child. A few months later, I saw his face again in the news after he viciously murdered Laken Riley,” Curreri said.
“I did my job. I put him in custody. The system failed. No detainer, no accountability, no deportation, and an innocent American life was taken.”
Curreri is now an officer in Palm Beach Country, Florida, prompting Trump to say: “I noticed you left New York to come to Florida. In a way, it’s too bad, right? You couldn’t take it anymore. They don’t like you to do your job.”
There were also a few moments of levity during the emotional occasion. When Trump saw Patty Morin in the crowd, he asked her about her upcoming eye surgery.
“I notice you wearing glasses,” he said.
Morin’s daughter Rachel, a Maryland mother, was killed by an illegal El Salvadoran while out hiking in 2023. Patty Morin has been to the White House several times to advocate for angel families and Trump revealed he’s paying for her eye surgery.
“I gave her money to get her eyes fixed. A lot of money to get her eyes fixed. That doctor ripped me off, but that’s okay,” he said.
Morin thanked him and said she was going to give him a hug after the ceremony.
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