Trump designates Feb. 22 as day to ‘Remember American Lives Lost to Illegal Immigration’

Trump signs proclamation at White House ceremony

President Trump signed a proclamation on Feb. 23, 2026, naming Feb. 22 as National Angel Family Day. The East Room ceremony brought together relatives of Americans killed by immigrants in the country illegally.

The date marks two years since the killing of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student. Trump said he had wanted to create the designation since his first term but ran into legal obstacles.

The administration calls these relatives “Angel Families.”

Riley was killed while jogging near campus

Laken Riley was an Augusta University nursing student found dead on Feb. 22, 2024, near the University of Georgia campus in Athens. She was out for a run in a wooded area when she was attacked.

Jose Ibarra, a Venezuelan citizen who entered the U.S. illegally in 2022, was convicted of her murder in November 2024. A jury found him guilty on all 10 counts, including malice murder and kidnapping with bodily injury.

A judge sentenced him to life without parole.

Riley’s mother spoke directly to families

Allyson Phillips, Riley’s mother, embraced the president before addressing the room. Phillips said Trump told the family even before his reelection that he would not forget about Laken.

During Ibarra’s trial, Phillips had called him a monster who destroyed her family’s hopes and dreams.

At the White House, she delivered a warning that hit close to home: any family in America could face what hers went through.

Riley’s killing became a central issue in the 2024 presidential race and the broader immigration debate.

The Laken Riley Act became law first

The Laken Riley Act was the first bill Trump signed in his second term, on Jan. 29, 2025.

It passed with bipartisan support, clearing the Senate 64-35 with 12 Democrats voting yes, and the House 263-156 with 46 Democrats in favor.

The law requires ICE to detain undocumented immigrants charged with theft, burglary, assault on law enforcement, or crimes causing death or serious bodily injury.

It also lets states sue the federal government over enforcement failures. Rep. Mike Collins of Georgia wrote the bill.

Other families shared losses stretching back years

Steve Ronnebeck told the audience about his son Grant, 21, who was shot and killed at a Mesa, Ariz., convenience store in January 2015.

Grant’s killer, Apolinar Altamirano, was an undocumented immigrant from Mexico who was awaiting deportation proceedings at the time.

Laura Wilkerson spoke about her son Joshua, 18, beaten and killed in 2010 in Pearland, Texas, by a classmate who was an undocumented immigrant from Belize. Wilkerson said she first met Trump about 11 years ago.

A Border Patrol agent died protecting his family

Marie Vega spoke about her son, Javier “Harvey” Vega Jr., a Marine Corps veteran and Border Patrol agent.

Vega was killed on Aug. 3, 2014, during a robbery while on a fishing trip with his family near Santa Monica, Texas. Two men in the country illegally approached the family and tried to rob them.

Vega was shot in the chest while reaching for his weapon. Both suspects had been deported multiple times before.

Vega thanked Trump for acknowledging Angel Families.

A California crime spree left two dead

Jody Jones spoke about his brother Rocky, 51, who was shot and killed outside a gas station in Visalia, Calif., in December 2018.

Rocky’s killer, Gustavo Garcia, carried out a violent crime spree across Tulare County that included two murders, a carjacking, armed robbery, and a shootout with deputies.

Garcia had been deported before and was released from jail days before the rampage. The Tulare County Sheriff said California’s sanctuary law had blocked them from honoring an ICE detainer for Garcia.

An ex-NYPD officer recognized Riley’s killer

Ethan Curreri, a former NYPD officer now working in Palm Beach County, Fla., told the audience he had personally arrested Ibarra in New York for endangering the welfare of a child.

Months later, he saw Ibarra’s face in the news after Riley’s murder. Curreri said New York, a sanctuary jurisdiction, released Ibarra before ICE could issue a detainer.

Ibarra then traveled to Georgia, where he killed Riley. The case became one of the most cited examples in the enforcement debate.

Proclamation honors 62 victims by name

The proclamation honors the families of 62 people killed and two survivors of attacks by immigrants in the country illegally.

It calls on Americans to gather in places of worship to honor victims and those lost to the fentanyl epidemic.

The document also references the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed July 4, 2025, which included expanded border wall construction, more ICE and Border Patrol staff, and tools to break up trafficking networks.

The White House said southwest border apprehensions in the early fiscal year 2026 hit record lows.

Research shows immigrants commit fewer crimes overall

A large body of peer-reviewed research has found that immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, commit crimes at lower rates than U.S.-born citizens.

A National Institute of Justice study using Texas data from 2012 to 2018 found that undocumented immigrants had lower offending rates for violent, drug, and property crimes.

The Cato Institute found legal immigrants had the lowest incarceration rates, native-born Americans the highest, and undocumented immigrants fell in between.

Researchers note that high-profile cases still drive much of the political debate.

Two U.S. citizens died during ICE operations

The ceremony came during a tense stretch for the administration’s enforcement efforts.

Two U.S. citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, were killed by federal immigration agents during ICE operations in Minneapolis in January 2026.

Operation Metro Surge, the administration’s crackdown in Minnesota, led to more than 4,000 arrests but drew bipartisan criticism, including from Republican Sen. Rand Paul. Many of those detained had no criminal records.

The administration wound down the operation in February 2026 after growing backlash.

The immigration debate now has an annual date

Angel Families have been part of the immigration debate since Trump first featured them at campaign events in 2015. The cases presented at the ceremony are verified, and the families’ losses are real.

Critics say the administration uses these stories to justify broad enforcement policies that affect millions of immigrants with no criminal records. Supporters say each case represents a preventable death.

Immigration remains one of the top concerns for voters, and the proclamation now gives the debate a formal annual observance.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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