The killing of a Georgia nursing student by a Venezuelan migrant in February has added more fuel to anti-immigrant rhetoric this election year, with some conservatives seizing an opportunity to introduce stricter border legislation over the last several days.

Augusta University nursing student Laken Riley, 22, was killed while on a jog in Athens on Feb. 22. Jose Ibarra, 26, of Venezuela, is accused of multiple state charges over Riley’s death, including malice murder, felony murder, false imprisonment, hindering a 911 call and concealing a death.

Riley’s death gained national attention and reinvigorated anti-immigrant sentiments already fueled by former President Donald Trump’s election campaign this year. Ibarra is believed to have crossed into the U.S. unlawfully in 2022.

Recent polls show that immigration is a top issue for Americans, and a third believe migrants are more prone to violence, despite evidence to the contrary.

The Hispanic Student Association at the University of Georgia (UGA) released a statement on Instagram last week in response to a deluge of hate comments against the group and members of the Latino community.

“In light of recent events, we find ourselves confronted with the painful reality of hatred and bigotry that has no place within our campus community,” according to the statement. “Such grief should not be made use of for racism, hatred of xenophobia.”

Rep. Pedro Marin, Georgia’s longest-serving Latino legislator, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that crimes committed by individuals should not represent entire communities. He said officials are using fear tactics to push policy.

UGA police received a call from Riley’s friend just after noon on Feb. 22, reporting that Riley had gone on a run in the morning and had not returned. Responding officers found her body in the woods near a lake about 20 minutes later.

Last week, her sorority Alpha Chi Omega hosted a vigil in remembrance. “We lost one of the brightest lights that there’s ever been,” the group said in an Instagram post.

Ibarra is being held at Clarke County Jail. His immigration status has come under scrutiny as the investigation into the student’s death continues, with some officials calling on stricter regulations for the southern border.

Gov. Brian Kemp addressed a letter to President Joe Biden condemning current immigration policies in the wake of Riley’s death.

The state legislature also recently passed House Bill 1105, also called the “The Georgia Criminal Alien Track and Report  Act of 2024,” which allows police to arrest and detain for deportation anyone suspected of being in the U.S. illegally.

According to the law, verified undocumented migrants would be transported to a nearby federal facility for detention. Officers and government employees enforcing the immigration measures will be immune from liability. Any sheriffs, law enforcement or local government agency that violates the code may be denied state funds.

Georgia law has banned sanctuary city policies across the state for the last 15 years, according to  Atlanta Journal-Constitution. During a press conference on Wednesday, Athens Mayor Kelly Girtz affirmed that Athens-Clarke County did not have such policies and implored Congress to pass the bipartisan border security deal that some conservative politicians called “dead on arrival.”

Nationally, the House GOP is considering legislation, H.R. 7511 — also called the Laken Riley Act — that would require the detention of any undocumented immigrant convicted of theft costing more than $100. The committee will meet Tuesday to discuss the measure.

The legislation, Republicans said, was created to mourn Riley and “other victims of the Biden administration’s open borders policies,” according to the bill text. The House called on the Biden administration to publicly denounce its border policies and increase enforcement and deportation.

Biden visited the border about one week after Riley’s death, aiming to convince legislators to pass the border bill.