Caring daughter, good friend and devout Christian: Heartbroken loved ones paint portrait of Laken Riley after her killing

By Nicole Chavez, CNN

(CNN) — Laken Riley’s name was heard in court countless times and repeated by politicians around the country who described her brutal killing. But to those who really knew her, she was much more than a victim.

Months after family and friends mourned the nursing student at her funeral service on a cold and rainy day in Woodstock, Georgia, they reunited for days inside a courtroom. They listened carefully and often sobbed as witnesses described how the last moments of Riley’s life unfolded.

How Riley’s morning jog at the University of Georgia’s campus came to a halt on February 22. How she fought for her life, collecting beneath her fingernails crucial DNA evidence and eventually leading authorities to her killer. And how a police officer later discovered her body.

Some of them gasped as her killer, Jose Ibarra, was convicted Wednesday of murder, aggravated assault with intent to rape, and a spate of other crimes. Then, they appeared relieved when Ibarra was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

As they sought justice at the Georgia courtroom, her roommate Lilly Steiner said she knew the “trial focused on the death of Laken, which has overshadowed the life that she lived, the life that was stolen from this community.”

So when given the chance and despite their heartbreak, each of them spoke about Riley’s joy, her devotion to God and helping others, and the future their daughter, sister and friend dreamed about.

She wanted to live a ‘faithful Christian life’

At 22, Riley’s life was largely guided by her Christian faith. In 2016, she posted a photo of a sunset at St. Simons Island, along with a Bible verse. In 2019, she commemorated a mission trip to Honduras by posting a picture of children and writing, “this past week God used me in ways I couldn’t even imagine.”

“She was smart, hardworking, kind, thoughtful, and most importantly, she was a child of God,” Riley’s mother Allyson Phillips said in court. “She had a personal relationship with Jesus, and she loved being His hands and feet in this world.”

About two months before her death, she wrote a letter to her future husband sharing how she wished to embody what she described as a faithful Christian life and carry it through the rest of her life.

“I pray God is the center of our relationship as it is a gift from him. I thank him for you before I even know you, and can’t wait to love you in the best way I know how for the rest of our lives,” Riley wrote in a journal entry that her stepfather John Phillips read in court.

Becoming a nurse was only one way she cared for others

Laken had chosen her path at an early age, pursuing nursing to help care for others. She was a student at Augusta University’s College of Nursing, where she had just made the dean’s list before her death in February.

“She shared her love for our Lord with others through her mission trips, working with elderly at the nursing homes and through her nursing career,” Abby Phillips said.

But her call went beyond her goal of becoming a nurse. She was a nanny for two young children and often found big and small ways to care for others every day.

Her younger sister Lauren Phillips said Riley would send her daily text messages wishing her a good morning or share funny TikTok and Snapchat videos.

“The true sense of joy I felt when she would randomly surprise me will never happen again,” Lauren Phillips said in court. She called Riley her “biggest supporter” and recalled always having a sense of comfort and safety in her presence.

The day before her death, Riley had an early morning clinical rotation and still woke up earlier to make one of her roommates “feel loved and appreciated.”

“I woke up on February 21 at 7:30 a.m., walked out of my bedroom door to streamers hung outside of my bedroom, from the top of the door frame to the floor, balloons blown, decorations taped and gifts presented precisely on my kitchen island. Laken did it – it was my 22nd birthday,” said Riley’s friend and roommate Connolly Huth.

A ‘shining beacon’ for family and friends

While running can be a lonely sport, Riley often shared it with her close-knit group of friends and roommates.

Huth said they used to run together and wanted to cross the finish line together for their first marathon. They ran on the trail at the University of Georgia’s Oconee Forest Park, the place where Riley encountered her killer. Many times they ended their runs at a dock in nearby Lake Herrick to talk, play music or simply enjoy each other’s presence, her friend said.

Beyond running, Steiner said their group of young women spent a lot of time together. They ate chili during their “family dinners,” watched “Dancing with the Stars” every week, and “at least once a week where we’d get emotional thinking about what life is going to be like once we graduated (college),” Steiner said.

“While living together, we often would play outside of our house in the middle of the street … listening to a playlist I make called ‘playtime with my family,’” she added.

“Our home was such a special place to us,” Steiner said.

In the two years they lived together, Sofia Magana said Riley encouraged her to try new things, get out of her comfort zone and often pulled her onto the dance floor.

“Laken taught so many people in her life invaluable lessons, she showed me how to find joy in every moment, how to embrace life with an open heart, and how to dance in a crowded room without caring what anyone else,” Magana said in court.

Each of those who spoke about Riley in court this week talked about the immense light and joy she brought to their lives. Her stepfather called her a “shining beacon” in the life of everyone she knew or came in contact with.

He also took a moment to remind people how rich Riley’s life was before it ended.

“I’m here today to let your honor and the entire world know that Laken’s life was not apparently full of promise, but instead, was abundantly and exceptionally full of promise,” John Phillips said.

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