Man charged with killing Iowa college student was in U.S. legally, lawyer says
By Justin Wise - 08/22/18 04:01 PM EDT
The lawyer representing the man accused of murdering a 20-year-old Iowa college student said Wednesday that his client was in the U.S. legally, adding that it was "sad and sorry" that President Trump has weighed in on the case.
The Des Moines Register reported that Cristhian Bahena Rivera's attorney filed a court document Wednesday that said the defendant was working legally in the U.S., contradicting law enforcement officials who said the defendant was an undocumented immigrant.
The court filing comes a day after Rivera, 24, was charged with the murder of Mollie Tibbetts, a University of Iowa student.
In the court document, attorney Allen Richards accused the government of wrongly promoting the idea that Rivera was in the U.S. illegally. He also criticized President Trump for discussing Tibbetts's death during a rally on Tuesday night.
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http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/403095-man-charged-with-killing-iowa-college-student-death-was-in-us