Feds, Minneapolis officials dispute details on fatal ICE shooting

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MINNEAPOLIS (NewsNation) — A 37-year-old woman was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer as the largest ICE immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota history ramps up, Department of Homeland Security officials said.

However, the details of what led to the fatal shooting are being debated by federal and Minneapolis city officials.

Renee Nicole Good has been identified as the woman who was shot and killed. The ICE officer was transported to a hospital, has since been released from a hospital, and is with family.

Video shows shooting in Minneapolis

Footage from Minneapolis shows the moment the federal immigration agent fatally shot Good during an encounter that Minnesota lawmakers say paints a different picture than the Department of Homeland Security’s account of the incident.

In one video from the scene taken by bystanders, a car is positioned in front of an ICE vehicle. The driver can be heard telling officers to “go around.” One agent approaches and says, “Get out of the f—ing car,” while attempting to open the driver’s door. 

At that point, three agents surround the car, with one standing directly in front. The driver reverses briefly, then accelerates forward. As the vehicle turns right and attempts to move forward, the agent who had been in front shifts to the left side and fires three shots in rapid succession as the car pulls away and crashes into other vehicles. It is unclear if the officer who shot Good was hit by the vehicle.

DHS: ICE officer acted in self-defense

A DHS spokeswoman confirmed that Good died after being shot by an ICE officer after the agency said she attempted to run over federal agents with her vehicle. The spokesperson said that protesters were blocking ICE officers from conducting a targeted operation and that Good attempted to strike the officers with her car.

“An ICE officer, fearing for his life, the lives of his fellow law enforcement and the safety of the public, fired defensive shots,” the spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said. “He used his training and saved his own life and that of his fellow officers.”

A White House spokesperson referred NewsNation to McLaughlin’s statement when reached for comment on Wednesday’s shooting.

Noem says shooting was ‘preventable’

DHS Secretary Kristi Noem described the situation as a “tragedy,” while speaking to media Wednesday night, and urged Americans to pray for Good and the ICE officer who shot her.

“Any loss of life is a tragedy and I think all of us can agree that in this situation, it was preventable,” Noem said, adding she spoke with both President Donald Trump and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.

Noem said Good was blocking ICE officers with her vehicle and refused multiple orders to get out of the car and “proceeded to weaponize her vehicle and she attempted to run a law enforcement officer over.

“This appears as an attempt to kill or cause bodily harm to agents, an act of domestic terrorism. The ICE officer, fearing for his life, and the other officers around him and the safety of the public, fired defensive shots.”

She said Good was stalking and impeding ICE officers during their operations throughout the day.

Noem told the media that assaults on agents are up 1,300%, and their presence in Minneapolis is due to a desire to enforce the law and remove “dangerous criminal and illegal aliens” let in the country by the Biden administration at the Southern Border.

Trump says Renee Good was a ‘professional agitator’

President Donald Trump characterized Good who as a “professional agitator” who was “very disorderly, obstructing and resisting” who then “violently, willfully and visciously” ran over the ICE officer.

“Based on the attached clip, it is hard to believe he is alive,” Trump wrote, speaking of the officer.

“The situation is being studied, in its entirety, but the reason these incidents are happening is because the Radical Left is threatening, assaulting, and targeting our Law Enforcement Officers and ICE Agents on a daily basis.

“They are just trying to do the job of MAKING AMERICA SAFE. We need to stand by and protect our Law Enforcement Officers from this Radical Left Movement of Violence and Hate!”

Renee Good shot in the head: Police

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said that city officers arrived at the scene and found Good had sustained a gunshot wound to the head. Lifesaving measures, including CPR, were conducted at the scene, O’Hara said, and Good was pronounced dead at a hospital.

O’Hara said there was nothing to suggest that Good was being targeted by federal immigration officers. O’Hara had previously expressed concern about the tactics used by federal law enforcement officers and agents.

“I am obviously very concerned that I have been told that a woman who was sitting in her car blocking the street and not the target of any enforcement activity is now deceased,” O’Hara said, adding that he did not have direct knowledge of the specific details of the shooting.

The FBI and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension will be conducting the investigation, the police chief said.

“This is obviously a very, very tragic situation where a woman has lost her life,” O’Hara said.

Minnesota Senator Tina Smith said Good was a U.S. citizen.

Minneapolis Mayor rebukes DHS explanation of fatal ICE shooting

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, a Democrat, dismissed the federal agency’s explanation in a news conference held shortly after the Good’s death was announced. He said that DHS officials are trying to “spin” the incident as an act of self-defense.

“I want to tell you …that is bull—-,” Frey said, calling it a”garbage narrative … it has no truth.”

Walz wrote on social media that the state will ensure that a “full, fair and expeditious investigation” to ensure accountability and justice.

“I’ve seen the video,” Walz wrote on X. “Don’t believe this (DHS) propaganda machine.”

Walz also said local officials did not hear from DHS that 2,000 federal agents and officers were being sent to Minneapolis before they arrived.

Local officials, including Walz, urged his state’s residents to remain peaceful.

“I’m not telling you not to express your anger or your frustrations or the outrage that we have,” Walz said at a news conference Wednesday. “Look, this was totally predictable as I said (Tuesday) and it was totally avoidable.”

JD Vance says shooting is ‘tragedy of her own making’

“You can accept that this woman’s death is a tragedy while acknowledging it’s a tragedy of her own making. Don’t illegally interfere in federal law enforcement operations and try to run over our officers with your car. It’s really that simple,” Vice President JD Vance said via X on Wednesday night.

“I want every ICE officer to know that their president, vice president, and the entire administration stands behind them,” he continued.

“To the radicals assaulting them, doxxing them, and threatening them: congratulations, we’re going to work even harder to enforce the law.”

Enforcement effort largest deployment of federal agents in Minnesota

An estimated 2,000 federal agents, including members of ICE’s Enforcement Removal Operations team, are scheduled to participate in the operation, which is targeting illegal immigration and fraud allegations involving Somali nationals.  

Protesters gathered in the area where the shooting took place and blew whistles, alerting area residents to the presence of ICE officers. NewsNation sources said this week that the federal immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota could last as long as a month and is likely to target neighborhoods where Somali nationals reside.

Sources said that the operation would be overseen by U.S. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino, who also ran federal immigration enforcement efforts in Los Angeles, Chicago, North Carolina and New Orleans. The Chicago operation led to more than 4,300 arrests but also saw major clashes between federal agents, protesters and local residents.

Federal agents deployed tear gas, pepper spray and other non-lethal munitions on Wednesday in Minneapolis in a situation that Walz, the Democratic governor, described as “chaotic.”

Walz said that he has not determined whether he will deploy 7,500 Minnesota National Guard troops to Minneapolis to address the unrest that has taken place since Wednesday’s fatal shooting. Frey criticized the presence of federal agents whom he said he wanted to “get the (expletive) out of Minnesota.”

“It’s on you to leave. It’s on you to make sure further damage, further loss of life is not done,” Frey said. “We are working toward justice as quickly as we can right now.”

House Speaker calls for Minneapolis residents to remain calm after shooting

Large crowds gathered at the scene of Wednesday’s shooting, where protesters had already gathered protesting the presence of federal immigration agents.

U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson, the Louisiana Republican, echoed sentiments by Walz and Frey for residents not to allow their anger to lead to unrest. Johnson called the death of Good “a really sad outcome” but also accused her of “weaponizing” her vehicle against federal agents.

The fatal shooting sparked anger from elected officials and from local residents who were among large crowds that only grew in number as the day progressed. NewsNation captured video of one protester burning an American flag at the scene of the shooting.

Yet, Johnson called for Minneapolis residents to stay calm and said that a full investigation into the incident would take place.

“We don’t want anyone to be hurt,” Johnson told reporters. “We want law enforcement to be able to do their jobs. It’s a terrible situation.”

Earlier Wednesday, Frey said that local residents should “not take the bait” from the Trump administration, which could lead to further escalation of force being used by federal agents.

“Let’s rise to this occasion. Let’s show them something far more beautiful than the kind of division that they’re trying to stoke,” Frey said.

Protesters march into the night, damage Border Patrol vehicle

Some protesters have thrown snowballs at Minneapolis police and broken the windows of a Border Patrol vehicle in Minneapolis.

Otherwise, peaceful protests have taken place in Minneapolis with chants of “F— ICE,” and “Say her name,” being chanted repetitively.

As of late Wednesday night, there were hundreds of protesters on the scene where the shooting occurred.

“They have little (flares) and little things that they’re doing, but they’re not setting any fires or doing anything like that,” NewsNation national correspondent Ali Bradley told “On Balance.”

“They’re not violent. They’re not causing any big issues other than blocking traffic right now,” she added.

Bradley added there was no police presence surrounding the protesters as of late Wednesday night.

Tom Homan says shooting a result of ‘hateful rhetoric’ against ICE

Border czar Tom Homan addressed the shooting of Good in a post to X on Wednesday night.

“The incident in Minneapolis today is yet another tragic example of the results of the hateful rhetoric and violent attacks against the men and women of ICE and BP,” Homan wrote.

“These brave men and women are forced to conduct law enforcement operations in heightened threat environments every day. Like all Americans, our officers have a right to self defense (sic).”

Noem should consider resignation: Ex-DHS chief of staff

Miles Tyler, a former DHS chief of staff in the first Trump administration, told “CUOMO” that Noem’s comments following Good’s death were inappropriate.

“What we’re talking about here is an officer who fired shots and killed an American citizen, and your response to that (should) not (be) to fire more shots rhetorically, unless you are damn sure about what happened,” Tyler said.

“Those rhetorical shots… can inflame the situation and make it so much worse, so much more volatile. So if I was there right now, I would be honestly talking to the secretary about resignations, including potentially her own, because that was a completely unacceptable response.

“And if it weren’t for the first-person video here, that’s all we would have. That would be the end of the story, with the government saying, ‘This is a terrorist attack.'”

Minneapolis public schools close

For the remainder of the week, there will be no school of any kind for Minneapolis’ public schools.

“Out of an abundance of caution, there will be no school on Thursday, Jan. 8 and Friday, Jan. 9 due to safety concerns related to today’s incidents around the city,” a statement from Minneapolis Public Schools said.

“All MPS-sponsored programs, activities, athletics and Community Education classes, including adult education, will be canceled. The district will not move to e-learning because that is only allowable for severe weather. MPS will continue collaborating with the City of Minneapolis and other partners on emergency preparedness and response.”