Democrats are demanding federal immigration officers leave Minnesota after a U.S. Border Patrol agent fatally shot a man in Minneapolis, drawing hundreds of protesters to the frigid streets and increasing tensions in a city already shaken by another shooting death weeks earlier.
Protests and Clashes
An angry crowd gathered after the shooting and clashed with federal officers, who wielded batons and deployed flash bangs.
A federal judge has already ruled that officers participating in the federal immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota can’t detain or tear gas peaceful protesters who aren’t obstructing authorities, including when these people are observing the agents. That decision came in a case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of Minnesota activists.
Minnesota and its two largest cities, Minneapolis and St Paul, have also sued the Trump administration, arguing that the federal officers are violating the constitutional rights of Twin Cities residents.
Investigation and Response
The Minnesota National Guard was assisting local police at the direction of Governor Tim Walz, officials said. Guard troops were sent to both the shooting site and a federal building where officers have squared off with demonstrators daily.
Information about what led up to the shooting was limited, Police Chief Brian O’Hara said. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement that federal officers were conducting an operation and fired “defence shots” after a man with a handgun approached them and “violently resisted” when they tried to disarm him.
In bystander videos of the shooting, Alex J. Pretti is seen with a phone in his hand, but none appears to show him with a visible weapon. O’Hara said police believe he was a “lawful gun owner with a permit to carry”. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said during a news conference that Pretti had shown up to “impede a law enforcement operation”. She questioned why he was armed but did not offer details about whether Pretti drew the weapon or brandished it at officers.
The officer who shot him is an eight-year Border Patrol veteran, federal officials said.
Political Fallout
The president weighed in on social media, lashing out at Walz and the Minneapolis mayor. He shared images of the gun that immigration officials said was recovered and questioned why the man was armed and where local police were. Trump, a Republican, said the Democratic governor and mayor are “are inciting insurrection, with their pompous, dangerous, and arrogant rhetoric”.
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York was among several Democratic politicians demanding federal immigration authorities leave Minnesota. She also urged Democrats to refuse to vote to fund U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, stating, “We have a responsibility to protect Americans from tyranny.” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer later said that Democrats will not vote for a spending package that includes money for DHS, which oversees ICE. Schumer’s statement increases the possibility that the government could partially shut down on January 30 when funding runs out.
Recent Events and Witness Accounts
Pretti was shot a little more than a mile from where an ICE officer killed 37-year-old Renee Good on January 7, sparking widespread protests. Pretti’s family released a statement Saturday evening saying they are “heartbroken but also very angry” and calling him a kindhearted soul who wanted to make a difference in the world through his work as a nurse. “The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs,” the family statement said. “He has his phone in his right hand and his empty left hand is raised above his head while trying to protect the woman ICE just pushed down all while being pepper sprayed. Please get the truth out about our son. He was a good man.”
In a bystander video obtained by The Associated Press, protesters are heard blowing whistles and shouting profanities at federal officers. An officer shoves a person, who is then embraced by another. The man appears to be holding his phone up toward the officer. The officer shoves the man in his chest, and the two fall back. Several officers then surround the man, and a shot rings out. More shots are heard, and the man lies motionless on the street.
Further Investigation
The police chief appealed for calm, both from the public and from federal law enforcement. “Our demand today is for those federal agencies that are operating in our city to do so with the same discipline, humanity and integrity that effective law enforcement in this country demands,” the chief said. “We urge everyone to remain peaceful.”
Gregory Bovino of US Border Patrol, who has commanded the administration’s big-city immigration campaign, said the officer who shot the man had extensive training as a range safety officer and in using less-lethal force. “This is only the latest attack on law enforcement. Across the country, the men and women of DHS have been attacked, shot at,” he said.
Walz said he had no confidence in federal officials and the state would lead the investigation into the shooting. But Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said during a news conference that federal officers blocked his agency from the scene even after it obtained a signed judicial warrant.
Demonstrations broke out in several cities across the country including New York, Washington and Los Angeles. In Minneapolis, protesters converged at the scene of the shooting despite dangerously cold weather. An angry crowd gathered after the shooting and screamed profanities at federal officers, calling them “cowards” and telling them to go home. Agents elsewhere shoved a yelling protester into a car.
Protesters dragged garbage dumpsters from alleyways to block streets, and people chanted “ICE out now” and “Observing ICE is not a crime.” As dark fell, hundreds of people mourned quietly by a growing memorial at the site of the shooting. Some carried signs saying “Justice for Alex Pretti”. Others chanted Pretti’s and Good’s names. A doughnut shop and a clothing store nearby stayed open, offering protesters a warm place as well as water, coffee and snacks.
Caleb Spike said he came from a nearby suburb to show his support and his frustration. “It feels like every day something crazier happens,” he said. “What’s happening in our community is wrong, it’s sickening, it’s disgusting.”
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