US protests loom after ICE shooting of Renee Good amid local-federal investigation rift

Protests erupt after Minneapolis ICE shooting

Fresh demonstrations were set to take place across the United States this weekend after a woman was fatally shot by an immigration officer in Minneapolis, with local officials criticising federal agencies for excluding them from the inquiry into the incident.

Organisers said they anticipated more than a thousand protests over the killing of motorist Renee Good, 37, by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent on Wednesday.

Minnesota officials said their own law‑enforcement agencies have been sidelined in the investigation. A local prosecutor on Friday said federal agents had taken Good’s car and shell casings from the scene.

The Trump administration has attempted to characterise Good as a “domestic terrorist,” maintaining that the ICE agent who shot her was acting in self‑defense.

Cell‑phone footage, reportedly taken by the officer who fired the fatal shots, shows him approaching and circling Good’s car and her saying, “I’m not mad at you”.

After the officer walks in front of the vehicle, another agent can be heard telling Good to exit before she attempts to drive off and shots are fired.

At the end of the clip, the agent filming is heard saying “fucking bitch”.

The White House has argued that the video supports the officer’s self‑defense claim, although the footage does not show the moment the car moved away or the actual firing of the shots.

"This is not the time to bend the rules. This is a time to follow the law...the fact that Pam Bondi's Department of Justice and this presidential administration has already come to a conclusion about those facts is deeply concerning," Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, a Democrat, told a briefing on Friday.

"We know that they've already determined much of the investigation," he said, adding that the state's Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, within its department of public safety, has consistently run such investigations.

"Why not include them in the process?" Frey said.

On Thursday, US Vice President JD Vance said that the ICE officer, named in US media as Jonathan Ross, had "absolute immunity" -- a claim disputed by local prosecutors.

Court filings seen by AFP showed that in June 2025, Ross was dragged 100 yards (91 meters) along a road by a car driven by a man who was the subject of immigration enforcement activity.

"When the FBI, when the federal agencies, say they won't share evidence with the local authorities, the public can't trust that it's going to be a true, transparent investigation," said local Patrick O'Shaughnessy, 43.

'Get out'

Minnesota officials have said that local investigators were initially invited by the FBI to participate in the inquiry into the shooting of Good, but were subsequently blocked from taking part.

Good was one of four people who have been killed by ICE since Trump launched his immigration crackdown.

Good's wife Becca Good told local media that they had gone to the scene of immigration enforcement activity to "support our neighbors".

"We had whistles. They had guns," she said.

Local prosecutor Mary Moriarty, the Hennepin County attorney, said "our goal must be that a thorough investigation is completed at the local level".

"The FBI currently has, for example, Ms Good's car, the shell casings and witness interviews".

Moriarty unveiled an online evidence portal, calling for submissions so that all available leads could be compiled.

The divide between local and federal authorities widened Friday when US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins suspended the payment of $129.2 million in federal financial agriculture awards, according to a letter she posted on X.

Federal authorities have openly clashed with Minnesota officials over allegations that Somali immigrants have committed large-scale fraud to extract public benefit funds, with Rollins accusing local officials of turning "a blind eye" to the problem.

Protest action continued Friday with hundreds gathering at a federal facility that has become a focal point of anti-ICE demonstrations, with at least one detention seen.

Federal immigration officers armed with pepperball guns and tear gas clashed with the noisy crowd.

Several civil society organizations and advocacy groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), are planning hundreds more protests on Saturday and Sunday.