The situation in Minneapolis has gotten really intense after the tragic shooting of Renee Nicole Good by ICE agent Jonathan Ross on January 7. What started as a confrontation on a quiet residential street has now left the whole city on edge, with protests heating up and more questions coming up every day.
It all happened when Renee, who was driving her Honda Pilot, seemed to try pulling away as ICE officers told her to get out. Video from the scene shows some kind of contact between the agent and the car. Tragically, Ross ended up firing shots that hit Renee in the head, and she didn’t survive.
Renee was a 37-year-old mom, poet, and writer—a U.S. citizen who had recently moved to Minneapolis with her family. People who knew her described her as incredibly kind, compassionate, and someone who always looked out for others.
Now, new details have come out from U.S. officials: during that same incident, Jonathan Ross himself got hurt pretty badly, suffering internal bleeding in his torso. The Department of Homeland Security has confirmed he was injured and taken to the hospital, though they haven’t said exactly how serious it was. He was released the same day, but it’s clear the encounter took a toll on him too.
The Trump administration is standing firm, saying Ross acted in self-defense to protect himself and others. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche even told reporters there’s no reason for a criminal civil rights probe right now—the FBI is handling the investigation on its own, without state involvement.
In the wake of everything, support has poured in from both sides. A GoFundMe for Ross has pulled in more than $700,000, while one set up for Renee’s wife and young son has gone way over $1 million. There’s some question about whether Ross can actually take the money, since federal rules usually don’t allow government employees to get extra pay for their job.
Meanwhile, the streets of Minneapolis haven’t calmed down. Protests keep going, with federal agents sometimes clashing with people demonstrating against the heavy ICE enforcement. Things got even more tense this week when another federal officer shot someone in the leg during an arrest after being attacked, according to DHS.
Here are a few glimpses of the ongoing enforcement actions and the protests that have followed:
Minnesota officials are pleading for everyone to take a step back and cool things down. Assistant Attorney General Brian Carter said during a court hearing on the state’s challenge to the immigration crackdown, “What we need most right now is a pause. The temperature needs to be lowered.”
A federal judge has kept Renee’s case front and center, giving the Justice Department a short deadline to respond to calls for a restraining order. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has been outspoken, calling the operations discriminatory and saying agents are targeting people based on looks—especially Latino or Somali folks—and even pulling U.S. citizens off the streets.
As the investigation drags on, Minneapolis feels like a city holding its breath, caught between grief, anger, and fear over what comes next.