Five years after the death of George Floyd ignited global protests, Minneapolis is once again at the centre of national outrage following the fatal shooting of a mother by an immigration officer.
A Fatal Encounter on a Residential Street
Renee Good, a 37-year-old mother of three, was killed on January 7 after being shot three times by a veteran Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent. The incident occurred in the middle of a residential street as neighbours, some dropping children at a nearby primary school, looked on.
Federal officials, including Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, stated that ICE agents were conducting an enforcement operation when their vehicle became stuck in snow. They claim Ms Good attempted to ram the officers with her Honda Pilot, an act labelled as "domestic terrorism" by the Trump administration. Agent Jonathan Ross, they say, acted in self-defence.
Video Footage Reveals Tense Moments
Multiple videos of the confrontation have circulated, allowing for a detailed reconstruction of events. Footage from 9:35am shows Ms Good's car stopped diagonally across the street. Within seconds, at least three masked agents approached the vehicle as bystanders whistled and shouted.
Ms Good's partner was seen filming and speaking with an agent behind the car. As the situation escalated, two officers in an unmarked Nissan Titan with flashing lights arrived, ordering Ms Good to "get out of the car." Her vehicle moved into reverse, and an officer tried to open the door.
Agent Ross, positioned behind the Honda, then moved to the driver's side. As the car began to move forward, Ms Good turned the wheels away from him. Ross, with a phone in one hand, drew his firearm and fired through the front windshield. A second shot followed almost immediately. Federal officials claim Ross was struck by the car, though he remained standing. A third shot was heard as the vehicle passed him.
Three seconds after the shooting began, Ms Good's car crashed into a parked vehicle. Ross approached, looked inside, and instructed someone to "call 911." A bystander who identified as a doctor pleaded to help but was refused by agents who said they had their own medics. First responders arrived over six minutes later, but Ms Good could not be saved.
Nationwide Fallout and Investigations
The shooting has triggered protests in hundreds of towns and cities across the United States over the weekend. Demonstrators linked Ms Good's death to President Donald Trump's policy of deploying ICE officers into cities, with many expressing they are "living in fear." One Minneapolis mother stated, "ICE is creating an environment where nobody feels safe and that's unacceptable."
An FBI investigation into the shooting is underway. Minnesota officials have announced they will open their own inquiry, complaining they have been frozen out of the federal probe. The incident occurred roughly one mile from where George Floyd was murdered in 2020, drawing stark parallels for activists.
As tributes pour in for Renee Good, a mother who had recently moved to Minneapolis, the event has become a flashpoint in the ongoing national debate over immigration enforcement and police conduct.
