The family of Renee Good, an unarmed US citizen and mother killed by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis last month, has said that neither President Donald Trump nor anyone in his administration has contacted them since her death. In an interview with NBC News, Good's brother, Brent Ganger, stated, 'There's a reason that we hired our own investigators – to make sure that the truth is transparent and available, to make sure that this is really taken seriously, and to make sure that we know what occurred.'
During the interview, the family addressed the false claims made by the Trump administration following the shooting. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem had falsely described the 37-year-old mother of three as a 'domestic terrorist'. Good's brother, Luke Ganger, emphasised, 'We're the ones who know Renee. No one else knows Renee.' The family described Good as a gentle person who loved raising her children.
The family has not yet watched the videos of the moment Good was killed on 7 January. In a separate interview with CBS Evening News, Good's father, Tim Ganger, expressed his willingness to have taken his daughter's place, saying, 'As her dad, my first instinct: I would trade a thousand times stepping in front of her to protect her.'
A private autopsy requested by the family determined that Good was shot three times: in her forearm, breast and head. Incident reports from the day of the shooting also noted two 'apparent gunshot wounds' to the right side of her chest and a 'possible gunshot wound with protruding tissue' on the left side of her head.
Despite the lack of support from the Trump administration, Good's family has received condolences from community members and others across the country. Her mother, Donna Ganger, told NBC, 'I felt the overwhelming peace that God said: “I’ve got Renee. It’s OK. I’m gonna walk with your family through this. You’re not gonna be alone.”' She added, 'We have been very consciously grateful for having Renee and having her in our lives for 37 years.'
Weeks after Good's death, Alex Pretti became the second victim of a fatal shooting by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis. The 37-year-old intensive care nurse was described by family and friends as 'happy' and someone who 'represents the best of us'. Pretti's parents recalled his frustration over the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, with his father saying, 'He said: “Mom, they’re kidnapping kids. Why would anybody do that? Why would people treat each other like that? That just doesn’t make any sense. There’s no reason to.”'
