What to know about the fatal shooting of a woman by an ICE officer in Minneapolis

Protesters confronted federal officers Thursday in Minneapolis the day after a woman was fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer.

The demonstrations came amid heightened tensions after President Donald Trump’s administration dispatched 2,000 officers and agents to Minnesota for its latest immigration crackdown.

The killing of 37-year-old Renee Good on Wednesday set off a clash between federal and state officials over whether the shooting appeared justified and whether a Minnesota law enforcement agency had jurisdiction to investigate.

Here’s what is known about the shooting:

How it unfolded

The woman was shot in her SUV in a residential neighborhood south of downtown Minneapolis, about a mile (1.6 kilometers) from where police killed George Floyd in 2020. Videos taken by bystanders and posted online show an officer approaching a vehicle stopped in the middle of the road, demanding the driver open the door and grabbing the handle.

The Honda Pilot begins to pull forward and a different ICE officer standing in front of the vehicle draws his gun and immediately fires at least two shots at close range, jumping back as the vehicle moves toward him.

It is not clear from the videos if the officer gets struck by the SUV, which speeds into two cars parked on a curb before stopping.

It’s also not clear what happened in the lead-up to the shooting.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the SUV was part of a group of protesters that had been harassing agents and “impeding operations” that morning. She said agents had freed one of their vehicles that was stuck in snow and were leaving the area when the confrontation and shooting occurred.

No video has emerged to corroborate Noem’s account. Bystander video from the shooting scene shows a sobbing woman who says the person shot was her wife. That woman hasn’t spoken publicly to give her version of events.

Victim was a ‘wife and mom’

Good died of gunshot wounds to the head.

A U.S. citizen born in Colorado, Good described herself on social media as a “poet and writer and wife and mom.” Her ex-husband said Good had just dropped off her 6-year-old son at school Wednesday and was driving home when she encountered ICE agents on a residential street.

He said Good and her current partner moved to Minneapolis last year from Kansas City, Missouri.

Good’s killing is at least the fifth death to result from the aggressive U.S. immigration crackdown the Trump administration launched last year.

Noem says officer followed training

Noem said Thursday that there would be a federal investigation into the shooting, though she again called the woman’s actions “domestic terrorism.”

“This vehicle was used to hit this officer,” Noem said. “It was used as a weapon, and the officer feels as though his life was in jeopardy.”

Vice President JD Vance said the shooting was justified and referred to Good’s death as “a tragedy of her own making.”

Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara gave no indication that the driver was trying to harm anyone when he described the shooting to reporters Wednesday. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said he had watched videos of the shooting that show it was avoidable.

Court records ID officer based on previous incident

Noem has not publicly identified the officer who shot Good. But she spoke of an incident last June in which the same officer was injured when he was dragged by another driver’s fleeing vehicle. A Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed Noem was referring to an incident in Bloomington, Minnesota.

Court records from that case identify the officer who was dragged and injured as Jonathan Ross.

Court documents say Ross got his arm stuck in a vehicle’s window as a driver fled arrest in Bloomington, Minnesota. The officer was dragged 100 yards (91 meters) and cuts to his arm required 50 stitches.

Federal and state leaders dispute jurisdiction to investigate

Drew Evans, head of Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said Thursday that federal authorities have denied the state agency access to evidence in the case, barring the state from investigating the shooting alongside the FBI.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz demanded that state investigators be given a role, telling reporters that residents would otherwise have a difficulty accepting the findings of federal law enforcement.

“And I say that only because people in positions of power have already passed judgment from the president to the vice president to Kristi Noem,” Walz said.

Noem denied that Minnesota authorities were being shut out, saying: “They don’t have any jurisdiction in this investigation.”

Protest met with pepper spray, tear gas

Dozens of protesters gathered Thursday morning outside a Minneapolis federal building being used as a base for the immigration crackdown. Border Patrol officers fired tear gas and doused demonstrators with pepper spray to push them back from the gate.

Area schools were closed as a safety precaution.

Protests were also planned across the U.S. in cities including New York, New Orleans and Seattle.

Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

Federal News Network Logo
Log in to your WTOP account for notifications and alerts customized for you.

Sign up