Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have murdered two people in Minneapolis this month. Renée Good and Alex Pretti were both observing ICE activity when they were violently murdered in cold blood. This is not normal, and images of Pretti being overwhelmed by multiple agents before they shot and killed him have startled people across the country.

But what got us here? The violent deaths at the hands of federal government employees don’t happen in a vacuum. They are the result of corporate support, overzealous gun groups, a questionable leader, and Democrats too weak to stand up for decency. Let’s dig into the country and government that created a terrifying secret police that thrives on violence.

ICE murdered another American citizen in Minneapolis

Alex Pretti was a 37-year-old nurse for the Veterans Affairs. He was killed over the weekend while exercising his constitutional right to protest against ICE in Minneapolis. Footage of the fatal shooting spread rapidly across social media, prompting widespread outrage and demands for accountability. Pretti was on the sidewalk recording ICE when he attempted to protect a woman from an unwarranted pepper spray attack.

ICE agents turned their attention to Pretti, and six masked agents tackled him to the ground. In the melee, one of the agents drew a weapon and fired a single shot. The same officer then fired three more shots at Pretti as he lay in the fetal position on the ground. Then, as the agents backed up, the agent fired six more shots at Pretti as he lay dying on the ground.

The federal government, as they have always done when their agents kill people, immediately labeled Pretti a domestic terrorist to justify the murder. They also claimed that he was brandishing a weapon towards the ICE agents, which has been categorically debunked. Video evidence shows that ICE agents approached Pretti as he recorded their activity on his phone, which is legal.

The federal government is trying to lie about what happened

Videos from multiple angles show the officers rushing Pretti, who was holding a phone at the time of the encounter. While officials at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) attempted to conjure a false narrative, video evidence disproved them at every turn.

The BBC did an in-depth analysis of the video of Pretti’s death and debunked the official claims from DHS. According to the video analysis, the gun was taken away from Pretti by an ICE agent. It was only after the gun was removed that an agent opened fire on Pretti, murdering him. The biggest lie from DHS is that Prettu approached the officers with a 9 mm gun in his hand. In no angle of any video do you see Pretti approaching ICE agents brandishing a weapon. The gun was removed from his holster by the ICE agent as he lay on the ground.

The people of Minneapolis who were there for the killing are to be commended. They didn’t run from ICE in fear as the killing took place. They recorded the incident from every angle, and it paints an undeniable picture that what happened to Pretti was the action of an untrained and dangerous government agency.

Seven Democrats crossed party lines to renew DHS funding just before Pretti’s death

Recently, a bill that would increase DHS’s budget by $64 billion and ICE’s by $10 billion came up for a vote in the House of Representatives. On Jan. 22, 2026, seven Democrats crossed the party line and voted to increase the funding of the agency that had already murdered Renée Good in Minneapolis earlier this month. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas 28th), Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-Wash. 3rd), Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas 15th), Laura Gillen (D-NY 4th), Jared Golden (D-Maine 2nd), Don Davis (D-N.C. 1st), and Tom Suozzi (D-NY 3rd) voted to increase DHS and ICE funding.

Voters and concerned Americans are calling out the Democrats who allowed this budget to pass. The budget was voted on by a very slim margin of 214-213. If the seven Democrats above had voted against the measure, it would have failed 220-207. Now, some are trying to issue statements to distance themselves from their vote, which signals support for what DHS and ICE are doing.

As images of Pretti hit the airwaves, anger erupted from all corners of society. That outrage seems to have these Democrats on their heels, realizing the full gravity of their vote.

The National Rifle Association (NRA) is pushing back against the Trump administration

Trump loyalists activated across social media to start pushing a narrative that Pretti deserved his death because he was carrying a concealed weapon. The first prominent voice to make the claim is Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli of Southern California. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Essayli made no mystery that he believed the shooting death of Pretti was justified.

The sudden condemnation of carrying a gun forced the NRA to make a statement on X (formerly Twitter). In the post, the NRA stuck by its mission of protecting the rights of law-abiding citizens who carry guns. Furthermore, the organization known for fighting for gun rights after school shootings is calling for a full investigation before any judgment can be made.

Attorney Pam Bondi made a politically motivated request to stop the ICE violence

In the aftermath of Pretti’s killing, AG Bondi sent a letter to Minnesota officials. The letter asks that Minnesota hand over its voter rolls, or ICE will continue to terrorize the people of the Land of 10,000 Lakes. AG Bondi’s letter to Minnesota reads like a ransom note, making demands of the state in the wake of devastation brought to Minneapolis by DHS and ICE.

“Third, allow the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice to access voter rolls to confirm that Minnesota’s voter registration practices comply with federal law as authorized by the Civil Rights Act of 1960,” reads part of the letter. “Fulfilling this common sense request will better guarantee free and fair elections and boost confidence in the rule of law.”

The letter further states, “I am confident that these simple steps will help bring back law and order to Minnesota and improve the lives of Americans.”

There are a few ways to interpret the letter other than a power grab for nefarious activities during the 2026 midterms.

Gregory Bovino is leading the agency on its warpath

Bovino started working in immigration enforcement in 1996. Over the decades, he has led tactical operations across the country and oversaw arrests. He has risen within the agency to become a senior official in the United States Border Patrol.

He has become the face of the recent brutal campaign against immigrant communities and American citizens. From Los Angeles in June 2025 to Chicago in September 2025, and then to Minneapolis in January 2026, Bovino has been in attendance. His face and voice have become synonymous with the devastating attacks on civil liberties.

Bovino has shown his unwavering allegiance to the Trump administration in recent days. Bovino confirmed that the agents involved with the shooting deaths of Good and Pretti are still working. However, as Bovino says, the agents are not in Minneapolis for their safety. This means that the agents capable of murder have been moved to new communities where other lives are now at risk.

Good and Pretti are not the only people killed by ICE agents this year

Good’s and Pretti’s deaths have become rallying cries for activists pushing back against ICE. However, they are not the first, nor will they likely be the last, deaths at the hands of ICE agents in 2026. Before Good, an off-duty ICE agent killed Keith Porter in California on Dec. 31, 2025. Porter was allegedly outside firing a rifle in celebration of the New Year when Brian Palacios confronted him. Palacios was off duty but used his agency-authorized firearm to shoot and kill Porter.

Additionally, six people have died in ICE custody so far this year. Geraldo Lunas Campos, Luis Gustavo Nunez Caceres, Luis Beltran Yanez-Cruz, Parady La, Victor Manuel Diaz, and Heber Sanchaz Domínguez have all died in custody this year. According to records, the causes of death range from suicide to medical issues to homicide by an ICE agent.

Minneapolis is facing an increasingly hostile and aggressive immigration operation. AG Bondi’s demand for voter rolls reframes the operation in a politically motivated way. The assault on civil liberties in Minneapolis has been long in the making. Yet, despite the overwhelming force the federal government is attempting to exert, people in Minneapolis are doing what they do best: resist.

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