By Luke William Hunt
The Trump administration says federal agents have “absolute immunity” from prosecution in Minneapolis. Department of Justice and Homeland Security officials have indicated that criminal investigations into the killings by immigration agents of Minneapolis protesters Renee Good and Alex Pretti are inappropriate, declaring that both were domestic terrorists.
The killing of Good and Pretti raises legal, tactical and policy questions regarding law enforcement practices by federal agents.
In December 2025, the Department of Homeland Security launched “Operation Metro Surge” to enforce immigration laws in Minneapolis. The operation is being conducted by federal agents with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. One of the stated goals of Metro Surge is to arrest the “worst of the worst criminal illegal aliens.”
Metro Surge has also affected the lives of U.S. citizens, including citizens protesting immigration enforcement efforts. On Jan. 7, 2026, Good – a 37-year-old U.S. citizen and mother of three – was shot and killed in her vehicle by an ICE agent on a residential street in Minneapolis. On Jan. 24, 2026, CBP agents shot and killed 37-year-old Pretti, a U.S. citizen, on a public street in Minneapolis.
As a policing scholar and former FBI special agent, I believe these cases illustrate how some federal agents are engaging with the public in a way that undermines established principles of policing and constitutional law.
Law of deadly force
The Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects the “right of the people to be secure in their persons … against unreasonable … seizures.” A law enforcement officer’s use of force – including deadly force – is considered in law to be a seizure and must be reasonable.
In the 1989 decision Graham v. Connor, the U.S. Supreme Court construed the objective “reasonableness” of force based upon “the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, rather than with the 20/20 vision of hindsight.” The court explained “reasonableness” in light of the idea that police officers must sometimes make “split-second” judgments.
In Tennessee v. Garner, the Supreme Court in 1985 established that the use of deadly force to prevent the escape of a fleeing suspect is unreasonable unless the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others.
These legal principles form the basis of DHS deadly force policy, which is similar to the policy I followed as an FBI agent: Law enforcement officers, or LEOs, “may use deadly force only when the LEO has a reasonable belief that the subject of such force poses an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the LEO or to another person.”
The legal question raised by the Good and Pretti killings is whether the officers had a reasonable belief that Good and Pretti posed an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to the officers.
Moments before the ICE agent killed Good, the agent walked around Good’s parked vehicle filming Good with his phone in one hand. Good, sitting behind the wheel in her car, says “That’s fine dude, I’m not mad at you.”
As the shooting agent positions himself in front of Good’s vehicle, a second agent walks quickly toward Good’s vehicle and tries to open the door and reach inside. Good turns her steering wheel and tries to drive away – what a law enforcement agent could interpret as potentially an act of fleeing. The agent in front of Good’s vehicle shoots Good three times as she drives by him. He then mutters, “f-cking b-tch,” and walks away from Good’s crashed vehicle. There is dispute about whether Good’s vehicle grazed the agent.
Moments before Pretti was killed by federal agents, he was standing in a public street when agents approached him and sprayed him with a chemical agent. Pretti’s hands are visible and show that he is holding a cellphone.
The agents wrestle Pretti to the ground and repeatedly beat him with an object. Pretti is not seen brandishing a firearm. However, an agent approaches Pretti during the scuffle and appears to remove a firearm from Pretti’s waistband. Shortly thereafter, agents shoot Pretti 10 times. Pretti had kicked the taillight of a law enforcement vehicle – and was then tackled and tear-gassed by agents – 11 days before he was killed.
Some former federal prosecutors argue that these facts in the Good and Pretti cases warrant a thorough criminal investigation regarding whether federal agents illegally used lethal force in the killings. The central legal question is whether the evidence shows that the agents reasonably feared for their lives, or whether they acted unlawfully out of anger, frustration, retaliation or some other unjustified mental state.
Tactics, policy and split-second decisions
Beyond legal questions, Operation Metro Surge raises tactical and policy questions about DHS law enforcement practices.
State, local and federal law enforcement officers are required to follow firearms safety rules. While training at the FBI Academy at Quantico, I was required to learn and follow the cardinal safety rules, which include (1) treating all firearms as loaded, (2) keeping firearms pointed in a safe direction and (3) keeping one’s finger off the trigger until one is ready to press it.
These rules help keep officers and the public safe, including by preventing unintentional discharges of firearms.
There were multiple bystanders and officers in the immediate vicinity of both the Good and the Pretti shootings. That raised risks associated with unintentional discharges and jeopardizing officers’ ability to meet the requirement to respect human life.
DHS officers specifically are also required to “employ tactics and techniques that effectively bring an incident under control while promoting the safety of LEOs and the public,” which includes avoiding “intentionally and unreasonably placing themselves in positions in which they have no alternative to using deadly force.”
In both the Good and the Pretti cases, federal agents placed themselves in poor tactical positions that increased the likelihood of using deadly force.
When feasible, DHS agents are required to issue a verbal warning to comply with the agent’s instructions. Agents rushed to physically remove Good from her vehicle and similarly rushed to push Pretti off the street and then spray him with a chemical agent. There is reason to think the agents could have taken a more measured, composed and communicative approach to de-escalate the situation.
These tactical and policy principles reveal that the legal analysis of an agent’s “split-second” decision to use deadly force is not the only issue raised by these cases. Analysis of the seconds and minutes leading to the use of force is also crucial.
Jeff Wheeler/The Minnesota Star Tribune
Warriors in the community
ICE and CBP federal agents are not police officers. However, they are law enforcement officers engaged in policing. Operation Metro Surge has made these agents highly visible.
Instead of the more traditional, methodical and long-term investigations they normally conduct, federal agents are now routinely taking on more of a traditional police role in the public eye. This role ranges from managing traffic violations to maintaining order during chaotic public protests.
Although the surge has brought these agents closer to a traditional police role, they are pursuing a militarized warrior model of policing.
Masked federal agents in tactical gear roaming the streets of Minneapolis blur the line between civilian and military policing. Coupled with events such as the killings of Good and Pretti, it is unsurprising that public trust is eroding not only in federal law enforcement agencies such as ICE but also in police departments generally.
Policing is difficult work under any circumstance. If federal agents continue to increase their interactions with the public, I believe they will need to embrace tactics from community policing and what is called procedurally just models of policing. These models emphasize building popular legitimacy by reinforcing relationships – through honest cooperation and partnership between law enforcement officers and the public.
The rule of law
Publicly available facts and evidence raise significant questions about whether federal agents acted contrary to established principles of policing and constitutional law in the deaths of Good and Pretti.
The rule of law is a cornerstone of liberal democracies that limits the exercise of discretionary or arbitrary power by government officials. This idea includes holding officials accountable when there is evidence of unauthorized uses of power. A thorough investigation into DHS tactics, I believe, is necessary to preserve the rule of law.
Luke William Hunt is Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Alabama’s Institute for Humane Studies.
Skibum says
As a fellow former, now retired LEO, a wholeheartedly agree with the author!
One of the most important cues, for me at least, about how these federal officers have been directed from above to behave during their surges into America’s cities, is how they are outfitted. Not in their regular work uniforms, which are and have always been appropriate for the job responsibilities they are required to perform. No, they are all dressed for battle! And it does not escape me that one of the most often heard mantras in both the military and law enforcement, is “you train how you fight”. That was drilled into me way back in the late 70s when I was a cadet in the sheriff’s academy, and it has been repeated over and over and over again ever since in both military and non-military environments.
Law enforcement personnel are NOT marines, not soldiers, and certainly not trained to perform their duties “with maximum force” as members of the military often are directed. And a big part of the process is how they are dressed and outfitted in their battle gear when they go on specific missions.
The federal authorities supervising and directing the ICE and other federal agents in Minneapolis and other cities refer to their “missions”, they order all of the federal officers to dress in battle gear with helmets, pepperball guns, automatic rifles in addition to their sidearms, and many of them are using military type tactics while confronting American citizens as if the U.S. citizens of this country are their enemies! The American people are NOT the enemy!!!
I can recall some officers many years ago who liked to blouse their uniform pant legs inside their high top uniform boots while on duty, because they were former military and used to that look, or were followers of others who did that and wanted to give that “militaristic” look while on duty. Myself and other administrators had to direct the first line supervisors to forbid state law enforcement personnel from “blousing” their uniform pants into their duty boots, because it not only gave the wrong impression to the public, but more importantly, the officers who did that tended to have a more military mind set and were not seen by myself and others as approachable or appropriate in their actions and behavior with the public.
Law enforcement must have the trust and cooperation of the public in order to do their jobs. When that trust is broken, when the public feels they cannot confide in law enforcement personnel, and more importantly when officers tend to look at this country’s citizens as the enemy, the entire law enforcement function breaks down and our communities are less safe.
This corrupt and criminal federal administration that is pushing law enforcement to treat this country’s own citizens as enemy combatants is not only violating constitutional protections, but also doing a huge disservice to all of our local and state law enforcement officers who will bear the brunt of the public’s disdain and furor. And it is all happening because idiots in the federal government want to please one despicable, immoral man who should NEVER be in a position of power or control over others, let alone the entire nation!
Laurel says
I watched a video of a woman, I believe alone, driving on a road in the country, no other vehicles, no protests, no people around, when she is passed by a speeding SUV, that drove in front of her, zigzagging across the road, then stopping by blocking the road. Then the SUV doors flew open, and a batch of these combatants jumped out, with masks and with guns drawn and aimed at her, and ran back to her car. She starting screaming for someone to call 911, as they bashed her window in. Oh, for those who think it’s important, she had no foreign accent.
I saw another car, that came from an intersection, turn, drive near and look. I don’t know who ended up calling 911. Eventually, the local police came and diffused the issue. Homeland Security stated she was obstructing justice, and driving erratically as if drunk, and an assortment of other crap they made up. So, now Border police are handing out traffic tickets with guns drawn? That’s their job?
So, is calling 911 the luck of the draw? Florida Sheriffs have signed agreements to help federal agents. Who do you trust? I don’t know anymore.
A friend of ours, who is black, was driving home from work, at night, in Jacksonville. He saw a car, an SUV I think he said, sitting in the median of the road with all lights off. When he passed the vehicle, the lights came on, the vehicle speed up, and drove right up on his bumper and stayed there for awhile. Were they checking the black man’s license plate? Did they see that his plate showed he was a handicapped veteran? Because after tailgating closely, the vehicle flew around him, and sped down the road at high speed, and chased after another car. Our friend said they were doing at least 100 mph on a local street.
Is this the norm for any police? To frighten citizens just trying to drive home from work? Who do you trust? Do you pull over at night for armed men in masks in an unmarked SUV?
It is clear what is happening. Trump is flexing the muscles of wannabe hotshots, something he doesn’t have the guts to do on his own. Letting them know they will not be accountable for anything they do. Putting American citizens in their place.
If you were the person who saw a group of combat dressed men, with masks and with guns drawn and pointed at you, what should you do? Back up and speed off with the chance of being shot? Let the unknown men get you out of your car in any way they want, in the middle of nowhere? The government will lie about you if you die. Maybe you should just “stay home,” as some would say, and not go to work? Not drop off your kid at school? Not believe in your Constitution rights, as the current President, who vowed to uphold it, is busy trying to destroy it?
Anyone, and I mean anyone, who makes excuses for this very UnAmerican behavior, needs to seriously stop. Get your mind back in order. This is not “taking back America” it is taking it away.
We have a Constitution. We have laws. Trump, Vance, Noem, Patel, Miller, Bondi and others in this very offensive, incompetent cabinet have no respect for the Constitution and the law. They simply make it up as they go. They belong in jail.
kennan says
Yah, i believe this was actually a field reporter with MEIDAS TOUCH. These clowns were clocking her, probably at protest somewhere near by. Walls are closing in. Rats cornered. Time to go after press and anyone who can journal or video this brutality.
Mothersworry says
Interesting read. Not entirely accurate though. The three rounds fired at Good did not all come from the drivers side window area. The first round came through the windshield at the lower driver’s side. The other two came through the driver’s side window area (the window was down). The fatal round struck her in the left temple.
The Pretti killing is just crazy imo. Pretti at the time he was shot was face down in the street with 4 people holding him down in the prone position. Ten 10 rounds were fired at him as he was held down, two or three entering his back. He presented no threat to anybody when he was killed. I fail to see the need for anybody to fire 10 rounds at him.
Sherry says
IF THEY CALL ME A DOMESTIC TERRORIST
If they gun me down
in my own street someday
may my crime be compassion
May the record show
from every angle
that I was helping a woman up
after they pushed her to the ground
that not even their weapons
could not stop me from extending
my hand to those in need
that I was a walking example
of the best my elders taught me
that everyone is equal
and worth defending
If they tell the nation
from the highest podium
that I was a domestic terrorist
let it be known that my radical act
was believing the best in people
when they want nothing more
than to divide us
Michael Dubois
Greg says
Any time a cop says “he’s got a gun,” someone is going to get shot. That’s just the way it seems to be.
FlaglerLive says
That’s not the way it has been in Flagler County policing. Not for 14 years, despite repeated incidents where the person had a gun.
Laurel says
FlaglerLive: And that’s the point! Local police have been working for decades to deescalate problems, create a safe environment, and gain the trust of the people they serve. Unfortunately, for all, that’s changing. The right wing is turning those whom we trust into those we should fear.
Callmeishmael says
Anybody notice that bin Laden has gotten everything he hoped to achieve with regard to the US?
Thanks, MAGA!
Florida Voter says
“ICE and CBP federal agents are not police officers.”
THANK YOU!! They roam the streets wearing tactical vests that read “POLICE” but they are NOT police officers! I’m glad to see someone else (an “expert” even) mentioning this fact. ICE agents are LEOs, but they are limited to immigration and customs enforcement (hence the acronym ICE). They are not police, but are claiming that they are. That alone is usually an arrestable offence, let alone all of the other violence they’ve shown against the public.
State and local police need to start arresting ICE agents who claim to be police. State and local police also need to arrest the ICE agents when they commit violence that steps beyond enforcing immigration laws. ICE agents are not police.
Tony Mack says
POLICE versus ICE
We’ve all seen the pictures of ICE agents and their protective gear with the designation “Police” on their vests. But citizens should be clear – ICE “Agents” are not Police in the traditional sense of the word or in the way most people think of their local Police officers. This use of the term “Police” on their combat vests is a deliberate effort to fool the average citizen that they have “Police” powers when, in fact, they do not possess the same authority or the same powers.
ICE, or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security, but it is not a traditional police force. Its primary responsibilities include enforcing immigration laws, conducting investigations, and ensuring national security.
Overview of ICE
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security. Its primary mission is to enforce immigration laws, conduct criminal investigations, and protect national security.
Distinction from Local Police
ICE is not a traditional police force like local or state police departments. Here are key differences:
Powers and Limitations
ICE agents have specific powers, including:
• Arresting individuals suspected of being in the U.S. illegally.
• Detaining U.S. citizens in limited circumstances, such as interference with an arrest.
• Using force only under certain conditions, such as when there is an imminent threat.
However, ICE agents must have a judicial warrant to enter private homes, unlike local police who may have broader access in public spaces.
In summary, while ICE has law enforcement powers, it operates under different rules and focuses primarily on immigration and customs enforcement rather than general policing.
TRADITIONAL POLICE DEPARTMENTS
Police are responsible for maintaining public order, enforcing laws, and preventing, detecting, and investigating crimes. They also provide assistance in emergencies and work to ensure community safety.
Overview of Police
The police are a structured group of individuals authorized by the state to enforce laws and maintain public order. Their primary responsibilities include:
• Ensuring the safety and health of citizens
• Protecting property
• Preventing crime and civil disorder
Using the term “POLICE” on their combat vests is a strategic misrepresentation of the term and what it represents to most citizens. It is meant to confuse people and attribute to ICE Agents, a symbol of powers they do not possess.
Most citizens acknowledge the term “POLICE” and issue it the respect it traditionally demands.
To rectify this purposeful misrepresentation, local and state representatives should pass laws or ordinances forbidding the use of the term “POLICE” by any other entity except those recognized by state and local government bodies.
More than 3,000 ICE “agents” is the size of an Army Brigade. This is not “Law and Order”, this is the occupation of a city by an armed force with orders to kill when necessary. Think Germany in the Thirties…end of story…end of democracy…Cut off all power and water to the ICE staging sites; block access with the biggest damn snowplows you have then send them a utility bill for $10 million due in one hour or get the fu** out of our town…
PaulT says
Hi Florida Voter. That advice might apply in most of the US but the whole of Florida is classified as a border zone.
‘Within 100 miles of any U.S. land or coastal border—including the entire state of Florida—U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents have broad, warrantless authority to stop and search vehicles, vessels, and individuals’.
Of course that shouldn’t mean a gang of masked thugs in an SUV with dark tinted windows should be allowed to terrorize us. We have the right to record interactions and request their ID and it might be wise to call 911 as they approach because as we know the objective of this campaign isn’t just to rid the US of ‘violent criminal illgals’ (their terms not mine).
The object of their violence is to intimidate or provoke a violent reaction so Stephen Miller can scream ‘Insurrection Act’ inDonald Trump’s ear. .
If Miller can’t shut the election down the same masked goons will likely put in an appearance in November at polling stations and ballot boxes all over the country.
Judging by the comments on this site, the right will stay home too scared to risk ‘interfering’ with ‘ICE’ (or any of Trump’s masked paramilitary goons) but they don’t scar us Libs do they, so this could be an interesting year. .