Where things stand
• In court in nurse’s killing: A federal court hearing is set for today after a judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking federal agencies from destroying or altering evidence related to the fatal shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti in an encounter Saturday with federal agents.
• Few details back claims: Federal officials have declined to provide critical details substantiating their claim an agent shot Pretti in self-defense. Lawmakers, including some Republicans, want the shooting investigated. Read CNN’s fact check of the Trump administration’s claims, and watch analysis of videos taken from several angles.
• Hearing on ICE ops: A judge separately will hear arguments today on whether to temporarily halt the immigration crackdown in Minnesota that’s part of the Trump administration’s nationwide enforcement crackdown. While federal officials are concerned about scenes playing out in Minnesota, they have no plans to change posture, sources familiar say.
How the immigration crackdown has unfolded in the Twin Cities
A surge of federal immigration officers in Minnesota has left the Midwestern state on edge for weeks, with Saturday’s fatal shooting of Alex Pretti marking the second time a US citizen has been shot and killed by federal agents this month.
The Trump administration launched Operation Metro Surge, an immigration crackdown in the Twin Cities, in December. Officials said they were targeting undocumented Somali residents.
Here’s how things have developed since:
- Before Operation Metro Surge was launched, Minnesota’s government was facing accusations of widespread fraud involving state social service programs. In November, President Donald Trump announced that he was terminating temporary protected status for Somalis living in Minnesota.
- A few days later, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said his department would investigate whether Minnesota tax dollars may have been diverted to the terrorist organization Al-Shabaab, a Somali militant group and US-designated foreign terrorist organization. His comment was in response to an article published by conservative magazine City Journal that claimed this was occurring.
- At the same time, Operation Metro Surge was announced.
- Some weeks later, a YouTuber claimed in a widely circulated video to have uncovered widespread fraud at Somali-run child care centers. He offered little evidence to prove this. The video was amplified by right-wing figures including Elon Musk, Vice President JD Vance and FBI Director Kash Patel.
- In early January, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz dropped his reelection bid for a third term amid the welfare-fraud scandal, saying he needed to place the needs of the state’s residents over waging political battles.
- Days later, 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good was killed by an ICE agent in Minneapolis. The Department of Homeland Security claimed Good was attempting to run over officers with her car. State and local officials disputed that description of events, and law enforcement experts questioned the agent’s tactics. View CNN’s analysis of video from the shooting here.
- A week after the fatal shooting of Good, a Venezuelan man was shot in the leg by an ICE officer, also in Minneapolis. According to the DHS, federal agents were conducting a “targeted traffic stop” when a man resisted arrest and started to “violently assault” one of its officers. The federal government’s narrative could not immediately be verified by CNN.
- On Saturday morning, 37-year-old Alex Pretti was shot dead in Minneapolis. The DHS said Pretti was armed and that he “violently resisted” attempts by federal law enforcement to disarm him. Walz described the DHS’ recounting of the incident as “nonsense” and “lies,” and federal officials have failed to provide evidence and respond to key questions when presented with CNN analysis of videos from the shooting.
CNN’s Danya Gainor, Priscilla Alvarez, Alejandra Jaramillo, Samantha Waldenberg, Holmes Lybrand, Chris Boyette, Jeff Zeleny, Amanda Musa, Karina Tsui, Holly Yan, Jeff Winter, Rob Kuznia and Betsy Klein contributed to this reporting,
Fatal shooting of Alex Pretti was "cold-blooded murder," civil rights attorney says
The fatal shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti was “cold-blooded murder,” a civil rights attorney told CNN, adding the deceased has become the victim of a smear campaign laboring to conceal the unlawful action of at least one ICE agent.
“What we see from the various videos that have been circulated is a man who was exercising his First Amendment rights to protest,” lawyer Areva Martin told Polo Sandoval on “CNN Newsroom.”
“We have been told (Pretti) had a license to carry that gun,” she said, emphasizing he was allowed to carry it. “He was shot after the gun was removed while he was pinned to the ground.”
“There’s nothing in the videos, nothing from any of the witnesses’ statements that would justify what appears to be just a cold-blooded murder,” Martin said.
Martin criticized the Trump administration’s response to Pretti’s death, calling its language inflammatory. “We’re watching this smear campaign … saying that he had the intention to massacre ICE agents,” she said, adding the claims contradict what the readily available footage of the incident indicates.
“I’m not aware of any federal law that prevents a protester … from using a whistle. There’s no indication that that’s a violation of any kind of Minnesota law,” Martin said. “These aren’t laws … These are statements … contradictory statements, in most cases made by this administration, to justify the shooting of unarmed victims.”
Federal officials have declined to provide critical details substantiating their claim an agent shot Pretti in self-defense.
Gun rights groups and legal experts question Trump administration’s Second Amendment stance
Claims by Trump administration officials that Alex Pretti, who was fatally shot by a federal agent in Minneapolis, lacked the right to possess a firearm and that his killing was justified are being dismissed by legal experts and assailed by gun rights groups ordinarily aligned with the president.
The rhetoric from Trump law enforcement officials, including his FBI director and the top Border Patrol agent, goes against the decadeslong GOP effort to throttle gun control rules.
Read more here about Minnesota’s gun laws and what gun rights groups have to say.
Anti-ICE imagery projected onto Los Angeles detention center
Anti-ICE imagery was projected onto the facade of the Metropolitan Detention Center in Los Angeles on Saturday, as this video from street art collective VJayBombs shows.
The image depicts a blindfolded federal agent wearing an ICE badge on his shoulder shooting toward text at the bottom of the image, which changes with each bullet impact. The text cycles through phrases, including: our freedoms, our goodness, our safety, our empathy, our brothers, our sisters.
The video made the rounds on social media over the weekend, as tensions remained high around the country following the killing of Alex Pretti by a Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis on Saturday.
VJayBombs said it chose the building because it is Los Angeles’ main detention center, adding: “We’re at a turning point right now in this country. People need to wake up. This is not normal.”
CNN has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Prisons for comment.
Analysis: Another Minnesota shooting turns immigration crackdown into a national reckoning
Another fatal shooting in Minnesota by federal agents shows President Donald Trump’s crackdown has gone far beyond undocumented immigrants.
The surge of federal force to Minneapolis is testing long-held understandings of constitutional rights and the restraint, humanity and accountability owed to the governed by those who govern them in a democratic society.
By insisting that details of two killings that millions of Americans saw on cell phone videos did not take place, senior administration officials are fracturing reality and implying that their brazen power can be wielded with impunity.
And by prejudging and distorting the tragedy in its immediate aftermath, the officials have prejudiced an investigation they will conduct into one of the gravest events that can happen in a republic: government law enforcement killing a citizen.
Why it matters that officials have claimed without offering evidence that Alex Pretti “brandished” a weapon
Federal officials have claimed Alex Pretti, who was fatally shot by at least one Border Patrol agent in Minneapolis Saturday, “brandished” a firearm to officers.
“This individual went and impeded their law enforcement operations, attacked those officers, had a weapon on him and multiple dozens of rounds of ammunition, wishing to inflict harm on these officers, coming, brandishing like that,” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Saturday.
In addition to the common meaning of the phrase, brandishing a weapon is also a criminal charge with a legal definition. A person can meet the definition of brandishing without even showing the gun, but given how quickly officials made that claim, it’s “implausible” DHS had time to do an investigation that would be thorough enough to support that claim, a policing expert said.
It is possible to “brandish” a weapon without holding it, according to Seth Stoughton, policing expert and law professor at the University of South Carolina, who responded to CNN’s questions over email.
Stoughton said he has seen no evidence to support Noem’s description that Pretti was “brandishing” the firearm and notes Noem did not provide any.
Trump pushes blame to Democrats in aftermath of shootings
President Donald Trump is turning to a familiar playbook in the aftermath of the second deadly shooting of a US citizen by a federal officer in recent weeks: blame Democrats.
Trump issued a lengthy post to social media Sunday evening railing against the immigration policies of his predecessor, former President Joe Biden, and what he described as “Democrat failed leadership.”
But it underscored the deepening rift between his administration and Minnesota and Minneapolis’ governments as Trump suggested that Democratic policies were to blame for the shootings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti.
“Democrat run Sanctuary Cities and States are REFUSING to cooperate with ICE, and they are actually encouraging Leftwing Agitators to unlawfully obstruct their operations to arrest the Worst of the Worst People!” Trump said.
Trump went on to issue a series of demands, charging Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, and their Democratic counterparts across the country to “to formally cooperate with the Trump Administration to enforce our Nation’s Laws, rather than resist and stoke the flames of Division, Chaos, and Violence.”
Among the demands: turn over currently-incarcerated illegal immigrants in state prisons and jails to federal authorities, turn over illegal immigrants arrested by local police, require local police to assist federal law enforcement in “apprehending and detaining Illegal Aliens who are wanted for Crimes,” and “partner with the Federal Government to protect American Citizens in the rapid removal of all Criminal Illegal Aliens in our Country.”
He also called for the end of sanctuary city policies.
For context: As we’ve reported, at a news conference yesterday, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz rejected the Trump administration’s request to repeal so-called sanctuary policies and share Medicaid, food assistance and voter data with the federal government.
Democrats in Minnesota reject Trump administration's request to turn over voter rolls
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz rejected the Trump administration’s request to repeal so-called sanctuary policies and share Medicaid, food assistance and voter data with the federal government to “bring an end to the chaos in Minnesota.”
“It’s not a serious attempt,” Walz said earlier yesterday during a news conference.
Attorney General Pam Bondi sent a letter to Walz on Saturday urging him to repeal sanctuary policies and to allow the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division to access the state’s voter rolls.
President Donald Trump yesterday reiterated the demands, calling for Minnesota Democrats “to formally cooperate with the Trump Administration to enforce our Nation’s Laws, rather than resist and stoke the flames of Division, Chaos, and Violence.”
Other state officials criticized the letter, with Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon calling it “deeply disturbing.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar, who represents Minneapolis, wrote in a post, “This was never about immigration or fraud. It was always about rigging elections.”
The Democratic National Committee also accused Noem of “attempting to extort” voter rolls from Minnesota.
Here's what we know about the probe into the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti
Federal officials have released few details about the investigation into the fatal shooting of ICU nurse and US citizen Alex Pretti, even as they continue to publicly defend the agents involved.
Here’s what we know:
Bovino provides little information to substantiate agency claims
Yesterday, Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Greg Bovino declined to provide details on the probe, saying, “The investigation is going to uncover all those facts, things like how many shots were fired, where were the weapons located.”
Pressed on the Department of Homeland Security’s claim Pretti was “brandishing” a weapon, Bovino said Pretti had a gun and faulted him for approaching agents.
Bovino also sparred with critics on social media, saying “attacking law enforcement is not a right like you want it to be,” and accusing them of “spreading lies and fueling violence,” among other comments.
Trump administration officials have sought to cast Pretti as a violent agitator. But video analyzed by CNN does not capture Pretti acting violently or holding the handgun that a federal officer removed from his waistband seconds before he was killed.
CNN’s Dana Bash pressed Bovino about the videos that appear to contradict the DHS account of the shooting:
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara has said Pretti was believed to be a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry.
Local probe and legal action
Following the shooting, state officials said Minnesota’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) was denied access to the scene by DHS agents multiple times, even after securing a signed search warrant.
When FBI officials left after evaluating Saturday’s crime scene, state and local police were unable to hold that scene and it was overrun by protesters, preventing the BCA from conducting its own examination, officials said.
BCA agents were on site Sunday, collecting evidence and canvassing neighborhoods.
A temporary restraining order is in place to ensure federal agencies preserve evidence that could later be turned over to state investigators. The BCA and the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office requested the order after suing the Trump administration to prevent the tampering and destruction of evidence.
Court hearings on the temporary restraining order and the lawsuit against the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown will take place on Monday.
Alex Pretti was fatally shot by federal agents in Minneapolis. Here's the latest
ICU nurse Alex Pretti was killed during an encounter with federal agents in Minneapolis, a city already reeling from two other shootings by federal law enforcement this month.
Federal officials claim the agent shot Pretti in self-defense but CNN analysis of video taken at the scene appears to show a federal immigration officer removing a gun from Pretti just prior to him being fatally shot.
If you’re just joining us, here’s what we know about the incident:
- What led to the shooting: The incident took place on Saturday at around 9 a.m. local time on a part of Nicollet Avenue known as Eat Street, a block lined with restaurants. DHS said that agents were conducting a targeted operation against an undocumented immigrant “wanted for violent assault” when an “individual approached US Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun.” A person allegedly being chased by federal officers ran into a nearby doughnut shop, according to a witness. People inside locked the door after him.
- The shooting: Observers gathered outside the shop. According to video and witness accounts, Pretti is seen holding what appears to be his phone, presumably recording the federal agents. An agent pushes another bystander to the ground and Pretti then moves toward the agent. The agent grabs Pretti and sprays him with a chemical irritant. Pretti appears to try to help one of the other bystanders to her feet. Agents then try to separate Pretti from the bystander and wrestle him to the ground. At least one officer can be heard shouting, “He’s got a gun,” as an officer reaches into Pretti’s waistband. An officer appears to walk away holding Pretti’s weapon, and then a shot rings out, followed by at least nine more.
- Who was Alex Pretti: The 37-year-old worked as an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, his parents said in a statement. Pretti put himself through medical school by working at the local VA, then joined the staff after graduating, according a co-worker. They said Pretti researched ways to prevent veterans from dying from colon cancer.
