Justice Department officials said on Jan. 13 there is "no basis" for an investigation into the killing of Renee Nicole Good, the mother of three whose fatal shooting by an immigration enforcement agent sparked protests across the country.
"There is currently no basis for a criminal civil rights investigation," Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement referring to Good.
The 37-year-old was fatally shot on Jan. 7 in Minneapolis, Minnesota by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Jonathan Ross, when she moved her car forward near the ICE agent. Her death has inspired widespread protests against the Trump administration’s militarized use of the Department of Homeland Security.
President Donald Trump defended Ross, saying it was "hard to believe" the officer survived. Top administration officials say the controversial crackdown on immigration enforcement is necessary to root out foreign-born criminals from the country. Homeland Security’s deployment to Minnesota came in response to massive fraud in social welfare programs officials say is tied to Somali immigrants.
Good’s killing and widely circulated footage of the incident stirred immediate outrage. Prominent Democrats called for Ross to be arrested and moved to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. A new national poll conducted in the days after the shooting found that over half of American voters thought the shooting was unjustified.
