President Donald Trump's administration has officially denied law enforcement officials in Minnesota access to evidence related to the fatal shooting of Minneapolis intensive care nurse Alex Pretti last month.
In a Monday announcement, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) revealed that the FBI on Friday delivered a formal notification informing the agency that will not receive "access to any information or evidence that it has collected" related to Pretti's shooting at the hands of federal immigration enforcement officials.
BCA described the refusal to share evidence as "concerning and unprecedented," but it vowed to conduct a "thorough, independent, and transparent" investigation into the Pretti shooting "even if hampered by a lack of access to key information and evidence."
In addition to requesting evidence gathered in the Pretti shooting, the BCA reiterated its call for federal law enforcement to share whatever evidence it has collected in relation to last month's fatal shooting of Minneapolis mother Renee Good and the shooting of Venezuelan immigrant Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis.
"BCA investigations of these incidents continue," the agency vowed. "The BCA will present its findings without recommendation to the appropriate prosecutorial authorities for review."
Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz slammed the Trump administration for denying his state's officials access to evidence, and he demanded a real investigation into Pretti's killing.
"Minnesota needs impartial investigations into the shootings of American citizens on our streets," he wrote in a social media post. "Trump’s left hand cannot investigate his right hand. The families of the deceased deserve better."
In a Sunday interview with CBS News Minnesota, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty revealed that her office was not getting any help from the federal government in its investigation into the Pretti shooting, though she said her team was continuing to gather evidence and interview witnesses.
Moriarty emphasized that her office, which is currently working with the Minnesota BCA in its investigation, can bring criminal charges against federal immigration officers if they have enough evidence to do so, even without the cooperation of the Trump administration.
