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keith ellison
Minnesota AG Keith Ellison Calls Trump Officials' Response to Alex Pretti Killing ‘Flat-Out Insane’
"Alex Pretti was killed by DHS agents in broad daylight in front of all of our eyes," said Ellison. "Both the rule of law and the sense of justice we all carry within us demand a full, fair, and transparent investigation into his death."
Jan 26, 2026
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Sunday condemned the Trump administration's response to federal agents' killing of intensive care nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis over the weekend as "flat-out insane," noting that video footage of the shooting discredits the narrative rushed out by top officials.
"This is their employee who they trained—apparently, allegedly,” Ellison, a Democrat, told the Washington Post in an interview. "So for them to jump out there and say, ‘He’s done nothing wrong, the victim is a bad person,’ is flat-out insane and is a complete break with what we consider to be reasonable law enforcement behavior. It fails every test of professionalism.”
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) claimed following the shooting that Pretti "approached US Border Patrol officers with a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun," aiming to "maximum damage and massacre law enforcement." DHS Secretary Kristi Noem declared that "this is a violent riot when you have someone showing up with weapons and are using them to assault law enforcement officers.”
Stephen Miller, the White House deputy chief of staff, described Pretti as a "would-be assassin."
Video footage of the killing quickly exposed the Trump administration's narrative as a demonstrative lie.
"I think that reasonable people watching the video could conclude that [Pretti] had a gun and a holster, that it was taken off of him in plain view on the video, and that after that, he was shot," Ellison told the Post. "I think that a person who saw those things would not be hallucinating."
Ellison is set to appear before a federal judge on Monday as part of Minnesota's lawsuit against the Trump administration over Immigration and Customs Enforcement activities and deadly abuses in the state.
"I share the intense grief and anger of so many that another Minnesotan—Alex Pretti, 37 years old, an ICU nurse who served veterans—was fatally shot during the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge," Ellison said in a statement. "On Monday, my office and I will be in court arguing to end this illegal and unconstitutional occupation of our cities and the terror and violence it’s inflicting. This must stop. Now.”
"The federal government appears to have taken measures that directly led to the destruction of evidence."
In a filing submitted hours after Pretti's killing, Ellison and other Minnesota officials asked a federal court to prevent DHS and the Trump Justice Department from concealing or destroying evidence related to the shooting.
"According to reports, federal personnel may have seized cell phones, taken other evidence from the scene, and detained witnesses," the filing states. "It is unclear whether federal personnel otherwise processed the scene—let alone how carefully. Then just a few hours after the shooting, federal personnel left, allowing the perimeter to collapse and potentially spoiling evidence."
"From a law enforcement perspective, this is astonishing," the filing continues. "The federal government’s actions are a sharp departure from normal best practices and procedure, in which every effort is taken to preserve the scene and the evidence it contains... [T]he federal government appears to have taken measures that directly led to the destruction of evidence."
The US District Court for the District of Minnesota granted the request for a temporary restraining order, ruling that the Trump administration is "enjoined from destroying or altering evidence related to the fatal shooting involving federal officers that took place in or around 26th Street and Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis on January 24, 2026, including but not limited to evidence that Defendants and those working on their behalf removed from the scene and/or evidence that Defendants have taken into their exclusive custody."
Ellison applauded the court's decision, saying in a statement that the ruling protects the integrity of Minnesota's investigation into Pretti's killing.
“Alex Pretti was killed by DHS agents in broad daylight in front of all of our eyes," said Ellison. "Both the rule of law and the sense of justice we all carry within us demand a full, fair, and transparent investigation into his death. We will not settle for less."
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Minnesota Officials Say They 'Will Not Be Intimidated' by Trump DOJ Subpoenas
"This Department of Justice investigation, sparked by calls for accountability in the face of violence, chaos, and the killing of Renee Good, does not seek justice," said Gov. Tim Walz.
Jan 20, 2026
The US Department of Justice on Tuesday subpoenaed top Minnesota officials, including Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, as part of the DOJ's investigation into alleged conspiracy to impede the thousands of federal immigration agents sent to the Twin Cities by President Donald Trump—a probe Walz has condemned as part of a broader trend of the administration "weaponizing the justice system."
Walz—who ran for vice president in 2024—was similarly critical of the grand jury subpoenas, which were also served to state Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, Saint Paul Mayor Kaohly Her, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty, and Ramsey County Attorney John Choi.
"Mr. President, Minnesota invites you to see our values in action," Walz began a lengthy statement shared on social media. "But let me be absolutely clear: The state of Minnesota will not be drawn into political theater. This Department of Justice investigation, sparked by calls for accountability in the face of violence, chaos, and the killing of Renee Good, does not seek justice."
"It is a partisan distraction," Walz declared, detailing how the flood of immigration agents is negatively impacting communities and arguing that the Trump administration should focus on "restoring trust, accountability, and real law and order, not political retaliation."
After US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's Jonathan Ross fatally shot Good earlier this month, Trump and others in his administration called the deceased 37-year-old mother of three a "domestic terrorist" and claimed the ICE officer was acting in self-defense, a narrative betrayed by numerous videos, eyewitness accounts, and detailed analyses of the shooting.
As protesters continued to fill Minnesota's streets, Ellison and the Twin Cities sued the US Department of Homeland Security—which includes Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and ICE—in hopes of ending what the attorney general called a "federal invasion." The ACLU quickly followed with a class action lawsuit aimed at ending DHS agents' unlawful stops and arrests.
In a Tuesday statement about the subpoena, Ellison noted the suit he recently filed on behalf of the state:
Less than two weeks ago, federal agents shot and killed a Minnesotan in broad daylight. Now, instead of seriously investigating the killing of Renee Good, Trump is weaponizing the justice system against any leader who dares stand up to him.
Today, my office has received a criminal grand jury subpoena from the Department of Justice. It is a subpoena for records and documents related to my office's work with respect to federal immigration enforcement, not for me personally. Everything about this is highly irregular, especially the fact that this comes shortly after my office sued the Trump administration to challenge their illegal actions within Minnesota.
Let's be clear about why this is happening: Donald Trump is coming after the people of Minnesota, and I'm standing in his way. I will not be intimidated, and I will not stop working to protect Minnesotans from Trump's campaign of retaliation and revenge."
Frey—who told ICE to "get the fuck out of Minneapolis" after Ross killed Good—said Tuesday that "when the federal government weaponizes its power to try to intimidate local leaders for doing their jobs, every American should be concerned."
"We shouldn't have to live in a country where people fear that federal law enforcement will be used to play politics or crack down on local voices they disagree with," he continued. "In Minneapolis, we won't be afraid. We know the difference between right and wrong, and, as mayor, I'll continue doing the job I was elected to do: keeping our community safe and standing up for our values."
Christina Harvey, executive director of the progressive advocacy group Stand Up America, also asserted that the DOJ's probe "isn't a legitimate search for wrongdoing. It's an attempt to intimidate elected officials who are demanding justice for the killing of Renee Good and trying to protect their communities from Trump's chaotic immigration crackdown."
"Trump is once again weaponizing the DOJ against his political opponents while shielding his own DHS secretary and ICE agents from accountability as they violate due process, use lethal violence against American citizens, and show a clear disregard for human life," she continued. "This administration mistakes bullying for strength and believes it is above the law."
If US Attorney General Pam Bondi "really cared about justice, she'd be investigating the killing of Renee Good," Harvey added, "not harassing public servants for doing their jobs."
News of the subpoenas came as Greg Bovino, commander at large for CBP, and Marcos Charles, executive associate director of ICE, defended federal agents' operations during a Tuesday afternoon press conference, with the former claiming that "what we do is legal, ethical, and moral."
Sharing a video of Bovino's remarks on social media, journalist Aaron Rupar simply said, "Bovino lies shamelessly."
This article has been updated with comment from Stand Up America.
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Judge Rules ICE Cannot Retaliate Against Minnesota Protesters
"This is an important preliminary win for all Minnesotans exercising their constitutional right to peaceful protest and witness," state Attorney General Keith Ellison said.
Jan 17, 2026
Federal officers cannot retaliate against, detain, or attack people who are peacefully protesting and observing immigration enforcement operations in the Minneapolis area, a federal judge ruled on Friday.
The ruling comes a little more than a week after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent Jonathan Ross shot and killed legal observer Renee Nicole Good, supercharging protests against an immigration enforcement operation in the Twin Cities that the Department of Homeland Security claims is its largest ever.
"This is an important preliminary win for all Minnesotans exercising their constitutional right to peaceful protest and witness," Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison wrote on social media in response to the ruling. "Thanks and congratulations to the ACLU and the plaintiffs for standing strong for this bedrock principle."
The ruling was issued by Biden appointee and US District Judge Kate Menendez, who is based in Minneapolis. It restricts federal officers involved in "Operation Metro Surge"—an immigration-enforcement blitz in the Minneapolis area—from retaliating against, arresting or detaining, or targeting with nonlethal munitions such as pepper spray anyone "engaging in peaceful and unobstructive protest activity," including observing ICE operations.
"We are relieved that in Tincher v. Noem et al. the court has issued a preliminary injunction. The ACLU-MN is hopeful that it will prevent further First Amendment violations like the ones that have been harming Minnesotans since the start of 'Operation Metro Surge.'"
Menendez further stipulated that people could not be detained for following ICE and other immigration enforcers with their vehicles if they were not interfering with the agents.
"The act of safely following Covered Federal Agents at an appropriate distance does not, by itself, create reasonable suspicion to justify a vehicle stop," Menendez said.
The ruling is a preliminary injunction in response to Tincher v. Noem et al., a lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota (ACLU-MN) in December 2025 on behalf of six community members who said their constitutional rights were violated by ICE in response to their protests.
Plaintiff Susan Tincher, for example, wrote that she was arrested merely for driving to the place where an ICE operation was taking place.
“I was on a public street,” Tincher in a statement. “I did not cross any lines. I did not interfere with anything. I did not disobey an order. I asked a single question–‘are you ICE?’–and almost immediately, officers rushed me, grabbed me, and slammed me face-first into the snow.”
Since the lawsuit was filed, ICE activity in the Twin Cities continued to escalate, culminating with an influx of 2,000 agents on January 6 and the shooting of Good the next day.
On January 8, the day after Good's murder, the plaintiffs' lawyers sent an emergency letter to the judge urging action.
"Thousands of peaceful observers and protesters turned out in the streets of the Twin Cities in the wake of Ms. Good’s murder," the letter reads in part. "Peaceful observers and protesters turned out again today, they will turn out again tomorrow, and they will continue turning out every day until Operation Metro Surge is over. These Minnesotans who are peacefully exercising their core constitutional rights to speak and gather continue to be met with unconstitutional and terrifying violence at the hands of federal agents on a daily basis, including unwarranted pepper spraying and unfounded arrests... And things appear to be getting worse, not better: Even more federal agents are being deployed to Minnesota at this very moment."
The ACLU-MN applauded the fact that Menendez had moved to restrain ICE.
"We are relieved that in Tincher v. Noem et al. the court has issued a preliminary injunction. The ACLU-MN is hopeful that it will prevent further First Amendment violations like the ones that have been harming Minnesotans since the start of 'Operation Metro Surge,'" the group wrote on social media.
Beyond Good's killing, the ruling follows several other high-profile incidents of ICE violence in Minnesota, including a nonlethal shooting of a man at a traffic stop and the hospitalization of three children after ICE tear-gassed the van they were driving in.
Menendez's decision came the same day that news broke that President Donald Trump's Department of Justice was investigating local leaders who had criticized ICE activity, including Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey.
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