A sign warning ICE agents is displayed in a restaurant window in Minneapolis, on January 9, 2026.
| Photo Credit: AP
Minnesota authorities on Friday (January 9, 2026) said they were opening their own probe into a U.S. Immigration officer’s fatal shooting of a 37-year-old woman in her car, after some State and local officials criticised the federal government for refusing to cooperate.
Mary Moriarty, the top prosecutor for Minneapolis’ Hennepin County, and the State’s Democratic attorney general, Keith Ellison, said at a press conference that they would collect evidence from Wednesday’s (January 8) shooting, including witness videos and statements.
The announcement came one day after the State’s lead investigative agency, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, said the FBI had reversed its initial cooperation and blocked the BCA from scene evidence, witness interviews and other material.
Ms. Moriarty, a Democrat, said she had concerns that without the involvement of the BCA, her office might not receive enough evidence to decide whether State charges against the officer might be warranted.
The decision could set up separate, parallel probes into the shooting. The FBI, for instance, has taken possession of the woman’s car for forensic analysis, Moriarty said.
U.S. officials, including Vice President J.D. Vance, have dismissed the idea that a federal officer could face State criminal charges, though there is some precedent for such cases. But Moriarty was unequivocal on Friday (January 9).
“To be sure, there are complex legal issues involved when a federal law enforcement officer is involved. But the law is clear: we do have jurisdiction to make this decision,” she said. T
The announcement underscored the extent to which Republican President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in mostly Democratic-run cities – despite the opposition of their mayors – has severely frayed the trust between local and federal officials.
Earlier in the day, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey accused the Trump administration of trying to predetermine the investigation’s outcome by cutting out State authorities.
“This is a time to follow the law,” Mr. Frey, a Democrat, said. “This is not a time to hide from the facts.” Trump administration officials have defended the shooting as self-defense and accused the woman, Renee Good, a U.S. citizen and mother of three, of deliberately aiming her car at the officer in an act of “domestic terrorism” – a narrative described by Mr. Frey as “garbage.” In Portland, Oregon, on Thursday (January 8) afternoon, a U.S. Border Patrol agent shot and wounded a man and woman in their car after an attempted vehicle stop.
As in Minnesota, the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement that the driver “weaponized” the car in an effort to run over the agent, who fired in self-defence.
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson, echoing Mr. Frey, said he could not be sure the government’s account was grounded in fact until an independent investigation took place.
“There was a time when we could take them at their word,” Wilson, a Democrat, said of federal officials. “That time is long past.”
Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield told CNN on Friday morning that there is cooperation between federal and State investigators so far but that it was too early to draw any conclusions.
The two shootings have drawn thousands of protesters in Minneapolis, Portland and other U.S. cities, with more demonstrations expected over the weekend. In Minnesota, Democratic Governor Tim Walz has put the State’s National Guard on alert.
Published – January 10, 2026 04:50 am IST
