On Thursday, Vice President J.D. Vance offered a strong defense of the federal immigration agent involved in a shooting, maintaining there was no justification to doubt the agent’s conduct, despite video evidence and statements from state and local authorities presenting a more complex and disputed narrative of the events.
Addressing the media from the White House briefing room, Vance labeled the incident “an attack on federal law enforcement” and “an attack on the American people.” He contended that left-wing rhetoric had radicalized a small faction of activists, endangering officers. Raising his voice at points, he denounced media reports that questioned the actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents as “an absolute disgrace” and maintained the officer acted in self-preservation.
“This is a guy who’s actually done a very, very important job for the United States of America,” Vance stated regarding the agent, highlighting that the officer had been hit by vehicles twice in the previous six months, with one incident causing injuries needing over 30 stitches. “He’s been assaulted, he’s been attacked. He’s been injured because of it. He deserves a debt of gratitude.”
According to federal authorities, the officer shot 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good after she purportedly wielded her car as a weapon during what they characterized as a valid law enforcement operation. President Donald Trump reaffirmed this version on social media, labeling the shooting a self-defense measure, while Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem claimed the woman had been “stalking” agents.
However, video of the encounter, which was posted online and authenticated by and other news organizations, casts doubt on the federal account. The video depicts two federal agents attempting to remove Good from a car that was partly obstructing a residential street. The vehicle reverses, then moves forward and starts to turn. A third agent comes into frame, unholsters his weapon and discharges a round, continuing to fire as the car drives by him.
According to witnesses, the gunfire occurred almost instantly after an agent yelled “Stop.”
When challenged by reporters on whether he was prejudging an investigation still in its initial phases, Vance rejected the notion. “What you see is what you get in this case,” he declared, stating that “nobody debates” that Good directed her car at an officer—an assertion that state officials and Democrats have vigorously contested.
At one stage, Vance stated it was a “lie” to portray Good as “some innocent woman,” claiming she had arrived at the location to disrupt federal agents. He escalated his accusations, claiming without proof that she belonged to a “broader left-wing network” dedicated to obstructing, assaulting, and doxxing ICE officers.
Subsequently, after admitting he had viewed the video, Vance tempered his assertiveness somewhat, remarking that he did not know the woman’s intentions or state of mind. “Was she panicking, or was she actually trying to ram him?” he asked. “That’s a reasonable conversation.” Nevertheless, he described her death as “a tragedy of her own making” and “a tragedy of the far left,” suggesting she must have been “brainwashed” or “radicalized” to end up in that scenario.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara stated there was no indication Good was the subject of any law enforcement inquiry. Minnesota authorities confirmed her as the deceased individual and said she was not under suspicion for any crime prior to the confrontation.
Minnesota leaders reacted with fury and concern almost instantly after Good’s death on Wednesday. Democratic Gov. Tim Walz asserted that federal immigration operations had decreased, not increased, his state’s safety and accused the Administration of disseminating propaganda about the shooting. “Don’t believe this propaganda machine,” he .
During a Thursday press conference, Walz recounted what he termed a disturbing absence of compassion at the scene, noting that an individual who identified as a doctor was refused when attempting to offer medical assistance. He also reported that ICE agents later went into a Minnesota school, creating disturbances. “I can’t say this strongly enough,” Walz stated. “I beg you, I implore you, to tell them to stay out of our schools.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey dismissed the federal description of the shooting as “bulls—t” and characterized the event as “an agent recklessly using power that resulted in somebody dying.” Thousands assembled near the shooting location for a vigil Wednesday night, chanting protests against ICE. The site was approximately a mile from where George Floyd was killed by police in 2020.
Local authorities have also expressed worries about the potential for a fair and precise investigation into the shooting, stating on Thursday that federal law enforcement was excluding state investigators from the probe. According to Drew Evans, superintendent of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, the FBI will have sole leadership of the investigation.
This shooting occurs during a wider intensification of immigration enforcement across the country. In the past four months, immigration officers have shot at least nine individuals in five states and Washington, D.C., all cases involving people in vehicles, according to .
During the same White House briefing on Thursday, Vance revealed a separate initiative focused on Minnesota. He announced the White House’s plan to establish a new assistant attorney general role with national jurisdiction to probe and prosecute fraud, starting with claims that childcare centers in Minnesota misappropriated federal funds.
Vance said this official would possess the resources and power of a special counsel but would report directly to him and to Trump. He added that Senate Majority Leader John Thune had assured the nominee would be confirmed quickly.
