Minneapolis shooting latest: Trump urged to pull federal agents from state as family of Alex Pretti demand ‘truth’
Trump has accused state officials of preventing local police from protecting ICE officers in Minnesota
The family of a man shot and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis Saturday has denounced the “sickening lies” of the Trump administration as state and federal officials remain divided about the investigation into his death.
Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse and American citizen, became the second protester in Minneapolis to be shot and killed in less than three weeks, after a federal agent fatally shot Renee Nicole Good, 37, earlier this month.
Federal officials accused Pretti of attempting to assassinate officers with a pistol. However, videos taken by eyewitnesses do not show Pretti pointing or drawing any weapon or threatening officers.
His family slammed the Trump administration’s response to the shooting, writing in a statement, “The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting.
"Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs.”
State officials said that federal agents had obstructed their access as they sought to investigate the crime scene. Minneapolis police chief Brian O’Hara said Pretti was a “lawful gun owner” with a permit.
Governor Tim Walz has said that the state must be allowed to have control over the investigation into his death.
“Minnesota’s justice system will have the last word on this.”
ICU nurse with no criminal record who ‘cared deeply for people’: What we know about Alex Pretti, victim of DHS shooting
How an anti-ICE protester came to be shot dead by federal agents – the second fatal shooting in Minneapolis in weeks
Protester shot dead by federal agents in Minneapolis was an ‘American citizen’ and licensed gun owner, city officials say
Videos show deadly Minneapolis shooting and political leaders reach different conclusions
Police Chief says residents, department has 'had enough'
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said Sunday that residents — and his police department — “have had enough.”
“This police department has only 600 police officers. We are stretched incredibly thin. This has taken an enormous toll trying to manage all of this chaos on top of trying to be the police department for a major city,” O’Hara told CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday.
O’Hara noted that he has received no official information from the federal government related to Saturday’s shooting.
“Even when our officers initially responded to the scene, our watch commander was not given even the most basic information that is typical in a law enforcement-involved shooting,” he said.
While the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension was blocked from the scene of the shooting Saturday by federal officials, they were allowed access Sunday to canvas for witnesses.
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar says she will vote against DHS funding
Senator Amy Klobuchar, a Democrat from Minnesota, says she will not vote for Department of Homeland Security funding following the latest fatal shooting of an American by a federal agent in Minneapolis.
“When they’re killing two constituents in my state, and they’re taking 2-year-olds out of the arms of their mom, and they are taking an elder Hmong man out of his house and putting him out there in his underwear, and then figuring out they have the wrong man,” Klobuchar said on NBC’s Meet the Press, adding, “no, I am not voting for this funding.”
Several other Democrats have also vowed that they would vote against DHS funding until restrictions on federal immigration enforcement operations are implemented.
The bill would need several Democratic votes to pass. The Senate is expected to consider the measure this week.
If it does not pass, the government could enter a partial shutdown.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Saturday that Democrats would oppose the legislation, despite the risk of a shutdown.
“What’s happening in Minnesota is appalling — and unacceptable in any American city. Democrats sought common sense reforms in the Department of Homeland Security spending bill, but because of Republicans’ refusal to stand up to President Trump, the DHS bill is woefully inadequate to rein in the abuses of ICE. I will vote no,” Schumer said.
Gov. Tim Walz urges Trump to pull federal agents from Minnesota 'before they kill another American in the street'
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz urged President Donald Trump on Sunday to pull federal agents from Minnesota.
Walz took to social media Sunday, one day after the fatal shooting of 37-year-old ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.
“Minnesota believes in law and order. We believe in peace. And we believe that Trump needs to pull his 3,000 untrained agents out of Minnesota before they kill another American in the street,” Walz wrote on X.
Trump-appointed judge blocks Trump administration from 'destroying or altering' evidence
A federal judge appointed by President Donald Trump has blocked the administration from “destroying or altering” evidence related to the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti.
U.S. District Judge Eric Tostrud approved a request Saturday from Minnesota’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) and Hennepin County prosecutors to prevent the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies from altering evidence.
Earlier Saturday, BCA Superintendent Drew Evans said the state’s safety agency was shut out of an investigation into the shooting of Pretti.
“We’re in uncharted territory here,” Evans said during a press conference.
“It’s been a long-standing understanding, both within our state and across the country, that entities like the BCA that conduct 80-plus percent of officer-involved shootings across the United States are asked to do these investigations of federal agents involved in officer-involved shootings,” said, adding that “others outside the state” have blocked the agency’s involvement in the investigation.
VA doctor remembers Alex Pretti as 'kind' and 'helpful': 'He was always willing to help'
A doctor who worked alongside Alex Pretti at the VA Medical Center in Minneapolis remembered him as someone who would always go out of his way to help others: “He was always willing to help.”
“He was energetic, he was kind. He was always quick to have a joke or a laugh,” Dr. Dimitri Drekonja, an infectious disease physician, told PEOPLE.
“He was very capable. When he gave a summary of the shift … [he] had all the information at his fingertips. He would tell me how the family was doing. He was a very, very skilled nurse,” Drekonja added.
The 51-year-old doctor said the “biggest thing” he wanted the public to know about Pretti was “that this was a kind and helpful guy — and nothing over the years that I knew him contradicted that. He was always willing to help. Whether it was a small task, whether it was patient care, whether it was, ‘Hey, I can give you a ride over, we're gonna meet for drinks after work.’ He was just a really kind guy.”
“It’s just been gutting,” Drekonja added, later noting that the staff at the medical center want people to know that Pretti “was a good person.”
“He was such a nice guy,” Drekonja added.
Pretti had been a registered nurse since January 2021. He previously worked at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
American Nurses Association 'deeply disturbed and saddened' by shooting
The American Nurses Association, which represents over five million registered nurses, says it was “deeply disturbed and saddened” to learn of the death of Alex Pretti, a registered nurse in Minneapolis who was shot dead by a federal agent Saturday.
Pretti, 37, worked as an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital.
“The American Nurses Association (ANA) is deeply disturbed and saddened to learn of the death of Alex Pretti, a registered nurse, in Minneapolis earlier today. We extend our condolences to Alex’s loved ones, colleagues, and the community at large.”
ANA condemns violence in our communities. The seriousness of this incident and others demand transparency and accountability. ANA calls for a full, unencumbered investigation, and urges that findings be shared promptly and clearly so Alex’s loved ones and the public have answers.
One in four nurses already experience workplace violence. As incidents with federal law enforcement continue to rise across the country, we are deeply concerned for the safety of nurses, both on the job and in the communities they serve.
“Nurses are advocates for the safety and well-being of their communities. They enter this profession to heal, to protect human life, and to show up for people in their most vulnerable moments. ANA remains committed to preventing violence in the workplace and in our communities, and to advancing meaningful protections that safeguard healthcare workers and the public.”
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche less willing to blame victim for shooting
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche seemed less willing than other Trump administration officials to blame the victim for the shooting in Minneapolis.
“You cannot look at a 10-second video and judge what happened,” Blanche said on NBC’s Meet the Press Sunday morning.
Blanche noted that an investigation was underway.
GoFundMe set up for Pretti's loved ones receives over $400,000 in donations
A GoFundMe set up to benefit Alex Pretti’s family has received just over $400,000 in donations as of Sunday morning.
Organizer Keith Edwards said Pretti “was executed on the streets of Minneapolis by ICE agents.”
“This fundraiser is intended to support the loved ones he leaves behind with immediate and ongoing needs. Because details are still unfolding, and to ensure the money goes to the right person, funds will not be distributed until we can verify next-of-kin and identify the appropriate family representative to manage anything raised,” the fundraiser notes.
“If, for any reason, the funds cannot be transferred to Alex’s family, we will direct the total amount to the Immigrant Defense Project, a nonprofit that provides litigation, advocacy, and community-defense resources to help immigrants defend their rights and fight deportation.”
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