Executed
An ICE Shooting in Minneapolis and the Collapse of Lawful Authority
The glovebox of Renee Good’s car following her death
Legitimacy and accountability are inseparable. In a democracy, law enforcement derives its authority not from weapons or uniforms, but from adherence to the law, internal discipline, and the confidence of the public it serves. When accountability disappears, legitimacy collapses—and what remains is not law enforcement, but coercive force directed at a civilian population.
That is the context in which Americans must understand the killing of Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on January 7, 2025.
ICE agents initiated an armed confrontation with a driver during what appears to have been a chaotic and poorly controlled encounter. The publicly released footage does not capture the moments leading up to the stop, but the seconds before the shooting show armed agents aggressively surrounding a visibly anxious driver while issuing conflicting commands. When the driver attempted to leave the scene, apparently maneuvering away from the agents rather than toward them, an ICE agent fired into the vehicle, killing her.
Renee Good was a mother. She was the only person injured in the incident.
After the shooting, one ICE agent fled the scene. Other agents reportedly prevented a bystander—who identified himself as a physician—from rendering medical assistance. These actions alone raise grave questions about training, discipline, and adherence to basic law-enforcement protocols.
Under normal circumstances, such an incident would trigger the immediate suspension of the involved officers, removal from active duty, and a full, independent investigation.
That is not what happened here.
President Trump and senior administration officials moved with remarkable speed to exonerate the shooter. Trump publicly characterized Good as a “professional agitator” who had “violently, willfully, and viciously” attacked an officer, framing the killing as self-defense. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem echoed that conclusion.
This rapid political exoneration occurred despite contradictory facts. Local authorities confirmed that Renee Good was the only person harmed. Her family has stated that she was not participating in any protest or anti-ICE demonstration, but had just returned from dropping off her six-year-old daughter at school. The available evidence has not been subjected to an independent review, yet the administration declared the matter closed, casting a shadow over the prospect of a fair federal investigation before one could even begin.
This response is not an aberration. Across the country, ICE agents have increasingly engaged in provocative, escalation-driven encounters rather than de-escalation. The pattern bears the hallmarks of top-down encouragement to act aggressively. Training in use-of-force discipline and crisis management appears inadequate. Most dangerously, agents operate with the confidence that political leadership and right-wing media will shield them from consequences, regardless of the outcome. That sense of impunity is corrosive and deadly.
When a federal law-enforcement agency exempts itself from its own rules, disregards established investigative procedures, treats lethal force as presumptively justified, and flouts the law, it forfeits its legitimacy. At that point, reform is no longer optional; it becomes a public-safety imperative.
The consequences of this killing extend far beyond Minneapolis. By closing ranks and absolving the shooter, the administration has sent a clear signal: escalation will be rewarded, not punished. Deadly force against civilians will be excused if it serves political objectives.
Rather than calling for restraint, unity, or a fair investigation, Vice President J.D. Vance took directly to social media to reassure ICE agents that the administration is there for them. This was an unmistakable signal that accountability will not come from within the White House or federal government. Justice may only come, if at all, from State authorities. Vance followed this with an additional post calling Renee Good a “deranged leftist” and repeating the demonstrably false claim that she attempted to ram ICE agents with her vehicle.
Vance is the deranged provocateur.
Vance, who has shown throughout his political career a willingness to subordinate principle to power, stooped lower still: maligning a dead woman, amplifying disinformation, and serving as a megaphone for division, hatred, and violence.
This moment matters because it fits a broader and deeply alarming pattern. President Trump has repeatedly demonstrated a preference for personal loyalty over institutional restraint. ICE, increasingly militarized and insulated from oversight, is becoming something closer to a personal force than a civilian law-enforcement agency. Its activities now extend well beyond immigration enforcement, appearing increasingly focused on inflaming protests and intimidating communities. The prospect of ICE interference at polling locations or in future democratic processes is no longer theoretical.
The predictable response from communities across the country has been public protest against federal law-enforcement abuses. ICE, in turn, has responded not with restraint but with escalation—normalizing the use of force against protesters and accelerating confrontations rather than defusing them. This pattern is dangerous by design: repeated clashes create the very conditions that can be cited to justify deploying the military domestically.
We are entering a dark chapter of American history, one that echoes early stages of authoritarian power consolidation seen elsewhere. The militarization and expansion of ICE bears troubling resemblance to developments in Putin’s Russia, where security forces were fused into the “Rosgvardia” paramilitary force and placed under direct presidential control. That force has since been used to crush dissent at home and terrorize civilians in occupied territories abroad. Just as Rosgvardia answers to Putin, ICE increasingly operates beyond meaningful restraint, formally housed within DHS, but functionally responsive to presidential vendettas.
An America in which the powerful can wield lethal force against the public without consequence is not a democracy. It is not the rule of law, but rule by law enforcement. It is a country governed by fear.
This killing cannot be buried by executive fiat. Minnesota authorities must conduct a full, independent investigation and pursue accountability under state law. Justice must be served. Failure to do so would place not only Minneapolis, but communities across the country, at greater risk.
I call on all Americans of conscience to demand accountability. Citizens cannot be killed and those killings shielded by the badge of law enforcement. Justice for Renee Nicole Good is not only about one family’s loss. It is about whether the rule of law still applies to those who carry a weapon in the name of the state and whether democratic accountability can still restrain power when it turns lethal.
I agree with everything in your post! Thank you! We, the citizens of our country must stand up against this corrupt usurper of our democracy. Resist, fight! Stop this blatant lawless criminal!!
Indivisible Rapid Response Call / Tonight - ICE Execution of Renee Nicole Good
Per Indivisible - About this event: Join us Thursday, January 8th, at 8:00 pm ET / 5:00 pm PT to discuss the killing by ICE in Minneapolis and their lawlessness and harm in communities across the country.
We will talk with local and national leaders and provide concrete next steps on how you can take action.
https://www.mobilize.us/indivisible/event/881793/