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Good was killed by ICE officer Jonathan Ross while driving away from federal officers, according to bystander video. Trump officials have sought to paint her as the aggressor and said Ross acted in self-defense.
David Zalubowski / AP Photo
Renee Good’s family is suing the Trump administration and several federal officials over her fatal shooting by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer during an operation in Minneapolis in January, her family announced on Thursday.
In two civil lawsuits filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota, Good’s family asserts a wrongful death claim against the United States and accuses federal officials and immigration enforcement agents of violating her civil rights, respectively.
White House aide Stephen Miller, former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and her former aide Corey Lewandowski, former Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino, and ICE agent Jonathan Ross, who killed Good, are named as defendants in the second lawsuit.
The lawsuits come almost nine months after Good, a 37-year-old mother, was shot and killed in her car as she attempted to drive away from ICE officers, bystander video showed. The Trump administration, however, characterized her as the aggressor and said Ross shot her — repeatedly — in self-defense. The Department of Homeland Security said it launched an investigation into the shooting, but no details or updates have been released, and the status of that investigation is unclear.
The Justice Department declined to launch a separate probe at the time, and instead tried to investigate Good for possible criminal liability.
“What happened to us should never happen to any family,” Becca Good said in a statement. “Accountability — real accountability — is the only way to make sure that no other family has to go through what we have.”
Good’s killing led to an outpouring of anger across Minneapolis, which had already been bristling against the presence and conduct of thousands of federal officers involved in the operation. Less than three weeks after Good was killed, ICE agents fatally shot another Minneapolis-area resident, Alex Pretti.
Shortly after, President Donald Trump replaced Bovino with his border czar, Tom Homan, who announced a wind-down of the operation in February.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.
