State authorities in Minnesota are pursuing multiple investigations targeting federal immigration enforcement officers following controversial operations conducted during the previous Trump administration in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.
Hennepin County officials announced Thursday that they have filed criminal charges against Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Gregory Donnell Morgan Jr., alleging he aimed his firearm at a driver and passenger while on a Minneapolis freeway. According to a local prosecutor, this marks the first criminal prosecution of a federal officer connected to Minnesota’s immigration enforcement operations.
Federal authorities have challenged Minnesota’s legal authority to investigate federal personnel. Despite this pushback, state officials filed a lawsuit last month seeking access to evidence related to three shooting incidents during the enforcement period, two of which resulted in fatalities.
Several major cases remain under review:
On January 24, Pretti, a 37-year-old critical care nurse, was fatally shot by federal officers while participating in demonstrations on a business corridor. Federal officials claimed they fired in self-defense against Pretti, stating he possessed a semi-automatic weapon and was aggressively fighting officers. However, multiple video recordings dispute this account, revealing Pretti held only a cell phone when officers brought him to the ground. Footage shows an officer discovering a pistol in Pretti’s waistband just before a different officer shot him in the back.
The Justice Department confirmed the FBI is conducting a civil rights probe into Pretti’s death, while Customs and Border Protection is performing its own internal review.
On January 7, Good, a 37-year-old mother, was positioned in a residential street with her SUV, sounding her horn, when immigration agents approached her vehicle. As she started moving forward, an ICE agent positioned in front of her car discharged at least two rounds into the vehicle, resulting in Good’s death.
The Department of Homeland Security maintains the incident is still being examined but claims video evidence demonstrates Good interfered with law enforcement activities and used her vehicle as a weapon, prompting the officer’s defensive response.
Acting U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche stated that the department’s Civil Rights Division does not review every police-involved shooting and requires specific conditions and evidence to justify an inquiry.
Sosa-Celis sustained injuries on January 14 when a federal agent shot him in the right leg. Federal authorities initially claimed Sosa-Celis and an associate attacked an ICE officer using a broomstick and snow shovel. However, federal prosecutors subsequently dismissed all charges against both men, and officials launched a criminal probe into whether two immigration officers provided false testimony regarding the shooting.
DHS reported both officers are currently on administrative duty while ICE and DOJ perform a collaborative investigation.
Ramsey County, encompassing St. Paul, is examining federal officers’ January 18 detention of ChongLy “Scott” Thao, a Hmong American resident, for possible kidnapping, burglary and unlawful detention charges.
ICE personnel forced entry into Thao’s St. Paul residence with weapons drawn, then escorted him outside wearing only underwear and a blanket despite frigid weather. The incident was recorded and widely circulated on social media.
Ramsey County Attorney John Choi and Sheriff Bob Fletcher announced Monday they are seeking information from DHS but have been unable to confirm whether ICE officers possessed an arrest warrant for Thao.
DHS responded in a statement that ICE does not engage in kidnapping and characterized the county’s investigation as a political maneuver.
In early March, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty announced her office was examining at least 17 incidents and evaluating potential misconduct charges against federal officers, including Border Patrol official Greg Bovino.
The investigation encompasses an incident where Bovino hurled a smoke device at demonstrators on January 21. Another case from January 7 involved federal agents conducting an arrest near a high school while using chemical agents with students and faculty in the vicinity.
