MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – A federal officer shot a man in the leg in Minneapolis on Wednesday after he was attacked with a shovel and a broom handle during an arrest attempt.
Smoke filled the street near the scene of the shooting as federal officers and protesters squared off. A group of officers wearing gas masks and helmets fired tear gas and grenades into the small crowd while protesters threw snowballs and chanted: “Our streets”.
Such scenes have become common on the streets of Minneapolis since the year an immigration agent fatally shot Renee Good January 7th. Agents pulled people out of cars and houses and were confronted by angry bystanders who demanded that the officers pack up and leave.
The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement on the social media platform The person drove off and crashed into a parked car before leaving on foot, DHS said.
After officers reached the subject, two other people from a nearby apartment arrived and all three began attacking the officer, according to DHS.
“Fearing for his life and safety when he was ambushed by three individuals, the officer fired a defensive shot in defense of his life,” DHS said.
Two people who came out of the apartment are in custody, it said.
The city of Minneapolis on X said the man who was shot was in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
“We understand there is anger,” he said. “We ask the public to remain calm.”
The shooting occurred about 4.5 miles (7.2 km) north of where Good was killed.
Clashes in court and on the street
Earlier Wednesday, a judge gave the Trump administration time to respond to a request to suspend its immigration crackdown in Minnesota while the Pentagon sought military lawyers to join what has become a chaotic law enforcement effort in the state.
“What we need more than anything right now is a break. We need to turn the heat down,” Deputy Attorney General Brian Carter said during the first hearing in the lawsuit filed by Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Local leaders say the government is violating free speech and other constitutional rights with an increase in law enforcement. U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez vowed to keep the case “on the front burner” and gave the U.S. Justice Department until Monday to file a response to the request for an injunction.
The judge said these were “serious and important matters” and that there was little legal precedent to apply to some of the key points in the case.
Justice Department lawyer Andrew Warden suggested the approach set by Menendez was appropriate.
The judge is also handling a separate lawsuit challenging the tactics used by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal officers when they encounter protesters and observers. A decision could be made this week.
During a televised address Wednesday night, Gov. Tim Walz described Minnesota as in chaos and said what’s happening in the state “defies belief.”
“Let’s be very, very clear, this stopped being an immigration enforcement issue a long time ago,” he said. “Instead, this is a campaign of organized brutality against the people of Minnesota by our own federal government.”
Walz added that “accountability” will be through the courts.
Military lawyers can join the surge
The Department of Homeland Security says it has done more than 2000 arrested in the state since the beginning of December and promises not to back down. The Pentagon is preparing to send military lawyers to Minneapolis to help them.
Citing an email circulating in the military, CNN says Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth asks branches to identify 40 attorneys known as Judges General Officers, or JAGs, and 25 of them to serve as special assistant U.S. attorneys in Minneapolis.
Pentagon spokesman Kingsley Wilson appeared to confirm the CNN report by posting it on X, commenting that the military “is proud to support” the Justice Department.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to emails from The Associated Press seeking more details.
It’s the latest move by the Trump administration to send military and civilian lawyers to areas where federal immigration operations are underway. The Pentagon sent 20 lawyers to Memphis last week, said U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant.
Mark Nevitt, an associate professor at Emory University Law School and a former Navy JAG, said there are concerns that the assignments are taking lawyers away from the military justice system.
“There are not many JAGs, but there are over a million military personnel and they all need legal support,” he said.
The official says the agent who killed Good was injured
Jonathan Ross, the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who killed Good, suffered internal bleeding in the torso during the encounter, a Homeland Security official told the AP.
The official spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity to discuss Ross’ health. The official did not provide details on the severity of the injury, and the agency did not respond to questions about the extent of the bleeding, exactly how the injury was sustained, when it was diagnosed or his medical care.
There are many causes of internal bleeding and they vary in severity from bruising to significant blood loss. Video from the scene showed Ross and other officers walking without apparent difficulty after Good was shot and her Pilot Honda crashed into other vehicles.
She was killed after three ICE officers surrounded her SUV on a snowy street a few blocks from her home.
Bystander video shows one officer order Good to open the door and grab the handle. As the vehicle begins to move forward, Ross standing in front raises his gun and fires at least three shots at close range. When the SUV drives and turns, it backs off.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Ross was hit by a vehicle and that Good used her SUV as a weapon — a self-defense claim that has been roundly criticized by Minnesota officials.
Chris Madel, an attorney for Ross, declined to comment on any injuries.
“Agent of Peace”
Good’s family has since hired the law firm Romanucci & Blandin to represent George Floyd’s family in a $27 million settlement with Minneapolis. Floyd, who was Black, died after a white police officer pinned his neck to the ground on the street in May 2020.
The firm said Good was following orders to move her car when she was shot. She said she would conduct her own investigation and make public what she found out.
“They don’t want her to be used as a political pawn,” the firm said, referring to Good and her family, “but rather as an agent of peace for all.”
Students march against ICE
Hundreds of teenagers waving “Love Melts ICE” and “DE-ICE MN” signs walked out of a school in St. Paul and marched in freezing temperatures to the state Capitol for a protest and rally.
Meanwhile, the University of Minnesota has notified its more than 50,000 students that there may be online options for some courses when the new semester begins next week. President Rebecca Cunningham noted that “violence and protests have arrived at our doorstep”. The campus is located next to a major Somali neighborhood in Minneapolis.
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By STEVE KARNOWSKI, The Associated Press
Associated Press reporters Julie Watson in San Diego, California; Rebecca Santana in Washington, DC; Ed White in Detroit; Giovanna Dell’Orto in Minneapolis; Graham Lee Brewer in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed.
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