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PRST STD U.S.POSTAGE PAID TWIN CITIES MN PERMIT NO. 6391
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THE VOICE OF BLACK MINNESOTA SINCE 1934
January 15 - 21, 2026
Vol. 92
No. 24
Phone: 612-827-4021 www.spokesman-recorder.com
Activists demand arrest Minneapolis civil rights leaders demand firing of BCA chief of Renee Good’s killer By Clint Combs Contributing Writer
executive director of the Min- “It’s hard enough for us to trust nesota chapter of the Council your agency, given that you on American-Islamic Relations have rubber-stamped police ivil rights leaders in (CAIR-MN) Jaylani Hussein, misconduct in the past.” Evans has led the BCA Minneapolis sharply held a Jan. 10 press confercriticized national ence demanding immediate since 2015 and oversees Black commenta- action in the case. The lead- the state agency responsible tors and called for the firing of ers also explicitly rejected in- for investigating police- and Minnesota Bureau of Criminal volvement from national fig- federally involved shootings.
‘Federal officers are not above the law’
Nekima Levy Armstrong, civil rights attorney, speaks outside the Hennepin County Government Center in downtown Minneapolis. Chris Juhn By Clint Combs Contributing Writer ivil rights activists, members of Black Lives Matter Minnesota, and families who have lost loved ones to police violence gathered in Minneapolis to argue that the shooting death of constitutional observer Renee Good reflects a long and painful pattern of state violence. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension announced it could not proceed with its investigation after the U.S. Attorney’s Office blocked
access to evidence. Activists said they reject that explanation. The coalition is calling on the BCA to continue its investigation regardless of federal cooperation. They are also demanding that Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey in coordination with the Minneapolis Police Department, and Gov. Tim Walz launch a local investigation and arrest Jonathan Ross, the federal agent identified by the Star Tribune as the person who shot and killed Good. Speaking outside the Hennepin County Government Center, organizers emphasized
that the presence of federal officers does not eliminate local responsibility. Civil rights attorney and activist Nekima Levy Armstrong outlined what she described as the legal framework that allows state and local authorities to act even when federal agencies refuse to cooperate. “Federal officers are not above the law, and federal employment does not confer immunity from accountability,” Armstrong said. “Local and state authorities have the legal authority to investigate, arrest and charge a federal officer ■ See CIVIL on page 5
Jaylani Hussein, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-MN), speaks Jan. 9 during a Minneapolis protest over the fatal shooting of U.S. citizen Renee Nicole Good by a federal agent. Chris Juhn Apprehension (BCA) Superintendent Drew Evans, accusing him of obstructing the investigation into the shooting death of Renee Good on Saturday. Attorney and activist Nekima Levy-Armstrong and
ures such as Rev. Al Sharpton, The agency has long faced Minister Jamal Bryant, and criticism over its handling of activist Tamika Mallory. police accountability cases, in“Drew Evans, if you will not cluding the investigation into participate in this investiga- the 2016 police killing of Phition, then you deserve to be lando Castile. fired,” Levy-Armstrong said. ■ See FIRED on page 5
Feds block Minnesota Outraged elected officials tell ICE: Leave Minnesota! from investigating ICE killing By Izzy Canizares Contributing Writer United States citizen was shot and killed by federal immigration agents in South Minneapolis the morning of Jan. 7, igniting widespread outrage and renewed demands from city and state leaders for Immigration and Customs Enforcement to leave Minnesota. The shooting occurred near the intersection of 34th Street and Portland Avenue after ICE agents arrived in the neighborhood amid reports of a surge of federal immigration enforcement activity across the state. A viral video recorded Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (left) and Minnesota Sen. Omar by witnesses shows a woman Fateh. Ben Hovland and Kerem Yücel | MPR News in a purple sport utility vehicle stopped in the street as agents ers attempted to provide of one another.” Another witness told reportapproach. An agent is seen at- aid and perform CPR while tempting to open the driver emergency responders were ers she encountered the scene side door and pull her from the en route. Multiple witnesses while driving through the area reported that federal agents and saw blood throughout the vehicle. The woman then attempts threatened those at the scene vehicle and the deployed airto drive away. Another agent and ordered them away from bag. “They were trying to tell me to move out of the way steps in front of the vehicle the vehicle. State Senator Omar Fateh when they had all their trucks and fires several shots through the windshield. The vehicle said agents prevented a doc- blocking me,” she said. Evan Priest, who lives nearstrikes two parked cars and tor who was present from procomes to a stop. Photographs viding care. “I am deeply con- by, said he heard gunshots mofrom the scene show a bullet cerned by reports that a doctor ments before running outside. hole in the windshield on the was denied the ability to pro- “I heard two shots from down vide lifesaving CPR by federal the corner and that is when passenger side. Witnesses said the woman law enforcement,” Fateh said. I came out,” Priest said. “ICE was shot in the face. Bystand- “Please stay safe and take care ■ See ICE on page 5
Protesters stay united, peaceful
By Clint Combs Contributing Writer
contacted her on social media. the road and realized there At the Whipple, she described were other ICE vehicles there,” a similar encounter with federal Phillips said. agents in Richfield last month She said the situation quickwhile monitoring ICE activity. ly escalated, despite no lights “When we were in Richfield or sirens being activated. observing, we were mobile, “The vehicle we had been folcommuting behind some ICE lowing came toward us on the vehicles, which it is legal to fol- wrong side of the road with no low,” Phillips said. lights or sirens, and drove so Video reviewed by the MSR that we had to go backward all shows Phillips approaching a the way to the end of the road. dead-end road while blowing a Then another vehicle was there whistle as an ICE agent drove to block us in. We were surtoward her vehicle the wrong rounded by at least three veway down a one-way street. hicles, and I’d say at least eight “We debated going down it. officers,” Phillips said. We did decide to. And when The encounter ended with ■ See WHIPPLE on page 5 we did, we got to the end of
S. Customs and Border Protection agents arrested three protesters Friday after demonstrators blocked all three entrances to the Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, home to ICE’s Minnesota headquarters. The protest came a day after ICE agent Johnathan Ross shot and killed Renee Good near East 34th Street and Portland Avenue. Minneapolis Public Schools canceled classes district-wide, citing safety concerns after the killing of the 37-year-old constitutional observer and a subsequent raid at Roosevelt High School that evening. Organizers said the demonstration aimed to disrupt ICE operations and called for an end to Operation Metro Surge. Protesters surrounded an ICE vehicle attempting to enter the Fort Snelling parking lot. Minutes later, pepper spray was deployed, and demonstrators were forced back onto the sidewalk. Emily Phillips, a constitutional observer like Good, has been at the Whipple Federal Building nearly daily since September, protesting and shouting at agents as they enter and Activists block all three entrances to the Whipple Federal exit. Phillips said ICE agents Building in Minneapolis during a protest on Jan. 8. know her by name and have Clint Combs/MSR