(MINNEAPOLIS) — Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem doubled down on Thursday on her claim that an ICE officer shot 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good in self-defense during a confrontation in Minneapolis, dismissing denials from Minnesota leaders as protests over the killing continued to grow.
At a Department of Homeland Security press conference, Noem said Good had been
“stalking and impeding” ICE officers in Minneapolis “all throughout the day,” blocked them in with her vehicle, and refused repeated commands to get out of the car and stop obstructing law enforcement.
Noem said Good then
“proceeded to weaponize her vehicle” and “attempted to run a law enforcement officer over,” calling it “an attempt to kill or to cause bodily harm to agents, an act of domestic terrorism.”
“The ICE officer, fearing for his life and the other officers around him and the safety of the public, fired defensive shots. He used his training to save his own life and that of his colleagues,” Noem said.
The account has been sharply disputed by Minnesota officials, who have said video of the shooting contradicts the federal narrative and have accused the Trump administration of trying to inflame tensions.
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rejected Noem’s description after viewing video of the shooting.
“They are already trying to spin this as an action of self-defense… Having seen the video myself, I wanna tell everybody directly, that is bullshit,” Frey said.
Frey also told ICE to “get the f— out” of Minneapolis and called the claims about the driver “b——-.”
Noem responded directly when asked about Frey’s remarks, including his description of the self-defense claim as “BS.”
“I say that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. It’s very clear that this individual was harassing and impeding law enforcement operations. Our officer followed his training, did exactly what he’s been taught to do in that situation and took actions to defend himself and defend his fellow law enforcement officers,” she said.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has also pushed back against the DHS and White House narrative, calling it “propaganda” and preparing the National Guard amid unrest.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said he was “heartbroken” but also “angry. Very angry,” accusing the Trump administration of “weaponizing the federal government against the people of Minnesota.”
President Donald Trump backed Noem, posting that the woman “violently, willfully, and viciously ran over the ICE Officer, who seems to have shot her in self defense.”
Noem framed the Minneapolis shooting as part of what she described as a broader pattern of threats against immigration officers, saying ICE is facing a 1300% increase in assaults and an 8,000% increase in death threats.
She also said the same officer involved in the shooting had previously been “dragged by an anti-ICE rioter who had rammed him with a car and drug him back in June.”
Federal officials have offered limited information beyond Noem’s description. The FBI has said only that the incident is “under review” and that it is working with law enforcement partners.
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The shooting officer’s name has not been released.
Noem said the FBI is leading the investigation and that DHS is following “standard protocol procedures” for such shootings.
Declining to provide further detail on the agent’s injuries, Noem said,
“the FBI will continue the investigation and release more facts when it’s appropriate.”
State officials have complained they are being sidelined from the federal inquiry, and video circulating from the scene has been cited by critics as contradicting the federal self-defense narrative.
The dispute has widened beyond Minneapolis as Noem has used the killing and the backlash to argue for tougher immigration enforcement and against sanctuary policies.
The day after her Minneapolis appearance, Noem reiterated in New York City that the killing was a justified act of self-defense amid questions from reporters, while attacking local leaders’ criticism.
Noem’s depiction centers on a daylong confrontation that she said ended when Good used her vehicle against officers, a claim she has characterized as “domestic terrorism.”
Frey and other Minnesota leaders, in contrast, have publicly called the self-defense claim false and inflammatory, with Walz and Ellison casting the federal account as part of a political effort by the Trump administration.
The competing narratives have left key points contested, including what the video shows and how the federal investigation is being conducted.
As the investigation proceeds, the only formal public position from the FBI has been that the case is “under review,” with the agency working alongside law enforcement partners.
Noem has continued to argue that the officer’s actions were consistent with training and necessary to protect lives in a moment she described as a deadly threat.
“Our officer followed his training, did exactly what he’s been taught to do in that situation and took actions to defend himself and defend his fellow law enforcement officers,” she said.
Frey has continued to press his own viewing of video as the basis for his rejection of Noem’s account.
“They are already trying to spin this as an action of self-defense… Having seen the video myself, I wanna tell everybody directly, that is bullshit,” he said.
Ellison, describing his reaction in emotional terms, said he was “heartbroken” but also “angry. Very angry,” and accused the administration of “weaponizing the federal government against the people of Minnesota.”
Trump’s statement aligned with Noem’s claim that the shooting was an act of self-defense, writing that the woman “violently, willfully, and viciously ran over the ICE Officer, who seems to have shot her in self defense.”
Noem’s own language has gone further, asserting that using a vehicle in the confrontation amounted to “an attempt to kill or to cause bodily harm to agents, an act of domestic terrorism.”
In Minneapolis, the rhetoric has collided with mounting public anger and protests over the death of Renee Nicole Good, while state leaders have criticized federal immigration operations and demanded accountability.
Frey’s message to ICE was blunt. He told the agency to “get the f— out” of Minneapolis.
Walz’s decision to prepare the National Guard came as he denounced the federal narrative as “propaganda” amid unrest tied to the shooting.
Noem has not provided additional detail about the agent’s injuries, and she has said the FBI will decide when to release more information.
“The FBI will continue the investigation and release more facts when it’s appropriate,” she said.
Create alerts for updates from the FBI and ICE on this case, noting that officials say the investigation is ongoing and more facts will be released through proper channels.
The disagreement between federal and Minnesota officials has become part of the political struggle over immigration enforcement, with Noem pointing to what she called rising attacks and threats against ICE.
Her claims included a 1300% increase in assaults and an 8,000% increase in death threats, figures she cited as she argued that ICE officers face escalating danger.
By tying the Minneapolis shooting to those figures and to her description of a prior incident in which she said the same officer was “dragged by an anti-ICE rioter who had rammed him with a car and drug him back in June,” Noem sought to portray Good’s killing as part of a broader climate of violence around immigration operations.
Minnesota officials have taken the opposite view, saying the federal government is shaping public perception through inflammatory language and limiting the state’s role in finding out what happened.
The FBI’s statement that the incident is “under review” has left a gap filled by competing assertions from Washington and Minnesota, as protests continue and video remains central to the argument.
Noem, asked about criticism from local leaders, has made clear she will not retreat from her account of the confrontation in Minneapolis.
“I say that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” she said of Frey, as she insisted that the killing of Renee Nicole Good was an act of self-defense by an officer she said faced a deadly threat.
Noem pointed to what she characterized as growing risks for immigration officers, saying that ICE officers face escalating danger.
Secretary Kristi Noem maintains that an ICE officer was justified in shooting Renee Nicole Good, citing a ‘weaponized vehicle’ and calling the act domestic terrorism. This account is fiercely contested by Minnesota officials who claim video evidence contradicts the federal story. The dispute has sparked protests, led to National Guard deployment, and highlighted a deep political rift between federal immigration enforcement and state leadership.
