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Tag: United States Department of Homeland Security

  • Senate fails to advance DHS funding, teeing up partial shutdown as deal remains out of reach

    Washington — Unless there’s a last-minute breakthrough, another partial government shutdown is due to begin at midnight after the Senate failed to advance a measure to fund the Department of Homeland Security on Thursday.

    In a 52 to 47 vote, all but one Democrat — Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania — opposed moving forward with the bill, which would fund DHS through September. The motion needed 60 votes to succeed. Senate Majority Leader John Thune, a South Dakota Republican, voted against the motion in a procedural move that allows him to bring it up again.

    Funding for DHS, which oversees Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection, is set to lapse at 12 a.m. Saturday. ICE and CBP would continue operating if that happens, since they received billions of dollars in separate funding last year.

    Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, said his caucus would vote against moving forward because the bill “fails to make any progress on reining in ICE and stopping the violence.”

    Sen. Katie Britt, an Alabama Republican who has led the negotiations with Democrats and the White House, sought to approve a two-week funding extension by unanimous consent after the failed vote. 

    “Two weeks ago we agreed to extend funding while we talked and tried to find a pathway forward. However, the timeline we knew was going to be short,” Britt said. “We are working in good faith to find a pathway forward. What we’re asking is, let us continue to do that.”

    Sen. Chris Murphy, a Connecticut Democrat, objected. 

    “I wish we weren’t here. I wish our Republican colleagues and the White House had shown more seriousness from the start,” Murphy said. “But Senate Democrats have been clear that we have all taken an oath, an oath to uphold the law of the country, and this Department of Homeland Security, this ICE, is out of control.”

    Democrats and Republicans have been negotiating reforms to ICE and CBP, but the two sides have failed to reach an agreement. The White House sent a legislative proposal for full-year funding late Wednesday, days after Democrats sent their own draft bill. On Thursday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat, told CBS News that his “preliminary assessment” of the latest offer “is that it falls short of the type of dramatic changes necessary in order to change ICE’s out-of-control behavior.”

    Last week, in a letter to their GOP counterparts, Democratic leadership laid out a list of their demands for ICE reforms. Congressional Democrats have demanded changes to ICE and CBP in exchange for their votes to fund DHS since Alex Pretti was shot and killed by immigration agents in Minneapolis last month.

    Democrats want to restrict immigration agents from wearing masks, require them to wear identification and body cameras and standardize their uniforms and equipment. They also want to ban racial profiling, require judicial warrants to enter private property and bar immigration enforcement at medical facilities, schools, child care facilities, churches, polling places and courts. And they pushed to impose “reasonable” use-of-force standards; allow state and local jurisdictions to investigate and prosecute “excessive force;” and introduce safeguards into the detention system.

    President Trump told reporters Thursday afternoon that some of the Democrats’ demands are “very, very hard to approve.”

    Thune told reporters Thursday morning that he thought the White House’s latest offer is “pretty close” to getting into the “agreement zone.” 

    Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Feb. 10, 2026. 

    Al Drago / Bloomberg via Getty Images


    “I think it’s up to the Dems to react to this,” Thune said. “Right now, at least there ought to be an understanding that these discussions need to continue, and that a solution is at least in sight.”

    Still, senators are leaving town after Thursday and are set to be away from Washington on recess next week. And Thune said he doesn’t see the benefit of keeping senators around as talks continue. 

    “If and when there’s a breakthrough, we’ll make sure people are here to vote on it,” Thune said. The GOP leader told CBS News that senators would be expected to return within 24 hours or as soon as possible if a deal is reached. 

    Schumer said Democratic negotiators “will be available 24/7” to continue discussions once the White House and Republicans are ready to “get serious.” 

    “Today’s strong vote was a shot across the bow to Republicans,” Schumer said at a news conference Thursday afternoon. 

    Along with funding for the immigration enforcement agencies, DHS also oversees the Coast Guard, FEMA and TSA, all of which would be impacted by a lapse in funding. ICE and CBP operations would continue because they received an influx of funds in last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

    The impasse over DHS funding led to a four-day-long partial government shutdown earlier this month. Lawmakers ultimately agreed to fund every government agency except DHS until the end of the fiscal year. They also extended DHS funding for two weeks to buy more time for negotiations.

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  • House committee report accuses White House, DHS of Good, Pretti killings cover-up

    The Democratic members of a U.S. House committee have released the findings of a report examining last month’s fatal shootings in Minneapolis by federal immigration officers.

    Renee Good was shot dead by ICE officer Jonathan Ross on Jan. 7, 2025, and Alex Pretti was killed by two Border Patrol officers on Jan. 24.

    Democratic California Rep. Robert Garcia, the ranking member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, laid out four of the report’s key findings:

    • “The Trump Administration’s extreme policies, violent tactics, and culture of impunity led to the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.”
    • “The Trump Administration’s lies about the killings cannot cover up what the American people saw with their own eyes.”
    • “The available evidence suggests that the Trump Administration is attempting to cover up misconduct.”
    • “The Trump Administration is continuing its cover-up by impeding thorough and impartial investigations into the shootings.”

    The report also highlights how evidence counters the administration’s initial claims that both victims were domestic terrorists aiming to harm federal law enforcement.

    “Let’s be clear: the killings of Renée Good and Alex Pretti could have been prevented, and they should both still be alive,” Garcia wrote. “President Trump, [Homeland Security Secretary] Kristi Noem, and [the U.S. Department of Homeland Security] have lied over and over again and are now trying to cover up the truth. The Trump Administration needs to be held accountable.”

    In a statement to WCCO, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson defended the work of federal officers.

    “Federal law enforcement officers are heroically removing dangerous criminal illegal aliens from American communities – including murderers, rapists, and pedophiles. The Trump Administration is grateful for their important work,” Jackson said.

    WCCO has also reached out to Homeland Security for comment.

    The committee, chaired by Kentucky Republican Rep. James Comer, is currently comprised of 44 representatives: 24 Republicans and 20 Democrats.

    Republican members include Reps. Jim Jordan, Paul Gosar, Virginia Foxx, Pete Sessions, Nancy Mace and Lauren Boebert. Its Democratic members include Reps. Eleanor Holmes Norton, Kwesisi Mfume, Shontel Brown, Jasmine Crockett, Ayanna Pressley and Rashida Tlaib.

    Good’s brothers, Brent and Luke Ganger, testified Tuesday at a public Congressional forum co-led by Garcia on “the violent tactics and disproportionate use of force by agents of the Department of Homeland Security.”

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  • The government is paying undocumented immigrants to self-deport. Here’s how the process works.

    The Trump administration said a large number of undocumented immigrants are choosing to voluntarily leave the country before ICE steps in.

    The federal government is now paying $2,600 to undocumented immigrants to self-deport if they use the Customs and Border Protection Home App. That’s up from $1,000 when the initiative started a year ago. On top of that stipend is a free flight to their home country.

    The big bump was announced in celebration of President Trump’s first year in office, which apparently included a huge number of undocumented immigrants voluntarily leaving.

    If you ask the federal government, 2.2 million people have self-deported since January 2025. That equates to roughly 14% of the total estimated number of undocumented immigrants in the U.S., according to the Center for Immigration Studies.

    Several research groups have questioned the Department of Homeland Security’s data. The Center for Migration Studies did a deep dive into how the DHS came up with 2.2 million.

    The Center for Migration Studies estimates the true number of self-deportations to be around 200,000 in the past year, roughly one-tenth of what the federal government claims.

    WCCO reached out to DHS to understand how its data is sourced, but has yet to hear back.

    The Brookings Institution released a report last month regarding DHS’s deportation numbers, stating the federal agency’s data “should not be considered a serious source for an estimate of net migration.”

    With the new $2,600 stipend, DHS said the cost of a single self-deportation is $5,100. That’s significantly less than the cost to arrest, detain and deport an undocumented immigrant, which DHS said costs more than $18,000.

    “There’s other ways to self-deport without using that app. There’s also ways to request something called voluntary departure,” said Kelly Clark, an immigration attorney who has helped clients voluntarily leave the country. 

    Under the previous presidential administration, Clark said undocumented people who wanted to self-deport would simply leave, especially if they didn’t have any active court cases related to their immigration status.

    The CPB Home app, however, is the only way to get money and a free flight when self-deporting. Those with criminal records are not eligible to register.

    “There are some certain circumstances where I would probably have to advise that by putting their information in that system, they are notifying the government of where they are and who they are. And if they do have some kind of negative immigration history or depending on their criminal record, they could make themselves more of a target by registering,” Clark said.

    While she couldn’t speak to the DHS claim of 2.2 million self-deportation cases, Clark said the number of clients contemplating self-deportation is rising. That includes people with legal work permits or pending asylum cases. She said they’d rather leave on their own accord than risk an ICE arrest.

    “Some people who feel like they’re stuck in their homes and they’re not able to work, they just don’t know how they’re going to survive if they stay here,” she said. “That is a deep fear with our client community, their friends and family, is that even though they might have some kind of case pending or work permit, they’re really not protected.”

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  • Fact check: DHS’s list of the “worst of the worst” arrested in Minnesota


    The Department of Homeland Security released its latest list of the “worst of the worst” arrested in Minnesota. The feds say those are the people they’re targeting in Operation Metro Surge. 

    They called them kidnappers, pedophiles, violent assailants, and perpetrators of fraud. WCCO found court records on three of the five men and the information released on them is mostly accurate.

    DHS says Ian Irungu is from Kenya and was convicted of selling heroin and dangerous drugs.

    WCCO found he was convicted of selling drugs in Ramsey County and Kanabec County. The charging documents list fentanyl and marijuana as the drugs, with him being accused of being a heroin and fentanyl dealer. 

    He first had contact with law enforcement in Minnesota in 2014 during a traffic violation. 

    The feds say Melvin Hernandez Espana is from Honduras and was convicted of assault. WCCO found he was convicted of assault in Ramsey County. Court records show he first had contact with law enforcement in Minnesota in 2015 for driving without a license.

    DHS says Oliverio Francisco-Esteban, from Mexico, has been removed from the U.S. five times. It also lists three counts of driving under the influence and illegal entry. Court documents show this is true.

    WCCO could not verify the claim of possessing fraudulent immigration documents. 

    WCCO also could not find Minnesota or federal documents related to the other two, who are in custody. It’s possible the convictions happened in another state.

    This is data on the names they released. WCCO has no way to check the criminal history of others arrested on Monday because the names have not been released. 

    DHS has a “worst of the worst” page where you can see who’s on that list and who has been arrested in Minnesota and across the country.

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  • Democrats will not provide votes to advance DHS funding bill in wake of Minneapolis shooting, Schumer says

    Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said Saturday that Democrats will not put up the necessary votes to advance a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security in the wake of immigration agents shooting and killing a man in Minneapolis on Saturday. 

    “What’s happening in Minnesota is appalling —and unacceptable in any American city. Democrats sought common sense reforms in the Department of Homeland Security spending bill, but because of Republicans’ refusal to stand up to President Trump, the DHS bill is woefully inadequate to rein in the abuses of ICE,” Schumer said in a statement. “I will vote no. Senate Democrats will not provide the votes to proceed to the appropriations bill if the DHS funding bill is included.”

    The House on Thursday passed a funding package, along with a separate measure to fund DHS, sending the bills to the Senate for approval, along with two other funding measures that passed the House last week. 

    In the Senate, the DHS funding measure was expected to be packaged with the other legislation that funds key federal departments in hopes the Senate passes the measures together before the Jan. 30 deadline to fund the government.

    To advance the legislation, Republicans will likely need eight Democrats to vote for the legislation, since Sen. Rand Paul has generally voted against appropriations bills. If the funding package does not pass the Senate, there will be another partial government shutdown.

    But on Sunday, Schumer called for the six-bill funding package to be broken up, allowing the Senate to pass the non-DHS portions “while we work to rewrite the DHS bill.”

    Schumer’s comments come after a Border Patrol agent shot and killed a 37-year-old man in south Minneapolis Saturday morning. Saturday’s shooting comes after a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer shot and killed Renee Good on Jan. 7 in South Minneapolis as well. Both victims are American citizens, and video of both incidents have spread quickly online.

    Family identified the victim in Saturday’s shooting as Alex Jeffrey Pretti, an intensive care nurse living in Minneapolis. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a news conference that the man who was killed “approached” U.S. Border Patrol officers while they were conducting “targeted” immigration enforcement operations, with a 9mm semiautomatic handgun. Noem said officers attempted to disarm him, but he “reacted violently,” and “fearing for his life and the lives of his fellow officers around him, an agent fired defensive shots.”

    Nevada Sens. Jacky Rosen and Catherine Cortez Masto, who were two of the eight Democrats who voted against their party to end the 43-day government shutdown last year, both said Saturday that they will not support the measure funding DHS. Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, another one of those eight Democrats, already said Friday he would not support funding DHS.

    Sen. Angus King of Maine, an independent who caucuses with Democrats and had consistently voted to keep the government open during the last shutdown, said Sunday on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” that he would not vote to fund DHS.

    “I can’t vote for a bill that includes ICE funding under these circumstances — what they’re doing in my state, what we saw yesterday in Minneapolis,” he said. 

    King suggested separating out DHS funding from the rest of the appropriations package to avoid a shutdown. “If those bills passed, 96% of the federal government is funded,” King added.

    Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said Saturday evening she “will NOT support the DHS bill as it stands.”

    Several other Democratic senators on Saturday did not support funding DHS, including Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Mark Kelly of Arizona, Chris Murphy of Connecticut, Brian Schatz of Hawaii, Mark Warner of Virginia, Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Andy Kim of New Jersey, Alex Padilla of California and Jon Ossoff of Georgia.

    Murphy and Padilla, along with a small group of Democratic senators, have spent the past two days calling colleagues to whip opposition to the DHS funding bill, according to a source familiar with the negotiations. 

    Senate Democrats are expected to hold a caucus call on the issue Sunday evening, a source told CBS News. 

    Although several House Democrats supported the bills to fund the government, prominent House Democrats on Saturday called on the upper chamber to reject the bill.

    “DHS just shot a man in broad daylight two weeks after they shot a mother in the face without consequence,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York posted on social media Saturday.  “They need our votes to continue. We cannot give it to them. Every Senator should vote NO.”

    And Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas, in a debate Saturday in the race for the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, reasserted that she “absolutely voted against” funding DHS. 

    “There was no way I was going to continue to pump a historic amount of money into this rogue organization that is going out and is violating people’s rights every single day on American cities,” Crockett said. 

    A handful of Republicans in Congress also spoke out following the shooting. 

    Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, called the events in Minneapolis “incredibly disturbing,” arguing that the “credibility of ICE and DHS are at stake” and calling for a joint federal and state investigation. 

    GOP Rep. Michael Baumgartner of Washington likewise said he’s “disturbed” by what he’s seen in Minnesota, while lauding the Republican chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee for seeking testimony from ICE leaders and other officials.

    The deadly Minneapolis shootings have occurred amid the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in the city in recent weeks. Democratic Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said Saturday that the state “has had it,” and he called on the Trump administration to pull ICE agents from Minneapolis, characterizing their efforts an “absolute abomination.”

    The Trump administration has deployed 3,000 federal agents from ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection throughout Minnesota as part of “Operation Metro Surge.” Tensions between the federal agents and residents are high, especially after the Jan. 7 shooting and an altercation after an ICE officer shot a Venezuelan migrant in the leg last week. 

    Vice President JD Vance said Thursday in Minneapolis that many of those officers are not even doing targeted immigration enforcement, but instead are stepping in to protect ICE officers from clashes with protesters. He blamed a “failure of cooperation” by local and state authorities for the rising tensions. 

    On Friday, thousands of demonstrators took to the streets of the Twin Cities to protest Operation Metro Surge, and hundreds of businesses closed in solidarity. 

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  • Federal officials double down on Border Patrol actions in deadly Minneapolis shooting

    Border Patrol Commander-at-Large Greg Bovino continued to defend the actions of federal agents during a news conference on Sunday in the deadly shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti in south Minneapolis on Saturday. CBS News’ Lilia Luciano and Nicole Sganga have more.

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  • Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara says “people have had enough” after Border Patrol shooting


    Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara says “people have had enough” after Border Patrol shooting – CBS News









































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    Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara told CBS News “this is not sustainable” after a fatal shooting by a Border Patrol agent amid a weekslong immigation crackdown in the city.

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  • Videos and witnesses of fatal Minneapolis shooting at odds with Trump administration’s statements


    Videos and witnesses of fatal Minneapolis shooting at odds with Trump administration’s statements – CBS News









































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    Videos and eyewitness accounts of a Border Patrol agent’s fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis are differing from Trump administration statements. Lana Zak has the latest.

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  • Videos and witness accounts of deadly Minneapolis shooting at odds with official statements

    Videos quickly emerged Saturday showing the fatal shooting of a Minneapolis protester by a Border Patrol agent. 

    Bystander videos verified by CBS News show the scene from multiple angles, starting shortly before the encounter that ended in the shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti, an American citizen who worked as an ICU nurse.

    The events unfolded at around 9 a.m. Saturday. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino said officers were pursuing a man in the country illegally who was wanted for domestic assault. Protesters have been trying to disrupt such operations amid an ongoing federal immigration crackdown, and a group of people in the area sounded high-pitched whistles, honked horns and yelled out at the officers.

    Among them was Pretti. At one point, video shows Pretti standing in the street and holding up his phone with his right hand; his left hand appears empty. 

    A screengrab from a video obtained by Reuters shows a man identified as Alex Pretti using a cellphone to record video moments before he was fatally shot by federal agents in Minneapolis on Jan. 24, 2026. 

    VIDEO OBTAINED BY REUTERS


    He comes face-to-face with an officer in a tactical vest, who places his hand on Pretti and pushes him toward the sidewalk. Pretti is talking to the officer, though it is not clear what he is saying.

    Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem later said Pretti “approached” officers with a 9mm semiautomatic handgun, but did not say whether he “brandished” the weapon. Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said he was a lawful gun owner with a permit to carry.

    Videos filmed before the shooting show Pretti did not have a gun in his hands.

    Protesters can be seen wandering in and out of the street as officers persist in trying to talk them back. One protester is put in handcuffs. Some officers are carrying pepper spray canisters.

    Pretti comes into view again when the video shows an officer wearing tactical gear shoving a protester. The protester, who is wearing a skirt over black tights and holding a water bottle, reaches out for Pretti.

    The same officer shoves Pretti in his chest, leading Pretti and the other protester to stumble backward.

    A different video then shows Pretti moving toward another protester, who falls over after being shoved by the same officer. 

    Law enforcement officers and protesters before the shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis

    A screengrab from a video obtained by Reuters shows a law enforcement officer spraying irritants at a man identified as Alex Pretti, before he was fatally shot in Minneapolis on Jan. 24, 2026. 

    VIDEO OBTAINED BY REUTERS


    Pretti moves between the protester and the officer, reaching his arms out toward the officer. The officer deploys pepper spray, and Pretti raises his hand and turns his face. The officer grabs Pretti’s hand to bring it behind his back, and deploys the pepper spray canister again and then pushes Pretti away.

    Seconds later, at least a half-dozen federal officers surround Pretti, who is wrestled to the ground and hit several times. Several agents try to bring Pretti’s arms behind his back, and he struggles.

    Federal officers at scene of shooting in Minneapolis

    A screengrab from a video obtained by Reuters shows a federal officer pinning down a man, identified as Alex Pretti, before he was fatally shot in Minneapolis on Jan. 24, 2026. 

    VIDEO OBTAINED BY REUTERS


    Videos show an officer in a gray jacket, who is hovering over the scuffle with his right hand on Pretti’s back, reaching into the scuffle empty-handed and then backing away from the group with what appears to be a gun in his right hand.

    Someone shouts “gun, gun.” It is not clear if that’s a reference to the weapon authorities say Pretti had.

    The agent is holding that gun and turning away from the man when the first shot is fired. Videos show the agent in the gray jacket then running across the street as numerous shots can be heard. 

    Videos do not clearly show who fired the first shot. In one video, seconds before the first shot, one officer reaches for his belt and appears to draw his gun. That same officer is seen with a gun to Pretti’s back as three more shots ring out. Pretti slumps to the ground. Videos show the officers backing away, some with guns drawn.

    At a briefing Saturday afternoon, Noem shared an image of the gun she said was recovered. She said officers attempted to disarm the man but he “reacted violently,” and “fearing for his life and the lives of his fellow officers around him, an agent fired defensive shots.”

    Homeland Secretary Kristi Noem

    Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem shows a picture of a firearm she said was carried by the man who was killed by a federal immigration officer in Minneapolis on Jan. 24, 2026.

    Julia Demaree Nikhinson / AP


    Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, who said he watched one of several videos, said he saw “more than six masked agents pummeling one of our constituents, shooting him to death.”

    Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said, “I’ve seen the videos, from several angles, and it’s sickening.”

    Sworn statements from witnesses

    Sworn declarations submitted in federal court Saturday night by people who said they witnessed the shooting contradict key points of the events presented by federal officials.

    One witness described seeing Pretti observing and filming the scene “just with his camera out. I didn’t see him reach for or hold a gun.” 

    An agent “shoved one of the other observers to the ground” and then pepper sprayed several people, the witness said. “The man with the phone put his hands above his head and the agent sprayed him again and pushed him.”

    The witness continued: “The agents pulled the man on the ground. I didn’t see him touch any of them — he wasn’t even turned toward them. It didn’t look like he was trying to resist, just trying to help the woman up. I didn’t see him with a gun. They threw him to the ground. Four or five agents had him on the ground and they just started shooting him. They shot him so many times.”

    Another witness, a pediatrician, described watching out their apartment window and seeing “one civilian … yelling at the ICE agents, but I did not see him attack the agents or brandish a weapon of any kind.”

    Suddenly, the witness said, an agent “shoved him to the ground. My view of the altercation was partially obstructed, but after a few seconds, I saw at least four agents point guns at the man. Then I saw the agents shoot the man six or seven times.”

    “Initially I was stunned,” the witness continued. “From what I could see from my apartment, there was absolutely no need for any violence, let alone lethal force by multiple officers.”

    The witness then described rushing down to the scene, telling officers they were a doctor and performing CPR until an EMS crew arrived. The man had at least four bullet wounds and no pulse, the witness said.

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  • ICE takes 5-year-old boy and his father after using boy as

    School district officials in Columbia Heights, Minnesota, say their sense of security is shaken and their hearts shattered after four students from the district were recently taken by officers with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

    The Columbia Heights Public School District says two children were taken on Tuesday, including a 17-year-old boy on his way to school. He was removed from his car and taken away.

    Then in the afternoon, 5-year-old Liam Ramos was taken with his father while in their driveway after just arriving home from his preschool classroom. School officials say the child was used as bait to knock on the door and ask to be let in, letting officers see if anyone else was home.

    “Why detain a 5-year-old? You can’t tell me that this child is going to be classified as a violent criminal,” said Superintendent Zena Stenvik.

    The Department of Homeland Security later said that the child was not targeted by ICE, but was “abandoned” by his father. It said his father fled federal agents as they approached his vehicle, leaving the child. DHS said the father, whom they described as an illegal alien from Ecuador, was later taken into custody as other ICE officers stayed with the child. 

    School officials say there was an adult there who offered to take the child, but ICE did not allow that. 

    Federal officials said on Thursday that the boy and his father are together at an immigration processing center in Dilley, Texas.

    An attorney for the Ramos family, Marc Prokosch, and the school district deny that Liam was abandoned by his father.

    Prokosch said Liam and his father entered the U.S. legally from Ecuador and Liam’s father doesn’t appear to have a criminal record.

    The Ecuadorian government said its consulate in Minneapolis contacted ICE as soon as it got word that Liam was being held, adding that it is “monitoring the situation of the child in order to safeguard their safety and well-being.”

    Two weeks ago, a 10-year-old student in fourth grade was taken by ICE agents on her way to elementary school with her mother. During the arrest, the child called her father on the phone to tell her that ICE agents were bringing her to school. The father then came to the school to find out that both his daughter and wife had been taken.

    School officials say both children and their parents are being held in a detention center in Texas. They say Liam Ramos’ family is following U.S. legal parameters and has an active asylum case with no order of deportation.

    The school officials also said they don’t know what happened. They want the public to get involved as this is happening to students all across the state of Minnesota. 

    “We are asking to please reach out to your congressional representative to ask for an immediate and peaceful resolution to this occupation,” Stenvik said. “Please help us and other schools to again be a safe place where all belong and all succeed.”

    The district also has an immigration lawyer to help figure out how to get the students back to Minnesota.

    Meanwhile, district officials say ICE continues to hang out around their schools — keeping kids, parents and staff on edge.

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  • Minnesota Gov. Walz tells Trump, Noem to

    In a rare primetime address Wednesday evening, Gov. Tim Walz gave a six-minute-long address to Minnesotans where he called on President Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to “end this occupation.”

    Walz’s address came hours after Noem’s department announced Operation Metro Surge has led to 2,500 arrests in Minnesota since it began last month.

    “What’s happening in Minnesota right now defies belief,” Walz said. “News reports simply don’t do justice to the level of chaos and disruption and trauma the federal government is raining down upon our communities.”

    On Tuesday, Homeland Security officials told CBS News there are now 800 U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents in the Minneapolis area. That’s in addition to 2,000 other ICE and federal agents already in the state in what officials call the “largest DHS operation in history.”

    “Donald Trump intends for it to get worse. This week, he went online to promise that quote, ‘the day of retribution and reckoning is coming,’” Walz said in his addresss. “That’s a direct threat against the people of this state who dared to vote against him three times and who continue to stand up for freedom with courage and empathy and profound grace.”

    The governor went on to urge Minnesotans to “protest loudly, urgently, but also peacefully.” He also called on residents to “peacefully film ICE agents.”

    “If you see these ICE agents in your neighborhood, take out that phone and hit record,” Walz said. “Help us create a database of the atrocities against Minnesotans, not just to establish a record for posterity, but to bank evidence for future prosecution.”

    Walz also expressed pride for his fellow Minnesotans, calling the state “an island of decency in a country being driven towards cruelty.”

    Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz

    WCCO


    “We will remain an island of decency, of justice, of community, of peace, and tonight I come before you simply to ask, don’t let anyone take that away from us,” he said.

    Walz gives a constitutionally-required annual address before the Legislature, known as the “State of the State.” But other statewide addresses that the governor has planned happen infrequently. 

    His staff notes that he addressed residents during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder.

    Lawyers representing the state of Minnesota, along with the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, were in court Wednesday morning in the hopes of getting federal Judge Kate Menendez to issue a temporary restraining order to pause ICE activities in Minnesota. 

    Menendez said she would not issue that restraining order until after the federal government filed its response and the state made additional filings.

    The hearing is part of a larger federal lawsuit by the state and cities attempting to get the federal government to halt all law enforcement operations in Minnesota.

    Below is the full transcript of Walz’s address. Watch the full video here.

    What’s happening in Minnesota right now defies belief. News reports simply don’t do justice to the level of chaos and disruption and trauma the federal government is raining down upon our communities.

    Two-thousand to 3,000 armed agents of the federal government have been deployed to Minnesota. Armed, masked, undertrained ICE agents are going door to door, ordering people to point out where their neighbors of color live.

    They’re pulling over people indiscriminately, including U.S. citizens, and demanding to see their papers. And at grocery stores, at bus stops, even at our schools they’re breaking windows, dragging pregnant women down the street, just plain grabbing Minnesotans and shoving them into unmarked vans, kidnapping innocent people with no warning and no due process.

    Let’s be very, very clear: this long ago stopped being a matter of immigration enforcement. Instead, it’s a campaign of organized brutality against the people of Minnesota by our own federal government.

    Last week, that campaign claimed the life of Renee Nicole Good. We’ve all watched the video. We’ve all seen what happened, and yet instead of conducting an impartial investigation so we can hold accountable the officer responsible for Renee’s death, the Trump administration is devoting the full power of the federal government to finding an excuse to attack the victim and her family.

    Just yesterday, six federal prosecutors, including the longtime career prosecutor leading the charge to investigate and eliminate fraud in our state’s programs, quit their jobs rather than go along with this assault on the United States Constitution.

    But as bad as it’s been, Donald Trump intends for it to get worse. This week, he went online to promise that quote, the day of retribution and reckoning is coming.

    That’s a direct threat against the people of this state who dared to vote against him three times and who continue to stand up for freedom with courage and empathy and profound grace.

    All across Minnesota people are stepping up to help their neighbors who are being unjustly and unlawfully targeted. They’re distributing care packages and walking kids to school and raising their voices in peaceful protest, even though doing so has made many of our fellow Minnesotans targets for violent retribution.

    Folks, I know it’s scary, and I know it’s absurd that we all have to defend law and order, justice and humanity while also caring for our families and trying to do our jobs.

    So tonight, let me say once again to Donald Trump and Kristi Noem: End this occupation. You’ve done enough.

    Let me say four critical things to the people of Minnesota, four things I want you to hear as you watch the news and look out for your neighbors:

    First, Donald Trump wants this chaos. He wants confusion, and yes, he wants more violence on our streets. We cannot give him what he wants. 

    We can, we must protest loudly, urgently, but also peacefully. Indeed, as hard as we will fight in the courts and at the ballot box, we cannot and will not let violence prevail.

    You’re angry. I’m angry. Angry is not a strong enough word, but we must remain peaceful.

    Second, you are not powerless, you are not helpless, and you are certainly not alone. All across Minnesota, people are learning about opportunities not just to resist, but to help people who are in danger.

    Thousands upon thousands of our fellow Minnesotans are going to be relying on mutual aid in the days and weeks to come, and they need our support.

    Tonight I wanna share another way you can help: witness. Help us establish a record of exactly what’s happening in our communities.

    You have an absolute right to peacefully film ICE agents as they conduct these activities, so carry your phone with you at all times, and if you see these ICE agents in your neighborhood, take out that phone and hit record.

    Help us create a database of the atrocities against Minnesotans, not just to establish a record for posterity, but to bank evidence for future prosecution.

    The third thing I want to say to you tonight is we will not have to live like this forever. Accountability is coming at the voting booth and in court. 

    We will reclaim our communities from Donald Trump. We will reestablish a sense of safety for our neighbors, and we will bring an end to this moment of chaos, confusion and trauma.

    We will find a way to move forward and we’ll do it together. And will not be alone. Every day we are working with business leaders, faith leaders, legal experts and elected officials from across this country. They’ve all seen what Donald Trump is trying to do to our state, and they know their states could be next.

    And that brings me to the fourth thing I wanna say tonight Minnesota, how incredibly proud I am of the way that you’ve risen to meet this unbearable moment. But I’m not at all surprised because this, this is who we are.

    Minnesotans believe in the rule of law, and Minnesotans believe in the dignity of all people. We’re a place where there’s room for everybody, no matter who you are or who you love or where you came from. A place where we feed our kids, we take care of our neighbors and we look out for those in the shadows of life.

    We’re an island of decency in a country being driven towards cruelty. We will remain an island of decency, of justice, of community, of peace, and tonight I come before you simply to ask, don’t let anyone take that away from us.

    Thank you. Protect each other, and may God bless the people of Minnesota.

    This story will be updated.

    Caroline Cummings

    contributed to this report.

    Stephen Swanson

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  • Minnesota, Twin Cities file lawsuit in effort to stop ICE surge in state

    The state of Minnesota, along with the cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul, are suing Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and other federal officials in an effort to stop the surge of federal law enforcement officials coming into the state.

    State officials said the lawsuit, filed on Monday, is asking the federal court to “end the unprecedented surge of DHS agents into the state and declare it unconstitutional and unlawful.”

    The lawsuit, according to officials, also asks the court for a temporary restraining order, citing the immediate harm the state and cities are facing.

    “We allege that the surge, reckless impact on our schools, on our local law enforcement, is a violation of the 10th Amendment and the sovereign laws and powers of the Constitution,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said while discussing the lawsuit on Monday afternoon.

    The court document comes one day after Noem said that hundreds more federal agents were headed to Minneapolis, and less than a week after the fatal shooting of Renee Good by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in south Minneapolis on Wednesday.

    The Trump administration initiated a massive deployment of approximately 2,000 federal agents to the Twin Cities amid a widening fraud scandal on Jan. 5. The influx involves agents from ICE and Homeland Security Investigations overseeing a 30-day operation. Agents from DHS are expected to probe alleged cases of fraud.

    Homeland Security Investigations on Dec. 29 conducted a “massive investigation on child care and other rampant fraud” in the Twin Cities, according to Noem. Two DHS officials told CBS News that federal agents were expected to inspect over 30 sites. Many of their targets were day care centers referenced in a viral video posted by conservative YouTuber Nick Shirley.

    CBS News conducted its own analysis of nearly 12 day care centers mentioned by Shirley: all but two have active licenses, according to state records, and all active locations were visited by state regulators within the last six months.   

    Homeland Security’s Operation Metro Surge, which has targeted Somali immigrants in Minnesota, started at the beginning of December. The operation has led to more than 2,000 arrests, according to DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. Federal agents have also been detaining several protesters and observers.

    Thousands of people against the presence of ICE agents in Minnesota participated in a march and rally in Minneapolis on Saturday. It was one of many demonstrations that have taken place around the state and the nation since the fatal shooting of Good.

    Illinois on Monday filed a lawsuit against DHS over what state officials called “unlawful and dangerous tactics” used by Customs and Border Protection and ICE agents in the state.

    The court document, which also names other federal officials, alleges federal agents arrested people without warrants or probable cause and “implemented an illegal policy of deploying Border Patrol” to Chicago and other parts of Illinois.

    Nick Lentz

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  • Feds sending more agents into Minneapolis, days after killing of Renee Good

     

    Local officials to make announcement “on DHS’s future in Minnesota”

    A coterie of state officials plans to make an announcement on the Department of Homeland Security’s “future in Minnesota” Monday afternoon, according to a release.

    Attorney General Keith Ellison, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her “will hold a press conference to make an important announcement about Operation Metro Surge and the deployment of federal immigration enforcement agents from numerous agencies of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to the State of Minnesota and the Twin Cities,” the release said.

    The news conference is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. WCCO will offer coverage on CBS News Minnesota and YouTube.

     

    Walz visits Good memorial

    Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz visited the memorial for Renee Good on Monday. 

    In a post on social media, Walz said, “Rest in peace.”

    Tim Walz


     

    DHS: 2,000 arrested since start of Operation Metro Surge

    Assistant Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin said Monday morning that 2,000 people have been arrested since federal agents launched an immigration enforcement campaign in the Twin Cities last month.

    McLaughlin did not say the citizenship status of the people arrested, or why people have been arrested. Federal agents have also been detaining several protesters and observers.

     As of Dec. 19, ICE had carried out nearly 700 arrests as part of the operation, according to DHS.

     

    Jean Smart, Mark Ruffalo among celebrities wearing pins protesting ICE at Golden Globes

    Some celebrities on the red carpet of the Golden Globes Sunday donned pins protesting ICE.

    The black-and-white pins displayed slogans like “BE GOOD” and “ICE OUT,” introducing a political angle into the awards show after last year’s relatively apolitical ceremony.

    US-ENTERTAINMENT-FILM-TELEVISION-AWARD-GLOBES-PRESS ROOM

    Getty Images


    Mark Ruffalo, Wanda Sykes and Natasha Lyonne wore the pins on the red carpet, while Jean Smart and Ariana Grande donned them once inside the ballroom. Smart had the pin on her dress as she accepted the award for best performance by a female actor in a musical or comedy series. 

    Just a week before Good was killed, an off-duty ICE officer fatally shot and killed 43-year-old Keith Porter in Los Angeles. His death sparked protests in the Los Angeles area, calling for the officer responsible to be arrested.

    The idea for the “ICE OUT” pins began with a late-night text exchange earlier this week between Stamp and Jess Morales Rocketto, the executive director of a Latino advocacy group called Maremoto.

    Allies of their movement have been attending the “fancy events” that take place in the days leading up to the Golden Globes, according to Stamp. They’re passing out the pins at parties and distributing them to neighbors who will be attending tonight’s ceremony.

    “They put it in their purse and they’re like, ‘Hey would you wear this?’ It’s so grassroots,” Morales Rocketto said.

    The organizers pledged to continue the campaign throughout awards season to ensure the public knows the names of Good and others killed by ICE agents in shootings.

     

    Legal analyst breaks down questions surrounding ICE killing

    The fatal shooting of Good has raised many legal questions. Constitutional law professor David Schultz, who has taught a class on police, criminal and civil procedure, has some answers.

    [Read more]

     

    A look back at the shooting and the days that followed

    WCCO is taking a moment to pause and look back at what’s unfolded over five historic days. As the questions multiply, the mourning does, too. What is clear is that a wounded city is aching again.

    [Read more]

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  • Feds sending more agents into Minneapolis, days after killing of Renee Good

     

    Jean Smart, Mark Ruffalo among celebrities wearing pins protesting ICE at Golden Globes

    Some celebrities on the red carpet of the Golden Globes Sunday donned pins protesting ICE.

    The black-and-white pins displayed slogans like “BE GOOD” and “ICE OUT,” introducing a political angle into the awards show after last year’s relatively apolitical ceremony.

    Getty Images


    Mark Ruffalo, Wanda Sykes and Natasha Lyonne wore the pins on the red carpet, while Jean Smart and Ariana Grande donned them once inside the ballroom. Smart had the pin on her dress as she accepted the award for best performance by a female actor in a musical or comedy series. 

    Just a week before Good was killed, an off-duty ICE officer fatally shot and killed 43-year-old Keith Porter in Los Angeles. His death sparked protests in the Los Angeles area, calling for the officer responsible to be arrested.

    The idea for the “ICE OUT” pins began with a late-night text exchange earlier this week between Stamp and Jess Morales Rocketto, the executive director of a Latino advocacy group called Maremoto.

    Allies of their movement have been attending the “fancy events” that take place in the days leading up to the Golden Globes, according to Stamp. They’re passing out the pins at parties and distributing them to neighbors who will be attending tonight’s ceremony.

    “They put it in their purse and they’re like, ‘Hey would you wear this?’ It’s so grassroots,” Morales Rocketto said.

    The organizers pledged to continue the campaign throughout awards season to ensure the public knows the names of Good and others killed by ICE agents in shootings.

     

    Legal analyst breaks down questions surrounding ICE killing

    The fatal shooting of Good has raised many legal questions. Constitutional law professor David Schultz, who has taught a class on police, criminal and civil procedure, has some answers.

    [Read more]

     

    A look back at the shooting and the days that followed

    WCCO is taking a moment to pause and look back at what’s unfolded over five historic days. As the questions multiply, the mourning does, too. What is clear is that a wounded city is aching again.

    [Read more]

    Anthony Bettin

    Source link

  • Hundreds more federal agents being sent to Minneapolis, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem says

    Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Sunday that hundreds more federal agents are coming to Minneapolis as the Department of Homeland Security carries out what officials are calling the “largest immigration operation ever.”

    Noem said on Fox News that more agents will arrive in the metro Sunday and Monday to help officers already there continue to do their work “safely.”

    The Minneapolis area now has one of the largest concentrations of Department of Homeland Security agents in any American city in recent years. There are more than 2,400 federal agents, more than double the number of local police officers.

    Homeland Security kicked off Operation Metro Surge last month, which officials say led to more than 1,000 arrests. A week ago, the department announced the funneling of about 2,000 more federal agents into the Twin Cities metro area in a monthlong surge amid the state’s widening fraud scandal.

    “As we uncover more of this criminal activity, we’re going to continue to surge resources to make sure this abuse of government funds and government power no longer continues in Minnesota,” Noem said.

    The announcement comes as the city is reeling from the killing of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in Minneapolis on Wednesday.

    Police responded to a call reporting the shooting, which happened in a neighborhood in south Minneapolis, at about 9:30 a.m. local time Wednesday, according to the city. When officers arrived, they found that a woman, later identified as Good, had been shot in the head. She was rushed by firefighters to a Minneapolis hospital, where she later died, the city said.

    Federal officials, including Noem, characterized the shooting as an act of self-defense on the part of the ICE agent who fired the weapon when the driver “attacked them and those surrounding them and attempted to run them over and ram them with her vehicle.”

    Statements from witnesses and local officials, who point to several videos of the encounter, dispute the accounts from federal officials of the circumstances that led up to the shooting.

    The shooting has sparked anti-ICE protests across the Twin Cities and the nation. 

    Graham Kates and

    Emily Mae Czachor

    contributed to this report.

    Riley Moser

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  • 3 congressional lawmakers say they were denied access to ICE facility in Minneapolis

    Three Democratic congressional lawmakers who represent Minnesota said they were denied access to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility at the Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis on Saturday.

    Reps. Angie Craig, Ilhan Omar and Kelly Morrison told reporters that they were initially allowed into the building, but then informed they must leave. 

    “Shortly after we were let in, two officials came in and said that they received a message that we were no longer allowed to be in the building, and that they were rescinding the invitation to come in and declining any further access from the building,” Omar told reporters while standing outside the facility.

    Added Craig, “The response was that, since the funding for this center came from the one ‘Big, Beautiful Bill,’ not the congressional appropriations bill, that they were denying our access.”

    From left, Democratic Reps. Kelly Morrison, Ilhan Omar and Angie Craig arrive for an oversight visit at the Whipple Federal Building in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Jan. 10, 2026. 

    Victor J. Blue / Bloomberg via Getty Images


    Morrrison said in her own social media post that conducting oversight of “American taxpayer-funded facilities is not only our legal right, but our constitutional duty.”

    Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement provided to CBS News Minnesota that lawmakers are required to provide seven days notice of congressional visits. 

    “For the safety of detainees and staff, and in compliance with the agency’s mandate, the Members of Congress were notified that their visit was improper and out of compliance with existing court orders and policies which mandate that members of Congress must notify ICE at least seven days in advance of Congressional visits,” McLaughlin wrote. “Because they were out of compliance with this mandate, Representative Omar and her colleagues were denied entry to the facility.”

    McLaughlin added that Omar, Craig and Morrison “must follow the proper guidelines” if they want to tour the facility.

    The building has been the command center for federal agents in Minnesota. Concrete barriers were set up near the facility on Friday morning, less than a day after a tense protest where federal officers fired pepper balls and surged into a crowd of demonstrators. 

    CBS News chief correspondent Matt Gutman was reporting in the area during the protest when officers pushed into the crowd behind a cloud of chemical irritants, triggering shoving, panic and screams among the protesters.

    Thursday’s protest and others across Minnesota and the nation come in the wake of the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Good in south Minneapolis by an ICE officer Wednesday. 

    Adam Duxter

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  • Experts analyze new video of fatal ICE agent shooting in Minneapolis

    Cellphone video taken by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent involved in Wednesday’s fatal shooting in Minneapolis of Renee Good shows a different view of the incident and the moments leading up to it.

    To better analyze what’s happening in the video, WCCO spoke with a use-of-force expert and a defense attorney.

    Peter Johnson is the founder of Archway Defense, a company that has trained state, local and federal law enforcement in firearms for the past decade. He’s also a former federal air marshal. Johnson said his biggest takeaway from the video was a crunching sound he heard immediately before the gunshots, which he believes is the sound of the SUV hitting the ICE agent.

    “That data point for me shows that there was contact made with the agent, who is now in reasonable fear, who could clearly articulate being hit with an SUV as reasonable fear of great bodily harm or death. And then the shots were fired,” said Johnson.

    According to Homeland Security’s policy, deadly force cannot be used to stop someone who is fleeing, though it is authorized when an officer believes that someone who’s trying to escape poses a serious threat to the officer or others. The two narrow circumstances outlined in the policy are:

    1. When a person in the vehicle is using or imminently threatening deadly force by means other than the vehicle.
    2. When the vehicle itself is being operated in a manner that poses an imminent threat and no other objectively reasonable defensive option exists — explicitly including “moving out of the path of the vehicle.” 

    Another point that stood out to Johnson is the face-to-face interaction the ICE agent has with Good, 37, as he walks by her window. Johnson said it proves that Good was aware of the agent’s presence, whereas other videos could make it seem as if the agent suddenly appeared from out of view.

    Other videos show the angle of the tires on Good’s SUV when she accelerates forward, with some arguing the tires are in a direction indicating she was trying to drive away from the ICE agents. To those dissecting the videos, Johnson referenced a U.S. Supreme Court ruling, Graham vs. Connor. He summarized it by saying, “In a tense, uncertain and rapidly evolving situation, law enforcement officers are not to be judged in hindsight 20/20, but a reasonable officer’s perception.”

    Rob Doar is a local defense attorney. He said the video both helps and hurts Homeland Security’s stance that the ICE agent fired in self-defense. As for helping, Doar said it shows how quickly things unfolded leading up to the shooting. 

    “I myself have questioned the second and third shots,” said Doar. “I think from that firsthand perspective, it makes it look like he may not have had the mental time to actually appreciate that the threat had passed.”

    He too pointed out the angle of the tires, stating that the video shows there’s no way the ICE agent could have seen the direction they were pointing. 

    “Though he may have seen some direction of the steering wheel, but it’s, again, it’s not clear whether he would have appreciated that,” said Doar.

    As for hurting the agent’s case, Doar said it shows Good had a pleasant demeanor while also saying to the agents that she wasn’t mad at them. 

    “That lessens the indication that he is posing a serious threat to law enforcement,” said Doar.

    He questioned the positioning the ICE agent took in front of the SUV, saying courts could analyze whether that was a reasonable spot to place himself.

    Lastly, Doar noted the expletives it appears the ICE agent said toward Good after the shooting. It sounds like the agent said, “F****** b****.”

    Pertaining to the vulgar comment, Doar said, “Self-defense is an affirmative defense where you’re saying that you’re fearful for your life. Courts could interpret that, or a jury could interpret as a mindset of trying to compel control or dominance over the situation rather than a sincere fear for his life.”

    Jeff Wagner

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  • Avelo Airlines to halt deportation flights for ICE

    Avelo Airlines said that it will no longer carry out migrant deportation flights for the Department of Homeland Security, ending a contract that supported the U.S. government’s immigration enforcement efforts. 

    The Houston-based carrier, founded in 2021, said its deal to handle Immigration and Customs Enforcement deportation flights did not sufficiently boost the airline’s financial position. As a result, the low-cost carrier is shutting down its hub at Mesa Gateway Airport in Phoenix, where its migrant flight operation was based, the company said in a statement to CBS News.

    “Avelo will close the base at [Mesa Gateway Airport] on January 27 and will conclude participation in the DHS charter program,” an Avelo spokesperson said. “The program provided short-term benefits but ultimately did not deliver enough consistent and predictable revenue to overcome its operational complexity and costs.”

    Avelo operates low-cost flights to dozens of destinations, including the Caribbean, from four U.S. hubs. It is planning to open a fifth base in Dallas in late 2026. 

    DHS has long partnered with CSI Aviation, which subcontracted with Avelo to provide ICE with air charter services. The federal agency also subcontracts with other charter companies, including GlobalX, which handled more than half of DHS’ charter flights in 2025, according to ICE Flight Monitor at Human Rights First, a group that tracks ICE deportation flights.

    “ICE never contracted directly with Avelo Airlines,” DHS said in a statement to CBS News. “ICE will continue to utilize its contracted service provider, which works with multiple airlines to support the American people’s mandate for mass deportations of criminal illegal aliens.”

    In April, Avelo founder and CEO Andrew Levy expressed confidence that the airline’s deportation business would help drive the carrier’s growth, while conceding that handling deportation flights was a “sensitive and complicated topic.”

    Mesa’s charter program has sparked public backlash and protests against its decision to work with ICE. 

    The Indivisible Project, a nonprofit group that led protests against Avelo Airlines, on Thursday applauded the carrier’s move to end its contract with DHS.

    “For months, communities across the country spoke out, organized, protested and demanded that Avelo Airlines end its deportation flights. After months of plummeting sales and canceled commercial flights, Avelo was forced to walk away from contracts that harmed immigrant families and destabilized workers — and it’s sales,” Indivisible co-executive director Ezra Levin, said in a statement.

    Edited by

    Alain Sherter

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  • Deadly Minneapolis ICE shooting echoes Franklin Park, Marimar Martinez shootings during Operation Midway Blitz

    The fatal shooting of a woman by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis on Wednesday recalls shootings by federal immigration agents in Chicago during the height of Operation Midway Blitz in the fall.

    Minneapolis police said federal agents and local protesters clashed starting around 9:30 a.m. near East 34th Street and Portland Avenue. Witnesses told CBS News Minnesota they saw a Honda Pilot blocked by multiple federal agents, and an agent trying to open the driver’s side door, where a woman was seated in the driver’s seat.

    The woman put her car into reverse, then into drive, and then three shots were fired, witnesses said. When the woman was pulled from the Pilot, paramedics could be seen giving her CPR. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security confirmed the woman died, and claimed the agent fired out of “fear for his life” as she allegedly tried to ram him, and that it was an incident of “domestic terrorism.”

    The woman was identified as 37-year-old Renee Good. City leaders said she was a legal observer of federal immigration agents as they conduct operations in the Twin Cities, and that she wasn’t the target of an immigration arrest.

    The incident may sound familiar to people in the Chicago area, as it recalls two shootings last fall at the height of Operation Midway Blitz. 

    ICE agent shoots, kills undocumented immigrant in Franklin Park

    On Sept. 12, 2025, an ICE agent shot and killed an undocumented immigrant from Mexico in Franklin Park, Illinois.

    DHS claimed at the time that 38-year-old Silvero Villegas-Gonzalez, a father of two, had tried to use his car to drive into agents when they tried to detain him. DHS officials also claimed the ICE agent who opened fire had been dragged by the car and suffered “severe injuries.”

    But surveillance video from two local businesses showed Villegas-Gonzalez backing up and driving away while an agent was on either side of his car; the agent on the passenger side continues standing there, but the agent at the driver’s side can’t be seen.

    And in body cam video released two weeks later, the agent is heard describing his own injuries as “nothing major” after the shooting.

    “I got dragged a little bit,” the agent says in the video.

    DHS claimed that Villegas-Gonzalez was being targeted by ICE agents because of a criminal history that included reckless driving, but CBS News Chicago investigators found that he only had a record of four traffic violations between 2010 and 2019 for offenses that included speeding, an expired driver’s license, not having insurance and not having a child restraint seat.

    Attorney Manuel Carednas, who represented Villegas-Gonzalez in two of those cases, said his client, while undocumented, was respectful, hardworking and compliant with all court instructions regarding his traffic violations.

    “If he had to go to court he would go to court. If he had to pay a fine or he had to do anything the court required, he was very compliant,” Cardenas said.

    Woman shot by federal agents, accused of “ramming” officers

    On Oct. 5, 2025, federal agents shot a woman in the city’s Brighton Park neighborhood after DHS officials said they had been “boxed in” by protesters opposing immigration enforcement operations in the neighborhood.

    DHS claimed U.S. Customs and Border Patrol agents were “boxed in by 10 cars,” and that one driver had a gun, which they claimed was a semi-automatic weapon. As a result, DHS said, agents opened fire, striking the driver. The agents fired five shots while the driver was still inside her car.

    The driver was later identified as 31-year-old Marimar Martinez. She was not seriously injured and was able to drive away from the scene. Paramedics found her and her car at a repair shop about a mile away, at which time they were able to take her to a hospital where she was treated and released.

    Less than a week later, a federal grand jury indicted Martinez and her passenger, 21-year-old Anthony Ian Santos Ruiz, for assault and attempted murder of a federal employee in the incident. They claimed she had rammed the agent’s SUV before he opened fire.

    While DHS claimed Martinez had a semi-automatic weapon, she did not face any gun charges.

    Martinez pleaded not guilty, and it came out in court that the Border Patrol agent who shot Martinez had been allowed to drive that SUV back to Maine, more than 1,000 miles away, despite being central evidence in the trial. Martinez’s attorney sought a hearing to determine whether federal authorities improperly destroyed evidence in the cranial case against her by allowing the SUV to be taken back to Maine.

    Then, near the end of November, federal prosecutors dropped all charges against Martinez and Ruiz. The charges were dismissed with prejudice, meaning prosecutors cannot refile them in the future.

    “These agents were lying about what happened. Ms. Martinez never rammed anybody. These agents hit Ms. Martinez. These agents jumped out and shot Ms. Martinez, a U.S. citizen, whose only crime was warning her fellow community members that ICE was in the neighborhood,” said attorney Christopher Parente, who represented Martinez. “That is not a crime. She didn’t deserve to be shot.”

    Parente said there is another investigation with a separate U.S. Attorney’s office to hold the agent who shot his client responsible for the incident, but no further developments in that case have been shared. 

    Illinois politicians condemn Minneapolis ICE shooting

    Politicians in Illinois moved swiftly to condemn the Minneapolis shooting.

    “This is Donald Trump’s America: a woman is dead because ICE is operating with impunity in our neighborhoods,” wrote U.S. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL 8th) in a statement. “This horrific loss of life is devastating and never should have happened. My heart is with her family and loved ones, who are now grieving a senseless tragedy. I will be demanding full answers and accountability from the Trump administration. When federal agents are unleashed without restraint or oversight, the consequences are deadly—and the responsibility for this killing is on their hands.”  

    “Today’s tragic shooting once again proves that ICE is not in our cities to protect people or for public safety. They are separating families, not only by distance and countries—but by death. My sincere condolences are with the family and loved ones of the woman who died,” wrote U.S. Rep. Robin Kelly (D-IL 2nd). ”  As details come forward about the shooting, I urge the truth to come to light. The city of Chicago knows all too well that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem only lies. After the deadly shooting of Silverio Villegas González during a traffic stop, Secretary Noem tried to hide the truth, but bodycam footage disproved injuries sustained by the ICE officer. The Minneapolis Mayor has already said that video disputes Secretary Noem’s claims. It’s clear that to achieve public safety, ICE must leave our cities immediately.”

    “The brutal, unnecessary shooting death of a woman in Minneapolis today by an ICE officer is a shocking and devastating tragedy and a stain on our entire nation,” wrote U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider (D-IL 2nd). “The agents carrying out these ICE raids are federal officers with a sacred duty to uphold the law and protect our communities, not terrorize them. Those officers responsible for today’s horrific shooting must face a thorough investigation and be held to full account for their actions. Sending strength to the Minneapolis community. Chicagoland knows all too well the trauma and terror Trump’s chaotic immigration operations bring to otherwise peaceful communities. Our President should be making America and Americans safer. He is failing.”

    Mayor Brandon Johnson, in a social media post, spoke on the shooting in Minneapolis and how it is similar to incidents in Chicago, and the city stands in solidarity with Minneapolis.

    “The video that many of us have seen of I.C.E. officers fatally shooting a woman at point-blank range is deeply disturbing and, unfortunately, all too similar to incidents that have transpired here in Chicago. No community deserves to be subjected to the terror that’s stemming from this president’s use of I.C.E. as his personal militarized force,” he said.

    WCCO Staff

    contributed to this report.

    Sara Tenenbaum

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  • Judge voids decision to end legal status of 60,000 immigrants from Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua

    A federal judge in California on Wednesday voided the Trump administration’s move to terminate the Temporary Protected Status of roughly 60,000 immigrants from Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua, calling it a “pre-ordained decision.”

    Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced the termination of the TPS programs for Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua in June and July, saying the three countries had recovered from the environmental disasters that prompted the U.S. government to grant their nationals temporary legal refuge.

    Created by Congress in 1990, the TPS policy allows the U.S. government to give certain foreigners deportation protections and work permits, temporarily, if their native countries are facing armed conflict, an environmental disaster or another emergency that makes their return unsafe. 

    In late July, U.S. District Court Judge Trina Thompson delayed the termination of the TPS programs for Honduras, Nepal and Nicaragua, issuing a preliminary finding that the Trump administration failed to consider lingering problems in three nations and that the decision to terminate the policies was motivated by racial animus, or racial hostility. That ruling was paused in August by an appeals court, allowing the Trump administration to end the programs. 

    But Thompson issued a summary judgment on Wednesday, finding that the effort to revoke the legal status of tens of thousands of Hondurans, Nepalis and Nicaraguans was unlawful. She said Noem’s move “was preordained and pretextual rather than based on an objective review of the country conditions as required by the TPS statute and the (Administrative Procedures Act).”

    “The record specifically reflects that, before taking office, the Secretary made a pre-ordained decision to end TPS and influenced the conditions review process to facilitate TPS terminations for Honduras, Nicaragua, and Nepal,” Thompson wrote in her order.

    The TPS designations for Honduras and Nicaragua were first created in the late 1990s, after the devastation caused by Hurricane Mitch, which killed thousands in Central America. Many of those previously enrolled in those programs arrived in the U.S. more than two decades ago. The TPS policy for Nepal was established in 2015, following a deadly earthquake in the small Asian nation.

    The Trump administration has mounted an aggressive effort to dismantle most TPS programs, arguing the policy attracts illegal immigration and that it has been abused by Democratic administrations and extended for far too long. It has also moved to terminate TPS protections for hundreds of thousands of immigrants from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Haiti, Myanmar, Sudan, Syria and Venezuela.

    In a statement, Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin called the judge’s ruling “another lawless and activist order from the federal judiciary who continues to usurp the President’s constitutional authority.”

    “Under the previous administration Temporary Protected Status was abused to allow violent terrorists, criminals, and national security threats into our nation,” McLaughlin said. “TPS was never designed to be permanent, yet previous administrations have used it as a de facto amnesty program for decades. Given the improved situation in each of these countries, now is the right time to conclude what was always intended to be a temporary designation.”

    Ahilan Arulanantham, co-director of the UCLA Center for Immigration Law and Policy, said Wednesday’s ruling should allow TPS holders from Honduras, Nicaragua and Nepal to work in the U.S. legally and prevent federal immigration officials from detaining and deporting them.

    “The court’s decision today restores TPS protections for thousands of long-term law-abiding TPS-holding residents from Honduras, Nepal, and Nicaragua,” Arulanantham said.

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