Minneapolis Police Chief: ICE Agent Violated 'Basic Steps'

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Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara raised questions about the conduct of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who shot and killed protester Renee Good earlier this month, saying the officer appeared to ignore "basic steps" law enforcement are trained to follow when approaching a vehicle.

O'Hara made the remarks during an interview aired Sunday on CBS News' "60 Minutes," during which correspondent Cecilia Vega said the shooting has become something of a national "Rorschach test," with some Americans viewing it as a "senseless killing" and others seeing an "officer defending his life."

After reviewing video clips of the incident, O'Hara said he was left wondering why the officer was standing in front of Good's SUV just before shots were fired.

"It's not clear to me why he appears to be in the path of the vehicle more than once," O'Hara said.

"When you approach someone in a vehicle in a law enforcement encounter, there are very basic steps you take to ensure the officer's safety and de-escalate the situation."

Vega said Department of Homeland Security officials accused Good of "stalking" immigration enforcement officers, though she did not mention that DHS shared a 3 1/2-minute video on Jan. 11 showing Good blocking traffic with her vehicle before agents approached her.

It was reported last week that the ICE agent — identified as Jonathan Ross — suffered internal bleeding after being struck by Good's vehicle moments before he opened fire.

O'Hara told "60 Minutes" that he supports "targeted, precise, preplanned operations on violent offenders," calling those efforts a "good thing."

"But I'm concerned that people in the [Trump] administration don't understand the reality of what is happening on the street," he said.

As O'Hara walked and talked with Vega, the "60 Minutes" crew captured a heckler yelling that he was a "pig" who was enabling ICE.

The chief appeared to brush it off, saying, "People have a right to say disrespectful things ... however, they cannot physically obstruct law enforcement from performing a function.

"Those things are illegal," O'Hara added.

Nicole Weatherholtz

Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.

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