Minnesota authorities are reportedly considering prosecuting the ICE agent who fatally shot Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty is looking into charging the agent. However, federal authorities have taken full control of the investigation and blocked state investigators from accessing evidence and obtaining information about the incident.
From KSTP:
The Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office has stated it wasn’t involved in the incident but is sending deputies to assist investigators as needed.
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said her office is “pushing hard” for state and local investigators to review the incident.
“We will use every available lever to ensure a local, transparent investigation takes place,” Moriarty said.
The FBI and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension are each investigating the shooting.
Yes, state and local prosecutors can charge federal law enforcement agents with crimes. But it isn’t easy.\
— JayCee - The TRUTH they don't want you to know. (@FoolsBelieve) January 8, 2026
ENFORCE THE LAW. THAT ICE AGENT PURSUED THE VEHICLE AND SHOT HER WITHOUT EVEN ASCERTAINING IF SHE POSED ANY THREAT TO ANYONE.https://t.co/I8wTRdHaqi via @MinnPost
Prosecuting the officer isn’t a cut-and-dry process due to jurisdictional issues. States have prosecuted federal officers in the past, especially since the War of 1812. But over time, new laws went into effect that favored federal agents suspected of committing crimes.
Until fairly recently, the law was favorable to federal officials who allegedly violate state criminal laws while they carry out their official duties. The seminal case, known as In re Neagle (1890), held that a deputy US marshal who shot and killed a man could not be charged with murder in state court, because this federal officer did so while acting as a bodyguard for a US Supreme Court justice.
Last June, however, the Supreme Court handed down Martin v. United States (2025), which held that Neagle does not always protect federal officials who violate state law. The rule announced in Martin is vague, so it is unclear how it would apply to the shooting in Minneapolis. But the gist of the ruling is that a federal officer is only protected if they can demonstrate that “their actions, though criminal under state law, were ‘necessary and proper’ in the discharge of their federal responsibilities.”
If the officer responsible for the Minneapolis killing broke Minnesota law, in other words, any prosecution against them would turn on whether the courts decide shooting this woman was a “necessary and proper” exercise of the officer’s official duties.
There is one other potential complication. A federal law provides that state criminal charges against “any officer (or any person acting under that officer) of the United States or any agency thereof” may be removed from state court and heard by a federal judge. This statute does not prevent state prosecutors from bringing charges or from prosecuting a case. But it does ensure that the question of whether Neagle applies to this case would be decided by federal courts that are increasingly dominated by conservative Republicans.
🚨NEW: Federal officers like ICE agents have been routinely prosecuted by states for violating state laws, up to and including murder, since the 1800s.
— David Dayen (@ddayen) January 7, 2026
Minnesota has every ability to do this with today's killing of a motorist by an ICE agent.https://t.co/gqXssyPeYQ pic.twitter.com/UDW9fJgE7G
The Supremacy Clause in the U.S. Constitution grants federal officials a level of protection from state laws. However, these protections are only valid if the officers “are reasonably acting within the bounds of their lawful federal duties.”
Idaho indicted FBI Hostage Rescue Team sniper Lon Horiuchi in 1997 for involuntary manslaughter after he fatally shot Vicki Weaver in 1992 during the Ruby Ridge standoff. Weaver had been standing behind a cabin door while holding her 10-month-old infant when Horiuchi shot her.
However, the federal government pushed back. The case was later moved to federal court where the judge dismissed the case against Horiuchi, deciding that he was immune from prosecution because he was acting within the scope of his official duties. An appeals court reversed the ruling in 2001, noting that he could face prosecution if his actions were determined to be unreasonable. The case stalled after the ruling because the newly elected county prosecutor declined to pursue the matter.
Virginia prosecutors charged two U.S. Park Police officers who shot and killed Bijan Ghaisar in 2017 after a traffic stop in Fairfax County. They fired nine shots into Ghaisar’s vehicle.
A federal district judge dismissed the case, using the Supremacy Clause as his justification. He decided the two officers were immune from prosecution because they killed Ghaisar while performing their duties.
There is a high bar when it comes to prosecuting federal agents, which is why it is highly unlikely that the ICE agent will face consequences.
