LOS ANGELES (OC).–White House senior adviser Stephen Miller, 40, admitted that ICE or Border Patrol agents “may not have been following” proper protocol when it came to using lethal force on Minneapolis street protesters Renee Good and Alex Pretti, both shot by ICE agents on Jan 7 and Jan. 24. Both killings sparked outrage nationwide over President Donald Trump’s immigration policy, once designed and focused on apprehending and deporting known criminals, including gang members. But since the immigration policy has been implemented on the streets of communities around the country, the practical application of enforcing immigrations laws has backfired on the administration. Deaths in Minneapolis gave a black eye to ICE, but, more importantly, exposed the poor training on the use of deadly force by ICE agents. Both Good and Pretti didn’t have die.
Coming out of Good’s shooting by ICE Jan. 7, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem defended ICE actions, claiming that Good was a clear-and-present danger to ICE agents prompting the deadly force incident. But since the Pretti altercation and shooting Jan. 24, more questions than answers have been raised about the use of deadly force. “The White House provided clear guidance to DHS that the extra personnel that had been sent to Minnesota for force protection should be used for conducting fugitive operations to create a physical barrier between the arrest teams and the distrupters,” Miller said. How ICE personnel got involved in street altercations is anyone’s guess. Miller’s comments suggest that some ICE agents were used to subdue suspects on the streets, rather tha provide a physical barrier to protect agents more trained in street altercations.
Bipartisan members of Congress, both House and Senate, have called for DHS Secretary Kristi Noem to step down. So far, Trump has backed his DHS secretary but damage to the overall immigration policy raises questions. Miller had called Pretti an “assassin” after ICE officials disarmed him of his 9 mm semiautomatic weapons. Whether Pretti had a license for a concealed weapon or not, it raises questions about his judgment entering street protests with a gun with two loaded clips. Recent video evidence a week before Pretti’s death shows him involved in another violent incident a week before where he kicked in the tail light of an ICE vehicle. Pretti’s behavior doesn’t match the narrative painted by Democrats and the fake news that he was an innocent street protester. Whether Pretti deserved to die or not, he was involved in two incidents with ICE agents in one week.
Democrats and the fake news refuted Noem’s public remarks about Pretti that he was out to commit mass murder on ICE officiers. Noem said Pretti “arrived at th scene to inflict maximum damage on individuals and kill law enforcement,” prompting Miller to sideline Noem from further involvement in Minnesota street protests. Judging by the two lethal incidents in two weeks, there’s something that’s gone terribly wrong with ICE interactions with street protesters. Law enforcement agencies have received intensive training in crowd managements to minimize the chance of lethal incidents. Multiple video tapes of the Jan .7 and Jan. 24 incidents show that neither Good nor Pretti were engaged in alterations requiring lethal force. DHS officials say that that ICE body cam video emerged on the Pretti incident. Noem implied that Pretti brandished his firearm.
Removing Border Patrol chief Greg Bovino from his post suggest that White House officials weren’t happy with his management of Minneapolis street protests. Replacing Bovino temporarily, the White House dispatched Border Patrol Chief Tom Homan to Minneapolis to calm the situation. Whether Homan can calm things down or not, the White House must change its immigration policy to remove ICE from direct confrontations with street protesters. Going into Latino communites around the country, especially in Los Angeles County and parts of the Southwest have raised doubt about Trump’s immigration policy. Generations of families, who originally entered the country illegally, have been serving in the military and paying their taxes for generations. How does the White House think they can harass established communities whether they harbor non-citizens or not?
Walking back its overly aggressive immigration policy, the White House must switch gears quickly before they damage themselves politically before th 2026 Midterm elections. Trump immigration policy has been responsible or his drop in approval ratings now running aggregate at 42.8%. Trump’s immigration policy should stick to the border and pursuing only known criminals or fugitives on the loose inside the United States. Going after day laborers at Home Depot or minimum wage earners at carwashes was not the White House original plan to going after known criminals endangering U.S. communities. Miller and his White House team has changed its policy to reflect changing realities in American cities. Whether Noem survives the controversy is anyone’s guess. Her past statements about an impending massacre damage her alreadyweak credibility.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
