As Minneapolis reels from a second fatal shooting by federal immigration agents, immigrant advocates say that aggressive enforcement tactics carried out by under-trained and "trigger happy" officers is a "recipe for disaster", warning more lives could be at risk as the heavy-handed approach risks violating legal norms.
Fresh protests erupted on Saturday following the death of Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old nurse and U.S. citizen, who was shot several times on the street by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. It followed the killing of another U.S. citizen Renee Nicole Good earlier this month, who was behind the wheel of her vehicle when she was shot by an agent at close range.
The incidents have sparked furious demonstrations and seen calls intensify for the withdrawal of ICE agents from the state of Minnesota, while concerns continue to mount over practices being adopted by federal enforcement and their impact on immigrant communities and broader civil rights.
Abel Nunez, executive director of the Central American Resource Center (CARECEN), an organization that supports immigrants in the U.S., said the actions of ICE agents in these fatal altercations has been enabled by U.S. President Donald Trump's hard-line policy approach and the aggressive rhetoric of his administration, as well as a worrying lack of training.
"ICE existed prior to the Trump administration, and this is a combination of a president that is allowing them to do this, for them to take aggressive tactics in the way they are enforcing immigration law that is only escalating the violence. And you have a lot of new officers that may have not received the appropriate training or don't have the experience of being in urban centers. So this is a recipe for disaster," said Nunez.
"we believe that ICE should be there, they have a space, law enforcement has a space, but they have to know how to do it. But you can clearly tell from their tactics that they have been asked to be this way and you have officers that unfortunately may not have the experience, and unfortunately look trigger happy that puts everybody at risk," he said.
The latest shooting has intensified public anger in Minneapolis, amid national debates over the limits of police power and the balance between immigration enforcement and civil liberties, and Nunez warns that the heightening tensions could see more people get hurt.
"It's very interesting because I think that what we're talking about is our democracy, is what rights does the state have to police us? And you're seeing that immigration is sort of the tip of the spear. People are not responding to allow lawbreakers to be in this country. What they are responding to is the tactics that police are using to enforce that law. So, many Americans believe in the rule of law, but they understand that we have rights. And so I think that there is a battle by which the president is trying to send a clear message that 'might makes right'. And you have the people that are the victims of this saying no, there are due processes. There is a way in which things need to happen and you are in violation of that. And they aren't willing to take it. And what we're seeing is again, is an escalation where more people will be hurt," he said.
While federal agents claim to be acting within the scope of the law, immigrant advocacy groups stress the importance of knowing legal rights and enforcing those protections even in the face of federal overreach, and Nunez issued a stern warning that agents who overstep the mark risk becoming criminals themselves.
"We are still a country of laws and people must know their rights, their rights in terms of what they can say to police enforcement, what rights they have in their own property and they need to exercise them. The inability of ICE not following the rules is not a reason for us not to follow the existing rights that we have. And that is because we're still winning in the courts. And I think that we're going to hold them to account and we're going to have to hold them to account, once this administration is hopefully out of power. And so all of these officers need to understand that if they violated the law, just like the criminals that they say they are going after -- they may become the criminals themselves," said Nunez.
Minnesota state governor Tim Walz has called for the removal of federal agents from the state, citing a pattern of chaotic and dangerous confrontations.
Since September last year, federal immigration officers have shot at least 11 people in enforcement operations, three of whom were killed, according to an NBC News investigation published before the latest incident in Minneapolis occurred
Fury over heavy-handed ICE tactics after latest fatal shooting sparks protests
Fury over heavy-handed ICE tactics after latest fatal shooting sparks protests
