Minneapolis mayor says some federal agents will begin to leave on Tuesday amid growing anger over Alex Pretti death – live | Minnesota
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Some federal agents to leave Minneapolis on Tuesday, mayor says
Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey said he spoke with President Donald Trump today, asserting that “some federal agents will begin leaving the area tomorrow, and I will continue pushing for the rest involved in this operation to go”.
For his part, Trump said that “lots of progress is being made”, and that his conversation with mayor Frey was “very good”.
Frey is slated to meet with Trump’s “border czar” Tom Homan on Tuesday to “discuss next steps”, according to the mayor.
“Minneapolis will continue to cooperate with state and federal law enforcement on real criminal investigations – but we will not participate in unconstitutional arrests of our neighbors or enforce federal immigration law,” Frey said in a statement. “Violent criminals should be held accountable based on the crimes they commit, not based on where they are from.”
Key events
Minneapolis police chief Brian O’Hara told CNN that border patrol official Gregory Bovino’s actions have “not been helpful.”
“He was riding around in the city with a caravan and stopping at places and kind of just shaking things up — that’s not been helpful,” O’Hara told CNN.
Amid the announcement that Bovino will depart from the city, O’Hara said he hopes the move will shepherd in a deescalation of the situation in Minneapolis.
“Nobody in law enforcement is saying federal law enforcement should not be enforcing federal law. That’s ridiculous, right?” the police chief told the news outlet. “But I don’t think it’s unreasonable to think that federal law enforcement should operate by the same standards and professionalism that the rest of law enforcement in the state does.”
Maanvi Singh
Hundreds of candles were lit at a memorial for Pretti, created at the site of his killing – many of them scented and tapered lights that neighbors had scrounged from their homes.
Brass Solidarity – a band that had formed in the aftermath of the 2020 murder of another Minneapolis resident George Floyd – played a rendition of Stand By Me, and the dozens of people gathered around the memorial sand along. The community band, led by Raycurt Johnson, normally plays once a week in George Floyd Square – near the site of Floyd’s killing. After Renee Nicole Good was killed, they began playing in her memory, as well. On Monday, they honored Pretti.
“Say his name!” They shouted as they concluded their song. “Alex Pretti!” The neighborhood screamed back.
Earlier in the day, Pho 79 and Carvalle, a Vietnamese and Chinese restaurant down the street from the Pretti memorial, was offering free meals to anyone in need. In the evening, they had set out hand warmers and other supplies for demonstrators who had gathered nearby.
Two days ago, in the aftermath of the killing, many of the restaurants along this corridor, known as “eat street” had transformed into makeshift shelters and field hospitals for demonstrators and observers injured by the chemical irritants that federal agents had used against them.
On Monday night, the street was fairly quiet – save for the brass music that pierced through the chilly air.
CNN is reporting that border patrol official Gregory Bovino’s access to his social media accounts was suspended.
The move comes after Bovino responded to posts about the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Alex Pretti over the weekend, accusing Pretti of assaulting immigration agents before he was shot dead. Bovino’s claim has not been supported by videos of the killing on Saturday.
An official for the Department of Homeland Security said earlier today that Bovino has not been removed from his duties after reports saying otherwise.
Republican senator John Curtis said he supports an independent investigation into the shooting of a 37-year-old Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, joining a slew of other GOP lawmakers pressing for a deeper inquiry into the tactics executed by federal immigration agents.
“We must have a transparent, independent investigation into the Minnesota shooting, and those responsible—no matter their title—must be held accountable,” said the Utah senator in a post on X. “Officials who rush to judgment before all the facts are known undermine public trust and the law-enforcement mission.”
He added: “I disagree with Secretary Noem’s premature DHS response, which came before all the facts were known and weakened confidence.”
Curtis says he plans to work with senators from both parties to push for oversight and transparency, supporting senator Rand Paul’s call “for leaders of these operations to testify, so trust can be restored and justice served”.
Senior border patrol official Gregory Bovino removed from his role – report
Gregory Bovino has been removed from his role as border patrol “commander at large”, the Atlantic reports.
According to the magazine, Bovino will return to his previous job in El Centro, California, where he is expected to retire soon, citing a homeland security official and two people with knowledge of the removal.
Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at the department of homeland security, said that Bovino “has NOT been relieved of his duties”.
In a post on X, she said that Bovino “is a key part of the President’s team and a great American”. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt reposted McLaughlin’s remarks.
Democratic senator Peter Welch called for homeland security secretary Kristi Noem to leave her post following the killings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, both of whom were shot dead by federal immigration agents in the city.
“Noem’s got to go. I mean, we have the head of this department who spends a lot of her time in self-promotion, the $200 million video shoot in Mount Rushmore,” the Vermont senator said in an interview on MS Now’s Ana Cabrera Reports.
“She is the real problem, because what she’s doing is turning the function of immigration enforcement away from enforcement and into being kind of a shock troop that goes into cities and acts with impunity,” Welch added. “She’s blown the job. You know, we need immigration enforcement, but that’s not what she’s doing. It’s mass intimidation.”
Joseph Gedeon
A federal court in Minneapolis heard arguments on Monday on whether the Trump administration’s deployment of 3,000 immigration agents to Minnesota has crossed the line from law enforcement into unconstitutional occupation.
Hours later, Kate Menendez, the Biden-appointed US district judge overseeing the case, ordered the federal government to respond to the assertion that the Trump administration’s so-called “Operation Metro Surge” enforcement campaign was intended to “punish plaintiffs for adopting sanctuary laws and policies”.
She gave the Trump administration lawyers until Wednesday evening to respond, suggesting a ruling was not imminent.
The extraordinary legal question centers on the 10th amendment, which reserves to the states all powers not explicitly granted to the federal government in the constitution. Lawyers for Minnesota and the cities of Minneapolis and St Paul claim in their suit that Operation Metro Surge has become so intrusive and dangerous that it amounts to an illegal occupation of the state.
Read the full story here:
NBC News reports that Lindsey Halligan, a federal attorney appointed by Donald Trump who led the failed prosecutions of two of the president’s political foes, is no longer an employee of the justice department.
Halligan left her position as interim US attorney for the eastern district of Virginia last week after several judges criticized her, with one of them finding she held the position unlawfully.
Sources told NBC News that she is no longer an employee at the justice department, and it remains unclear whether she was hired elsewhere.
After Halligan was sworn in as interim US attorney in September, she oversaw the indictments of fierce Trump opponents Letitia James, the New York attorney general, and James Comey, the former FBI director. A judge dismissed the cases in November.
At about 9am on Saturday, US federal agents shot and killed Alex Pretti, a Minneapolis nurse who was observing immigration officers in the city.
The Guardian’s video team has pieced together footage posted to social media, showing the attack from different angles:
Some federal agents to leave Minneapolis on Tuesday, mayor says
Minneapolis mayor Jacob Frey said he spoke with President Donald Trump today, asserting that “some federal agents will begin leaving the area tomorrow, and I will continue pushing for the rest involved in this operation to go”.
For his part, Trump said that “lots of progress is being made”, and that his conversation with mayor Frey was “very good”.
Frey is slated to meet with Trump’s “border czar” Tom Homan on Tuesday to “discuss next steps”, according to the mayor.
“Minneapolis will continue to cooperate with state and federal law enforcement on real criminal investigations – but we will not participate in unconstitutional arrests of our neighbors or enforce federal immigration law,” Frey said in a statement. “Violent criminals should be held accountable based on the crimes they commit, not based on where they are from.”
More pressure from Republican lawmakers is mounting on the Trump administration to investigate the killing of 37-year-old nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis by immigration officers.
“Any loss of life under politically-charged circumstances is a tragedy,” said senator Michael Crapo of Idaho in a post on X. “I support a full and impartial investigation into the events leading up to the death of Alex Pretti. His family, law-abiding citizens exercising their Second Amendment right and the trust of the American people deserve a fair process.”
“I am deeply troubled by the shootings in Minneapolis involving federal agents,” said Republican senator Jerry Moran of Kansas on X. “This tragic circumstance should be investigated to the fullest extent to ensure transparency and accountability.”
According to a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump said he would increase tariffs on some South Korean imports into the United States.
Trump said tariffs on autos, lumber and pharmaceuticals will rise from 15% to 25%, accusing the country of “not living up” to its trade deal with the US.
“South Korea’s Legislature is not living up to its Deal with the United States,” Trump said.
He added: “Because the Korean Legislature hasn’t enacted our Historic Trade Agreement, which is their prerogative, I am hereby increasing South Korean TARIFFS on Autos, Lumber, Pharma, and all other Reciprocal TARIFFS, from 15% to 25%.”
