The fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good by an ICE agent in Minneapolis has sparked outrage across the United States.
At the same time, many are trying to understand what actually happened — and one key detail in the videos circulating online may help provide answers.
Renee Nicole Good, 37, was killed on Wednesday during a confrontation with federal immigration officers.
Although the full circumstances of her death remain under investigation, the Department of Homeland Security alleged that she had “weaponized her vehicle,” going so far as to label the incident “an act of domestic terrorism” — a characterization later echoed by President Trump.
But part of the incident caught on video now tells a very different story than the federal account, according to some. Rather than showing a deliberate attack, many viewers interpret it as Good trying to flee while agents surrounded her vehicle.
In the clip circulating online, an ICE officer is seen attempting to open Good’s car door. Moments later, Good reverses, sharply turns her wheels, and tries to drive away. Another officer stands in front of the SUV — but the vehicle’s tires are visibly angled away from him.
Looking at the wheels
As the SUV begins moving, it clips the officer without knocking him down. Almost immediately, the officer fires one shot through the windshield, followed by at least two more through the driver’s side window as Good continues to flee. Her vehicle then careens roughly 100 feet before crashing into a parked white car.
The entire encounter unfolds in less than 10 seconds.
As the video spread, public reaction has been swift and furious. Many viewers say the footage shows panic and flight — not intent to harm.
One commenter wrote:
“Murder. Plain and simple. There are times we can no longer stay silent. This is the time. This is murder.”
Another said:
“That wasn’t self defence. That was retaliation/anger that she was getting away. They should all prosecuted.”
A Reddit user pointed to a crucial detail: “THE WHEELS ARE FULLY TURNED AWAY FROM THE OFFICER. Watch in SLOW MO. No intention IMO to hit anyone. Sole intention based on wheel/steering wheel to LEAVE the scene NOT A THREAT. Look at the wheel.”
Officials and lawmakers condemn ICE
Prominent officials have openly rejected the federal government’s explanation.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez called the shooting “a public murder,” saying:
“What we saw today was a criminal murder a woman and shoot her in the head while she was trying to escape and flee for her life.”
She described the killing as “the manifestation of every American’s worst nightmare.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey delivered one of the strongest rebukes, telling ICE to leave the city entirely.
“To ICE, get the f*** out of Minneapolis,” Frey said. “They are not here to cause safety in this city… They’re ripping families apart. They’re sowing chaos on our streets and in this case quite literally killing people.”
Addressing the self-defense claim directly, Frey added:
“They are already trying to spin this as an action of self defense. Having seen the video myself, I wanna tell everybody directly, that is bullsh*t.”
A mother of three
Good’s family and neighbors say the government’s portrayal bears no resemblance to the woman they knew.
Her mother, Donna Ganger, described her daughter as deeply compassionate.
“She was extremely compassionate. She’s taken care of people all her life. She was loving, forgiving and affectionate,” Ganger said, adding, “She was probably terrified.”
Ganger called her daughter “an amazing human being” and “one of the kindest people I’ve ever known.”
Good was a poet, writer, and mother of three. Just hours before she was killed, she had dropped off her youngest child at an elementary school in Minneapolis — a city the family had only recently moved to from Kansas City, Missouri.
Far from being “the worst of the worst” criminals referenced in President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown, Good was a U.S. citizen born in Colorado with no criminal history beyond a single traffic ticket.
The note on her door
In the aftermath of the shooting, neighbors placed flowers and signs near the crash site. One handwritten message on a nearby door read: “NO MEDIA INQUIRES” and “JUSTICE FOR RENEE,” according to AP.
A video recorded moments after the shooting shows a distraught woman crying near the wrecked SUV, wailing: “That’s my wife, I don’t know what to do!”
Good’s ex-husband said she was not an activist and had never participated in protests. Friends and former teachers recalled her as gentle, creative, and outwardly focused — someone who cared deeply for others.
“She was incredibly caring of her peers,” said Kent Wascom, a former writing instructor. “Her presence was something that helped make that classroom a really supportive place.”
Vice President JD Vance has stated that the ICE agent involved in the fatal shooting of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good in Minnesota will not face charges.
ICE agent has ‘absolute immunity’
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Vance said the agent has “absolute immunity” in connection with the death.
“He was doing his job,” Vance said.
He added, “The idea that Tim Walz and a bunch of radicals are going to go after and make this guy’s life miserable because he was doing the job that he was asked to do is preposterous.”
During the briefing, a reporter questioned Vance about Minnesota’s investigative agency claiming that the U.S. attorney’s office had “essentially cut off” the state’s access to the case, asking what precedent exists for such a restriction.
Vance quickly responded: ”First of all, I wish the state officials in Minnesota would investigate why you have so many people who are using their vehicles and other means to actually interfere with a legitimate law enforcement operation.”
”The precedent here is very simple,” he continued. ”You have a federal law enforcement official engaging in federal law enforcement action. That’s a federal issue.
”That guy is protected by absolute immunity,” Vance commented. ”I’ve never seen anything like that. It would get tossed out by a judge.”
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