Jan 9

Jan 9 Renee Nicole Good

Demonstrations, Donald J. Trump, Parades, Performance, Protest, Public Declarations

On January 7, 2026, U.S. Immigration and Enforcement agent Jonathan Ross pumped three shots into the body of Renee Nicole Good, killing her. Prior to this tragic incident, Good had been observing ICE agents stationed in her Minneapolis neighborhood, just after dropping her six-year-old son off at school.

A number of bystanders captured the incident on video using their cellphones. Good is shown in her maroon SUV, first backing up, and then moving forward, apparently trying to leave the area where the ICE agents were conducting operations. Agent Ross interpreted Good’s actions quite differently, claiming that Good was weaponizing her SUV, trying to run him down. As she approached Ross, who was standing in the middle of the street, Ross fired. Notably, the ICE agents prevented a doctor from rendering assistance to the soon-to-dead Good.

Given the current political climate, the incident has become a Rorschach test. Those in the Trump Administration and many Trump acolytes characterize Good as a “lunatic Leftist” who was attempting to murder a virtuous member of law enforcement. On the other hand, those who oppose Donald J. Trump’s immigration policies characterize Ross as an evil ICE agent committing cold-blooded murder.

I see a woman trying to leave, but the incident is laden with ambiguity. If Good intended to kill Ross, she wouldn’t have first slowly backed up. Moreover, she would have turned the SUV’s steering wheel to the left (aiming the SUV more directly at Ross) rather than to the right, as she did. Moreover, video footage has emerged showing Good speaking to Ross (while she sat in the driver’s seat), just seconds before the shooting, saying, “That's fine, dude. I'm not mad at you,” as Ross was capturing video of Good’s license plate.

Ross certainly has some explaining to do in light of the prescription in Section 1-16.200 of the U.S. Justice Department’s Justice Manual, which states:

Firearms may not be discharged solely to disable moving vehicles. Specifically, firearms may not be discharged at a moving vehicle unless: (1) a person in the vehicle is threatening the officer or another person with deadly force by means other than the vehicle; or (2) the vehicle is operated in a manner that threatens to cause death or serious physical injury to the officer or others, and no other objectively reasonable means of defense appear to exist, which includes moving out of the path of the vehicle. Firearms may not be discharged from a moving vehicle except in exigent circumstances. In these situations, an officer must have an articulable reason for this use of deadly force.

Ross could have stepped away back from the oncoming vehicle. Nothing but open space was behind him. Ross presumably will argue that he did not have time to move, thereby putting him in fear for his life.

Unfortunately, the Trump Administration is unwilling to undertake the necessary investigation that might resolve the issue. Shortly after the shooting, Trump described Good as “very disorderly, obstructing and resisting, who then violently, willfully, and viciously ran over the ICE Officer. . . .[It is] hard to believe [Ross] is alive, but is now recovering in the hospital.” Vice-President J.D. Vance called Good “a victim of left-wing ideology,” with her death “a tragedy of her own making.” Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, “attacked [ICE] and those surrounding them and attempted to run them over and ram them with her vehicle. An officer of ours acted quickly and defensively shot to protect himself and the people around him.”

Given those statements, serious questions exist as to whether the FBI will conduct an impartial investigation particularly with Trump lickspittle Kash Patel driving the train. Trump, Vance, and Noem reached definitive conclusions within hours of the incident without the benefit of even a preliminary investigation. Perhaps more tellingly, the Feds have impeded the State of Minnesota’s investigation by refusing to make evidence available to Minnesota authorities.

An independent investigation might clarify what transpired. Forensic experts using the videos to construct computer-generated animations might be able to simulate Ross’ perspective. Then an impartial factfinder could assess whether Ross’ actions were justified.

Not surprisingly, demonstrations against ICE and the Trump Administration erupted in Minneapolis immediately following the shooting, bringing thousands into the streets during the ensuing 48-hour period. Demonstrations throughout the country also erupted.

Surprisingly, Chicago’s normally well-organized community of activists did not take to the streets until 4:00 PM today. As I approached Federal Plaza, where today’s demonstration was supposed to take place, I didn’t see a single demonstrator in the plaza. Only when I arrived at the corner of Adams and Dearborn did I see 10 demonstrators standing under the courthouse’s overhang holding a bedsheet with the words “Justice for Renee Good! End ICE Terrorism” scrawled in black paint. Only 10 people? Even more surprising, no television news crews turned out.

As several demonstrators delivered fiery speeches, the largely college-aged gathering grew to somewhere between 30 and 40 people over the next 20 minutes . The group then began to march, heading south along the pavement aligning the courthouse facade. When the marchers arrived at the courthouse entrance mid-block, they turned quickly toward the revolving door, entering the courthouse lobby. The lone guard on duty (or at least the only visible one) was unable to the stop the advance. Note to General Services Administration: Given the rally’s proximity to the courthouse, the security in place was woefully inadequate.

After somewhere around 20 demonstrators had entered courthouse, members of CPD stepped in, trying to clear the lobby. Several minor scuffles between demonstrators and CPD officers ensued, although it was mostly pushing and shoving as the officers tried to force the demonstrators to vacate. I thought there might be a few arrests, but the officers largely ignored what is best described as light resistance.

Once back outside, two or three people delivered highly charged remarks, with the demonstrators intermittently breaking into chants. Forty-five minutes into the demonstration, a man laid an American flag on the pavement in front of the courthouse. He then set it ablaze.

Having previously learned my lesson, I made sure I was downwind from the burning the flag, which was made of synthetic materials rather than cotton, thereby producing toxic smoke that nobody should ingest into their lungs. As the flag burned, two CPD officers tried to put out the flames. I couldn’t decipher the entire verbal exchange, but I believe the officers claimed the flag was a fire hazard, which wasn’t a creditable basis for interfering with constitutionally protected speech. See, Texas v. Johnson, 491 U.S. 397 (1989). The Mies van der Rohe-designed courthouse is comprised of glass, steel, and granite. Nothing flammable.

Just before 5:00 PM, the group began to march north on Dearborn, initially marching along the sidewalk, but then taking to the street. “Whose streets? Our streets.” Given the small number of protesters, the CPD bicycle cops had sufficient manpower to force the demonstrators back onto the sidewalk.

The demonstrators then turned east on Monroe, coming to a halt in front of 55 East Monroe Street, which is the site of the Department of Justice Immigration Court. After several speeches, the lead organizer called it a day.

The small demonstration proved eventful, but was pathetic when compared to the much larger demonstrations in other American cities that took part in the wake of Renee Nicole Good’s killing.

[Click on an Image to Enlarge It. The Images Are Not Necessarily in Exact Chronological Order]