MINNEAPOLIS, United States — A US Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, agent has resigned from the bureau in protest over the handling of a federal investigation into the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer, according to two people familiar with the decision.
The agent, a supervisory official in the FBI’s Minneapolis field office, stepped down after senior officials in the Trump administration directed investigators to focus more closely on the actions of Ms Good and her partner than on the conduct of the officer who fired the fatal shot, the people said.
The agent did not respond to a request for comment on Friday night.
Ms Good, 37, was killed on January 7, 2026, when she was shot by Jonathan Ross, an ICE officer, while seated in the driver’s seat of her sport utility vehicle.
The killing prompted protests across Minnesota, with demonstrators calling for federal immigration officers to leave the state.
Dispute Over Direction of Inquiry
The FBI opened an investigation into the shooting shortly after it occurred, initially working alongside local authorities, a standard practice in such cases.
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension later said it was excluded from the inquiry.
A spokeswoman for the FBI’s Minneapolis field office said the bureau would not comment, citing policy. “It is FBI policy not to comment on personnel matters,” she said.
The inquiry has so far centred on whether Ms Good’s partner obstructed a federal officer in the moments leading up to the shooting, according to people familiar with the investigation.
Less attention has been paid to the actions of Mr Ross, they said.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said there was “currently no basis” to open a criminal civil rights investigation into Mr Ross.
Broader Fallout Within Justice Department
The agent’s departure follows the resignation of six federal prosecutors from the United States attorney’s office in Minnesota, who cited concerns about the direction of the case.
The shooting has intensified political tensions between federal authorities and state and local officials.
Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota and Jacob Frey, the mayor of Minneapolis, have both called for an end to federal immigration enforcement operations in the state.
At the same time, the Justice Department has opened an investigation into Mr Walz, Mr Frey and other Minnesota officials over allegations that they sought to obstruct federal immigration agents through public statements, according to an NBC News report last week that cited a senior law enforcement official and another person familiar with the matter.
Mr Walz has described the inquiry as politically motivated, while Mr Frey has said it was intended to intimidate him.
Related Court Rulings on Protests
The dispute has unfolded alongside protests linked to federal immigration enforcement elsewhere in Minnesota.
This week, judges rejected efforts by the Trump administration to detain protesters arrested during a demonstration at a church in St Paul, where a pastor was alleged to have worked for ICE.
In one ruling, a federal magistrate judge found no probable cause to charge two protesters under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, a federal law that includes provisions covering houses of worship.
