Federal judges in Minnesota could decide whether to block Homeland Security from investigating the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti and pull federal officers from the state altogether, potentially ending Donald Trump’s surge.
Hours after the shooting, Minnesota law enforcement agencies sued to block Homeland Security officials from destroying or altering any evidence related to the shooting. A Trump-appointed judge granted the order later that night.
But lawyers for the Department of Justice want the judge to dissolve the restraining order, insisting that “it’s a federal matter now.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Friedrich Siekert told Judge Eric C. Tostrud on Monday that any state requests for evidence in a potential criminal investigation against the agents who opened fire on Pretti would likely be available through standard public records requests — only after “the conclusion of all federal matters.”
The hearing followed Monday’s arguments in a lawsuit from Minnesota officials demanding the Trump administration withdraw more than 2,000 federal officers for what attorneys for the state called an “unlawful and unchecked invasion.”
District Judge Katherine Menendez said her decision could take some time as she weighs the gravity of an order that could upend the administration’s efforts to patrol Democratic-led states and cities with masked immigration officers for its mass deportation campaign, noting the circumstances are under such “shockingly unusual times.”
She appeared to agree there has been an “enormous amount of collateral damage” with Trump’s weeks-long surge, with attorneys for the state arguing Monday that “roving” groups of immigration officers have upended “nearly every walk of life” with racial profiling, illegal detentions, and use of deadly force.
The judge also repeatedly asked about a letter from Attorney General Pam Bondi to Governor Tim Walz, suggesting that Trump could withdraw federal officers if the state repeals so-called “sanctuary” policies and hands over reams of voter information and lists of Medicare and food assistance recipients.
“Is the executive trying to achieve a goal through force that it cannot achieve through the courts?” Judge Menendez asked the government.
“We’re here, as I’ve said, to enforce federal immigration law,” Justice Department attorney Brantley Mayers replied. “There is nothing to back up this claim that we are here for another reason.”
Hours later, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared to admit the terms of the federal government’s withdrawal.
If Governor Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey implement “common-sense cooperative measures” laid out in Bondi’s letter, then border patrol officers “will no longer be needed to support ICE on the ground in Minnesota,” Leavitt said.
Minnesota attorneys compared that to “extortion” and a “hostage” crisis.
“That’s what you’d expect from someone extorting you,” Minnesota assistant attorney general Brian Carter told Judge Menendez.
“They’re trying to coerce plaintiffs to legislate in the way that they want. They’re trying to hijack the state’s legislative process. They’re trying to get us to turn over voter rolls,” Carter said. “What does that have to do [with immigration enforcement]?”
A separate lawsuit from Minnesota officials accused federal officers of denying state law enforcement any access to the scene where officers fatally shot Pretti.
Federal officers left a few hours after the shooting, “allowing the perimeter to collapse and potentially spoiling evidence” while taking “exclusive possession of evidence from the scene,” Minnesota officials wrote.
Minnesota Assistant Attorney General Peter Farrell said Monday there were “serious irregularities” in the handling of evidence, including Homeland Security officials posting a photograph of the firearm allegedly recovered from the scene, as well as officials’ statements about Pretti in the immediate aftermath.
The investigation is being led by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), which is required to “preserve all evidence collected, including physical evidence collected by other federal entities, which are then properly transferred” to HSI custody, according to a sworn declaration from Mark Zito, the agency’s Special Agent in Charge for the St. Paul office.
But “all evidence was collected and transported back to the FBI Minneapolis Field Office,” according to a sworn statement from an FBI official whose name is redacted in court filings.
That evidence includes body-worn camera footage, which has been “preserved,” according to Jeffrey Egerton, the executive director for the Investigative Operations Directorate within Customs and Border Protection’s Office of Professional Responsibility.
Attorney General Keith Ellison told reporters Monday that he fears the agencies won’t preserve that crucial footage.
“I am so concerned that the video is not being preserved that I sought an order from the district court, just a couple of nights ago,” he said. “What other choice do we have? That’s how concerned I am.”
Asked whether the administration will publicly release the footage, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters Monday, “That’s not something I’ve heard the president commit to, so I won’t do that here.”
Greg Bovino, the top border patrol official running Trump’s boots-on-the-ground operations, said border patrol officers who shot Pretti are still working, but “not in Minneapolis.”
He refused to tell reporters where they were or provide any details about their background and the shooting itself.
“There’s this thing called doxxing, and the safety of our employees is important to us,” he said. “As far as the number of shots, the number of agents involved, that is going to come out in the investigation.”
