Amid the largest immigration enforcement operation in history, a 37-year-old mother of three was fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on January 7, 2026. Multiple witnesses recounted the deadly incident happening as Renee Nicole Good was backing her Honda Pilot away from federal agents. The event triggered national fury and demands to disband federal immigration enforcement agencies.
Immediate criticism was voiced by influential figures, including 51-year-old Ken Jennings, the host of “Jeopardy!” Jennings began posting on Bluesky from January 6, stating “America is always like ‘ok, but the NEXT regime change will work,’ like when I ‘cut out carbs’ briefly every January,” and “The ‘prosecute the former regime at every level’ candidate has my vote in 2028.”
On January 7, Jennings followed up: “It’s been a dark week, but I just saw someone reply to an ‘Abolish ICE’ post with a scoldy Bluesky ‘Uh, try abolish DHS’ and that joy will sustain me for a little while.” He also shared messages reading “The murderer’s name is Jonathan Ross,” referring to the Star Tribune’s identification of the officer. Jennings later wrote about handling replies to his posts: “I’ve been a-blockin’ and a-mutin’ all afternoon, but I want everyone to know that I never block for this reply, though the universe gives me multiple opportunities every day.”
After dropping off her six-year-old son at school, Good and her partner encountered ICE agents during an immigration enforcement operation. The Minnesota Star Tribune identified the shooter as Jonathan Ross, a 43-year-old Iraq War veteran who had been dragged by a fleeing driver in a separate incident six months prior. Ross fired three shots in quick succession at Good – at only 399 milliseconds apart – hitting her in the face and head as she tried to escape, causing her Honda Pilot to crash into a parked car three seconds later.
Video footage from various angles shows Good’s SUV reversing slightly before moving forward with wheels turned sharply to the right, away from the officers. Law enforcement experts questioned Ross filming the incident with his cellphone while holding his weapon, with one criminology professor stating: “If you are an officer who views this woman as a threat, you don’t have one hand on a cellphone.” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem stated the agent was hit by the vehicle and treated at a hospital but declined to confirm whether the officer shot before or after allegedly being hit.
Upon reviewing the video footage, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey rejected the federal claims, instructing ICE to “get the **** out of Minneapolis.” The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) labeled the incident as an “act of domestic terrorism,” accusing Good of “weaponizing her vehicle.” Vice President JD Vance supported this framing, calling Good’s death “a tragedy of her own making” and alleged she was “part of a broader left-wing network” organized to attack ICE officers.
Good’s ex-husband told reporters she was not an activist and had no knowledge of her involvement in protests, while City Council member Jason Chavez described Good as a U.S. citizen who was “an observer… watching out for our immigrant neighbors.” Colorado-born Good, an English graduate from Old Dominion University in 2020, was a mother to a 15-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son from her first marriage and a six-year-old son whose father died in 2023. Good’s wife described her as living “by an overarching belief: there is kindness in the world” and as “a Christian who knew that all religions teach the same essential truth.”
According to Good’s wife, they had stopped “to support our neighbors” with whistles while federal agents “had guns,” when the shooting occurred. “I am now left to raise our son and to continue teaching him, as Renee believed, that there are people building a better world for him.”
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz condemned the federal deployment, calling the shooting “totally predictable” and “totally avoidable,” and urged people not to believe what he described as a “propaganda machine.” Walz declared January 9, 2026, as “Renee Good Day.” President Donald Trump labeled Good as “a professional agitator” who “viciously ran over the ICE officer.”
The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension was denied access to evidence by federal authorities. Since September 2025, ICE agents have opened fire on people nine times, with four other fatalities occurring during federal deportation operations.
Protests have started nationwide, including in Los Angeles, New York, Washington DC, El Paso, and Boston, with over 1,000 demonstrations planned by the “ICE out for good” national coalition. An online fundraiser for Good’s family was closed after raising more than $1.5 million, which will be placed in a trust fund.
on. An online fundraiser for Good’s family was closed after raising more than $1.5 million, which will be placed in a trust fund.
