Although the FBI is conducting the investigation into the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent (ICE) who shot and killed Renee Nicole Good, 37, without allowing the collaboration of Minnesota authorities, which would complicate a judicial process, but there are other options.
“If the FBI does not share that information with state prosecutors, that will significantly hamper the ability of state and local prosecutors to bring a case,” acknowledged Carolyn Shapiro, a professor at Chicago-Kent College of Law and former attorney general for the state of Illinois. “If, in some case, the FBI were to conduct the entire investigation and then share the file, as the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension has asked them to do, state and local prosecutors would still be able to file charges based on that investigation. But if they do not have access to the evidence and investigation material, it will significantly hamper that ability.”
The agent has been identified as Jonathan E. Rossaccording to information from the Minneapolis Minneapolis Star Tribune.
Karianne Jones, a social lawyer at Evergreen Legal Strategies, clarified that although the fact that the FBI is leading the investigation and involving state authorities would be an obstacle to filing the lawsuit, it is not impossible to continue a judicial process against the ICE agent.
“I’ll just add that it could make it difficult [la investigación del FBI]but it does not necessarily make it impossible [presentar la demanda]. “Often there would be a concern that if the entire investigative record is made available that it would somehow affect the impartiality of the accused, but I don’t think that’s an issue in this case,” Jones explained. “If there is information that exonerates this officer, I assume he would have access to it.”
Although it is conducting an investigation, the federal government has advanced its position in favor of the ICE agent, starting with the Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, who stated that Good was committing an act of “domestic terrorism.”
President Donald Trump even blamed Good in his first message on Truth Social, stating that he was part of the “radical left,” while Vice President JD Vance assured that the ICE agent has “complete immunity” for the murder.
Minnesota officials have criticized the federal government’s reaction. Jacob Frey, Democratic mayor of Minneapolis, criticized the Trump administration’s response this Friday and the FBI’s lack of transparency.
“This is not the time to hide the facts,” Frey declared. “If you have nothing to hide, don’t hide.”
Who could file the lawsuit against the ICE agent?
The experts who participated in a virtual press conference told this newspaper that there are several options as to who or who can file the lawsuit for Good’s murder.
“If we are talking about a criminal process, it would have to be the state or local authorities with jurisdiction over the area,” clarified Bryna Godar, an attorney with the State Democracy Research Initiative, University of Wisconsin Law School. “There are other types of lawsuits that could be filed by different parties to demand accountability.”
He clarified that there is the Federal Tort Claims Act, which allows people injured by federal agents to sue for monetary damages.
“This is something that could potentially be considered by the deceased’s heirs, or possibly other people harmed by dishonest federal activities, which would allow them to sue and, as they say, obtain considerable compensation,” Godar added. “There may also be other types of civil lawsuits, but if we are talking about criminal cases, they will most likely have to be filed by the state or the Hennepin County prosecutor.”
There is also the possibility that there are options in civil matters, focused on violations of constitutional rights, Shapiro noted.
“On the civil front, several states have passed laws that allow new avenues for people to sue federal officials who violate their constitutional rights,” he said. “This is known as Converse 1983, a federal law that allows something similar for those who suffer harm at the hands of state agents.”
Shapiro said it was possible that the state government is further studying its options.