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Laura Coates Live

Outrage in Minneapolis After ICE Agent Shoots Woman in Car. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired January 07, 2026 - 23:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[23:00:00]

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN ANCHOR AND SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: -- seize Greenland by force.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. THOM TILLIS (R-NC): Denmark has punched above its weight. It came to Afghanistan, lost 43 soldiers on the ground, fought in some of the contested regions honoring their Article 5 commitment to the United States. Among the NATO allies at the time, it was 30 nations, they were among the top six. And think about all the nations bigger than them. I was on Senate Armed Services for eight years, and generals would say the same thing: The only thing worse than going to war with allies is going to war without allies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIP: Thank you for watching "NewsNight." "Laura Coates Live" on the ground in Minneapolis starts right now.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is "CNN Breaking News."

LAURA COATES, CNN HOST AND SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Good evening. I'm Laura Coates live in Minneapolis where people are grieving. And they are downright angry after an ICE agent shot and killed an American citizen in her car. We have a name for the 37-year-old, Renee Nicole Good. And I'm just a short distance away from where she lost her life this morning.

Behind us, we actually have activity going on, a protest and vigil continuing tonight. People are agitated and chanting. They are angry about what has happened. They are saddened and they are frustrated that yet again, tragedy has struck in Minneapolis.

The administration, though, says that it was a justified act of self- defense. And we do have several videos showing multiple angles of what happened here today. So, you can make your own assessment using your own eyes and, of course, your common sense. But a warning, they are very difficult to watch. And the first one is from the left side of the victim's car with a view of the shooting.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(BLEEP) UNKNOWN (voice-over): No! No! (bleep).

(SHOOTING)

(BLEEP)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Oh my (bleep) God! What the (bleep)! What the (bleep)! You just (bleep). What the (bleep)!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Here's a slowed down version of that video in it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: It shows that agent pulling out his gun as the car moves forward before he then fires three shots. A second video was recorded from an even higher angle and that was further down the street, and it appears to show the ICE agent getting bumped by the car.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): No! No!

(SHOOTING)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Oh my (bleep)!

(SHOOTING)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Here again a slowed down version of that same video. We put a spot shadow around the ICE agent who opened fire so it's even easier for you to see at home.

Now, the president, Donald Trump, also posted a version of that video online.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Now, he claims -- quote -- "The woman driving the car was very disorderly, obstructing and resisting, who then violently, willfully, and viciously ran over the ICE officer, who seems to have shot her in self-defense" -- unquote. Donald Trump.

Video from immediately after the shooting shows the officer actually walking away from the scene. And DHS Secretary Kristi Noem says that he was treated at a local hospital and has since been released. She says the driver was trying to run him over in what she called, and I'm quoting her, an act of domestic terrorism.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTI NOEM, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: ICE officers and agents approached the vehicle of the individual in question, who was blocking the officers in with her vehicle, and she had been stalking and impeding their work all throughout the day. ICE agents repeatedly ordered her to get out of the car and to stop obstructing law enforcement, but she refused to obey their commands. She then proceeded to weaponize her vehicle, and she attempted to run a law enforcement officer over. This appears as an attempt to kill or to cause bodily harm to agents, an act of domestic terrorism.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Witnesses who saw the shooting, they fully dispute that explanation. And, by the way, so our state and local officials, including Minneapolis's own mayor, Jacob Frey.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR JACOB FREY, MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA: They are already trying to spin this as an action of self-defense. Having seen the video of myself, I want to tell everybody directly, that is bullshit. To ICE, get the fuck out of Minneapolis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: I want to bring in the Minneapolis police chief, Brian O'Hara, who is with us remotely as well.

[23:04:59]

Chief, you and I meet again under yet another tragedy here in Minneapolis. This time, one that the governor has called (INAUDIBLE) ICE agents and the rhetoric being used. But I want to ask you because I'm here, I'm near the vigil, and it seems like it has been mostly peaceful so far. Is that also your assessment tonight?

BRIAN O'HARA, CHIEF, MINNEAPOLICE POLICE DEPARTMENT: Yes. Thank God, by far, the overwhelming majority of people who have come out have done so peacefully. And that is very clearly something that we had expected would occur as people should be able to gather peaceably and exercise their First Amendment rights.

COATES: Secretary Kristi Noem said that the ICE operations, chief, they're going to continue. They will not pause. They will continue what they said was the largest operation in U.S. history. Now, given the tensions, given what has happened here just today, would it help for ICE to suspend operations even temporarily?

O'HARA: Well, certainly, you know, for many weeks, we have been concerned. And I have expressed many times, not my concern that -- not a concern that federal law enforcement activity was happening, but how that law enforcement activity was happening.

And just the questionable methods that we have seen, that I have said repeatedly, cause a potential danger to the law enforcement officers themselves as well as to members of the community.

And we know we have seen repeatedly tense situations with civilians who are assembling to exercise their First Amendment right to observe, record, and object to law enforcement activity in the city. And that's why we've repeatedly asked people to do that, but do so peacefully.

COATES: I've spoken to a number of people in the community. And, frankly, the word "distrust," "mistrust" is on the tip of their tongues. It goes back, as you know, and predates even your tenure as a chief here in Minneapolis to the killing of George Floyd. Even tensions before then, there has been a long uphill battle that you have faced trying to restore that community trust. But I'm hearing from people who feel like your police department is actually protecting ICE agents over the community. What is your reaction to that tonight?

O'HARA: Well, that's clearly not true, and it is objectively false. You know, I think anyone with any sense would realize that when a use of deadly force occurs on a city street, we have an obligation to secure that crime scene so that evidence can be processed and that we can ensure that a full and thorough investigation can occur because we owe that both to the person who is now deceased, their family, but as well as the general community.

And I have seen our officers today, at times towards the end when they were holding that scene, become subject to people who are not protesting peacefully, that were throwing objects, that broke the window of a squad car and saying all types of hateful things and expressing frustrations over what happened directly to the Minneapolis police officers. And I'm incredibly proud for how well those officers handled that. And they were able to deescalate yet again a very, very chaotic situation.

COATES: There is a ripple effect in the community outside here as well. You have school closings as a result, trying to keep the tensions low here. Questions are being asked all over this city, all over the country, frankly, chief, about what has happened here. And the number one question people are asking is, how anyone could call it a justified shooting?

I know you are not casting judgment or even casting your judgment on whether, in fact, it is justified until the full investigation has been conducted, obviously prudent of you, but what details would help to determine that as a member of law enforcement?

O'HARA: Well, unfortunately, these are very difficult situations. And as you had referenced earlier, there are already a number of videos in the public domain. But really, you know, no video is going to essentially tell all of the stories and provide all of the details, all of the evidence that needs to be processed to determine where exactly shots were fired, the angles, how the person was injured and so on.

And so, while it's very clear that there are very serious concerns around this issue, it remains an issue and a concern that police agencies around the country train to try and avoid in the first place. [23:10:02]

And by that, I mean, we have been very, you know, purposeful around trying to avoid placing police officers in situations on traffic stops that may result in the use of deadly force to a motorist.

COATES: One of the concerns and tensions have been the training that police officers receive, obviously about excessive force, about reasonableness, about whether to use lethal standard and a lot lethal force. And a lot of that comes from learned judgment and expertise.

O'HARA: Yes.

COATES: Do you have concerns or believe that the ICE agents that are on the ground have the appropriate training to handle circumstances like you saw today?

O'HARA: Well, I don't know. I don't know a thing about what training these agents have. I don't know what their agency individual policies are. But what I do know is I think there is a generalized concern across law enforcement, including across federal law enforcement, that these agents are being put into situations on the street which they do not have much experience in dealing with.

COATES: You know, one of the big concerns, it goes back to that trust issue we spoke about, right? Whether it's trusting law enforcement or trusting the federal government to investigate a matter such as this, given that we've already had complaints that Noem and others got ahead of their skis on describing what indeed happened here. Do you have faith that this investigation could be objective and fair under the federal government's watch as opposed to state police departments and local prosecutors?

O'HARA: Well, everything I have seen today on the scene with the FBI agents that are there, they are absolute professionals. They are also leading the investigation along with the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. So, I have no reason to believe that anything other than a full and thorough investigation into this incident would occur. I hope people will allow that investigation to continue to its logical conclusion.

COATES: Who leads that? Are you and your department looking at the investigation or is it another entity?

O'HARA: The FBI and the Minnesota BCA.

COATES: Thank you. Thank you, chief.

I want to turn to Omar Jimenez, who is here with us in Minneapolis right now. Omar, there is a lot happening even behind us. And we should note, location wise, we are a few feet from the vigil, from the actual site where this woman lost her life earlier today. There are people all over. Give me some sense. You've covered this area a great deal, particularly during the George Floyd killing and the aftermath and protests. Describe what you've seen tonight. OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN ANCHOR CORRESPONDENT: Yes, tonight -- I mean, look, if you are watching, you know what time it is right now, we are approaching midnight, and you can still see that there are many, many people out here in the area. They've been coming to see what is really a beautiful vigil at the site where, unfortunately, Renee Good, the 37-year-old Renee Good lost her life, where that car, if you watch some of the videos, careened off into the pole here, and that is where everybody has been gathering, laying flowers, lighting candles.

There have been some protests that have been happening a little bit about a block down that have been much more vocal.

COATES: Yes.

JIMENEZ: But over here where we are, you know, the vigil, silent.

COATES: Well, what do we know about the victim in this case, Renee Good?

JIMENEZ: Yes.

COATES: What can you tell us?

JIMENEZ: Yes, 37 years old Renee Nicole Good, as we understand, a mother of a six-year-old, as lieutenant governor relayed to us. And if you see some of the videos or the pictures of the vehicle but also, as lieutenant governor relayed, there were stuffed animals that presumably were for that six-year-old found in the vehicle or seen in the vehicle.

COATES: The child was not in the car?

JIMENEZ: The child was not in the car. But those stuffed animals were seen in that passenger side and was relayed to us by the lieutenant governor. And then we're just talking to witnesses and hearing from witnesses. There was a woman that was at the time standing very close to where the vehicle had crashed with blood all over her, saying, they just killed my wife, as was relayed to us by someone who was literally standing feet away from where this ended.

So, a lot of family and a lot of loved ones now trying to piece together how this day changed so quickly. And obviously, I know we showed the video a little while ago from many different angles, but this was a situation that changed just in a matter of seconds and a life was lost, and we're now seeing ripple effects not just with loved ones obviously trying to figure out how they're going to move forward, but with the community here that is feeling a lot of similar pain and distrust in law enforcement that we've seen them deal with for years now.

[23:14:57]

COATES: We've seen this happen sadly, no, not factually, specifically exact, but there are analogies around the country. Chicago is one example that I know you've covered. Describe press a little bit. Why people are referencing Chicago right now in relation to what has happened here in Minneapolis?

JIMENEZ: So, mainly, it comes down to the response from the federal government that we saw in the immediate aftermath of this. So, in Chicago, there's a case of woman a Marimar Martinez. Similar set of circumstances only by the sense that there were protests going on. This person, in that case, she was a part of a group that was following law enforcement, tell ICE to get out of their neighborhood. There's a little bit of a back-and-forth. The bottom line, she ended up getting shot five times by a border patrol agent.

And at the time, DHS was very quick to come out and call her a domestic terrorist. We're seeing some of the same language used here. They are very quick to come out and say that she rams federal law enforcement. We're seeing some of the same language here.

In the end, in the Chicago case, it was the prosecution, the government, that ended up dropping the legal case because, well, the assumption is they didn't have the facts to back it up.

And it's what the defense attorney head for Martinez had said the entire time, that if the body camera video, that incident had come out, it would have shown that Martinez did not ram, it was the border patrol agent that rammed there, and that the shooting happened came essentially from the back of the vehicle to the front, indicating that some shots may have been fired as she was leaving.

So, while exactly you're correct to point out not a one-to-one comparison --

COATES: Right.

JIMENEZ: -- but the language that has come out for the response, particularly from the federal government. A lot of similarities.

COATES: And, of course, the timing of it, at what point their descriptions and the narrative comes out, giving and fueling some distrust, particularly now that we have videos already for the community to see. Omar Jimenez, thank you. Please stand by.

We also saw today raw fury from local officials over this tragedy. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, he delivered, let's just call it a blunt message to the Trump administration and also to ICE.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FREY: They are already trying to spin this as an action of self- defense. Having seen the video of myself, I want to tell everybody directly, that is bullshit. I have a message for ICE. To ICE, get the fuck out of Minneapolis. We do not want you here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: Former Republican governor of Minnesota, Tim Pawlenty, is joining me now. Governor, thank you for being here. We are unpacking what has happened just since today. And I wonder if you can appreciate or understand the anger from the Minneapolis mayor tonight. TIM PAWLENTY, FORMER MINNESOTA GOVERNOR: Well, I think it's important for leaders, particularly moments of crisis and uncertainty, to project calm and make sure you marshal all the facts before you open your mouth and make big pronouncements and conclusions.

And as you've seen throughout the day, Laura, from the different angles of this video, the notion that this is in self-defense looks entirely plausible. That car dragged the police officer, hit another one on the way out, according to one angle of that video, and that's a situation that I think a good defense attorney, credibly so and understandably so, is going to claim self-defense.

So, for the mayor, within minutes of this event happening, hours of this event happening, to reach those conclusions and using those words, I don't think is an example of good leadership in crisis.

COATES: We know, governor, you used the word "dragged." In the videos that we've seen, even in the slowdown version, there's no video that shows that car dragging the officer. I should also note, of course, part of the concern --

PAWLENTY: No, I don't think that's right, Laura.

COATES: -- about -- well, hold on. Let me finish my point, governor. I'd love to hear what you had to say.

PAWLENTY: Go ahead.

COATES: I just want to make -- I just want to make sure we are on the same page because I want to make sure some of the concern people have had is that after the car -- after the driver was shot, the car meandered in a different way. But can you describe a little bit more to me about how you view the role of public officials here in trying to either lower the temperature, A, or B, trying to ensure that people believe and continue to protest peaceably?

PAWLENTY: Sure. Just as to the dragging comment, I was referring to the officer who was at the driver's door and for a few steps anyhow was pulled by the car a little bit before he let go, not the officer out in front.

But in terms of the leaders' role in all of this, we all need to turn the temperature down. There's a lot of emotion, understandably so, a lot of uncertainty. And it would be best -- our leaders would best serve our state to not make inflammatory conclusions until we have all the facts.

COATES: I would assume that it would extend to all levels of government and making sure no one gets ahead of their skis, particularly when a life is lost.

[23:20:00]

But also, I mean, just around me right now, governor, I'm on the ground, and there is a lot of agitation, a lot of ire that's happening right now because there is a lot of concern about ICE's continued presence here in this community. I've seen all over the community, people saying they don't want them to be here. Do you think, if ICE remains on the ground, so you believe that there could worsen situations?

PAWLENTY: Well, they're going to remain on the ground because President Trump isn't going to back off in any major way in light of these events. He made a commitment to enforce illegal immigration. And the local officials won't cooperate because they're sanctuary cities. And so, there's a standoff. You know, they want help. And the federal officials don't necessarily want to notify or cooperate with the locals because they know that they're not going to help them and won't necessarily protect them.

So, we've got a collision of two agendas. And I think the leaders need to talk. I will give you one good example. The mayor of San Francisco, who is a liberal, called up Donald Trump and talked to him about these kinds of issues, and they reached an understanding. In Minnesota, all they do is yell at each other, the federal officials and the Minnesota officials.

If I was the governor of Minnesota, I'd fly out to Washington and meet with the president and say, hey, look, we've been kicking the crap out of each other, but we got to figure out a way to make this work because it's not working on the ground, having everybody fighting and yelling all day every day.

COATES: I certainly understand your optimism. I wonder if it would be rewarded in this new generation of politics, governor. But let me ask you this question. This shooting occurs as an immigration crackdown focusing on Somali immigrants is consistently underway here in this state. A population that he has called "garbage." I want you to hear what the vice president had to say on Fox tonight. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSE WATTERS, FOX NEWS HOST: The Democrats have a little bit of a Somali problem. They've let --

J.D. VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: America has a bit of a Somali problem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COATES: How do you see it, governor?

PAWLENTY: We don't stigmatize people and shouldn't stigmatize people because they belong to a particular ethnic or religious group or some other group. But we also don't excuse behavior that's illegal or inappropriate because they're in that group. And in this case, there are some allegations that public officials look the other way or went softer easy or slow or delayed or political when responding to claims of fraud by the Somali -- individuals within the Somali community.

COATES: Governor Tim Pawlenty, thank you for joining us this evening.

PAWLENTY: You're welcome. COATES: We remain on the scene. Much more ahead out of Minneapolis as an eyewitness who saw it all happen is going to join me and give first-hand account, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COATES: We're following the breaking news here in Minneapolis where tensions are palpable after the fatal shooting of a woman by an ICE agent just this morning. I want to turn to somebody who actually was there, Liliana Zaragoza. Liliana, tell me what you saw.

LILIANA ZARAGOZA, EYEWITNESS TO MINNEAPOLIS ICE SHOOTING: Yes. Unfortunately, this -- you know, I was dropping off my kids. I live not far from here. And it was just after 9:30 a.m. when I heard -- I heard sustained honking. And since -- you know, I'm a law professor. I'm in community here. I'm also Latina myself. There have been people who have been picked up from my own corner where I live. There have been chases. It's a heavily Latina community.

COATES: I thought you were hearing that.

ZARAGOZA: I was hearing a sustained horn. And I thought it was indicating, you know, that ICE was present. And when I -- so, I drove over. And sure enough, I did see big suburban. You know, I saw the SUVs with out of state plates. I saw officers in fatigues. So, I saw everything that told me there are ICE officers on the scene. That is what I'm seeing.

So, I pulled over, I put on my hazards, I started to honk myself. And when I pulled over, there was nothing on the sidewalk over there on 34th and Portland. I was around the corner. And I was devastated to later learn, you know, that this person was shot here on this block where we're standing now. But I was around the corner. And so, from what I could see, I could see the, you know, several ICE officers, several ICE vehicles. And then, all of a sudden, I saw MPD vehicles, and they were starting to put up police tape.

And so, quickly, I noticed -- you know, I'm getting boxed in myself. There's an ICE vehicle in front of me, MPD vehicles to my left. There's a giant like truck behind me. There's tape to my left. And, you know --

COATES: You started walking towards the scene?

ZARAGOZA: Well, so I was in my car. And when I saw the officers, knowing that, yes, I am Latina, but I'm lighter skinned, I'm a citizen, you know, I have relative privilege, I am an attorney, so I felt safer than most people who are here responding to potential ICE sightings. So, I opened my door. I said, you know, is this -- I came out with my arms up to the police officer and I said, is this an ICE operation or is this an MPD operation? And the first officer told me, you know, that he couldn't say that, that they are just responding. I asked the second officer, and he said it's a crime scene now.

COATES: What did you think that meant by a crime scene? Did you actually see the vehicle that had been shot at?

ZARAGOZA: Not yet.

COATES: When did you see?

ZARAGOZA: So, this is all happening in real time. And when they said crime scene now, I thought, you know, is this because people are starting to show up, right? Other people heard the honking. There was whistling. I was honking myself because I did see ICE.

[23:30:00]

And we've had our own system, right? If there is ICE, if you see ICE whistle, I'm wearing my whistle now, honk. And so, I was doing that. But when I got out of the vehicle and I asked, you know, I thought, do they think like that we, as we're showing up, that we're an obstruction, that we're committing some sort of crime? But then they asked me to move my car. And when I got back in my car, that's when the woman was on the sidewalk on the passenger side of my vehicle.

COATES: Out of the vehicle?

ZARAGOZA: Yes.

COATES: What did you see?

ZARAGOZA: So, they had moved her. Her body was on the ground. An EMT was performing compressions. I saw her bloodied head. I saw the air going into her belly from the EMTs. So, she was not there when I got there in the first place. But in that short time --

COATES: Her body had been moved.

ZARAGOZA: In the short time that I asked the officers what was happening, they must have moved her from the vehicle to the sidewalk around the corner.

COATES: You saw air going into her stomach. Did she appear to be conscious in any way?

ZARAGOZA: No.

COATES: Did she appear to be breathing?

ZARAGOZA: No. I know that. I've taken CPR courses myself, you know, as a parent, and I know that the compressions are so hard that it puts air in your belly. I saw those eyes. There's not a chance.

COATES: Where was she bleeding from?

ZARAGOZA: Her entire head was just covered in blood. And her eyes were just staring forward. The second that I saw her, you know, the shock of realizing there was no one there before, right? When I first pulled up and I would start honking and realizing, oh my God, now there's a person, there's a person who's clearly been killed. And in that moment that I saw on my right, you know, saw her, I turned back left. And I asked the police officers because at the time, I didn't know. I said, you murdered her. And I just looked with fear in my eyes.

COATES: What did they say?

ZARAGOZA: They said nothing. They told me to move my car. When I got into my vehicle again, they told me to focus on driving as I pulled out my phone to record. In that split second, I didn't know if anybody else had seen what happened before. I didn't know that people had taken video for getting shot. I didn't know if I would be the only eyewitness. And so, it felt important to pull out my phone to take video of her, to honor whoever this person was in case, you know, information needed to be known about what had happened to them.

COATES: Liliana Zaragoza, thank you so much for sharing. I'm so sorry for what you've seen. Thank you for bearing witness for us tonight.

ZARAGOZA: You're welcome.

COATES: My God. Still ahead, there are growing calls for that ICE agent to be arrested and to stand trial. But can he actually even be prosecuted? Next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:35:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COATES: I'm live in Minneapolis, just a few feet from where Renee Good lost her life this morning. We're learning more details about what the administration calls an active self-defense and what community members here stand in disbelief about that even possibility.

There is a lot going on, a lot of protests continuing to happen throughout the course of today and beyond. Even behind me, people continuing to gather. And there's a vigil nearby beginning as a few flowers now evolving into hundreds and hundreds of candles being lit. Even earlier today, people were singing this little light of mine, I'm going let it shine, as people continue to get very angry about what has happened here today.

Joining me now, the former police chief of Minneapolis, Medaria Arradondo. He is, of course, the person who led the police force in Minneapolis during the George Floyd protests. Chief, I'm glad that you're here. You know there is a lot of anger, a lot of mistrust and sadness about what has happened here today.

I want to ask you, since you've seen the videos. You have stood the test of time as one of the few members of law enforcement who called a spade a spade and saw what happened in the murder of George Floyd and said this was not reasonable police use of force. You've seen some of the videos here. What is your assessment given what you know today? MEDARIA ARRADONDO, FORMER MINNEAPOLIS POLICE CHIEF, AUTHOR: Thank you, Laura. What I have seen, at least in terms of that video and the victim, Ms. Good, highly concerning. It's troubling. You can understand why our community here is traumatized by this. It has opened up some old wounds.

Police departments for many years now, Laura, and I think Chief O'Hara mentioned this, too, you are trained specifically when you're dealing with individuals in a vehicle, de-escalation, but you're also trained to do what you can as a law enforcement officer to eliminate your risk and to eliminate the public's risk.

COATES: What does that mean? Get out of the way of the car?

ARRADONDO: Get out of the way of the car if you can.

COATES: So, do you need to retreat from a car?

ARRADONDO: You certainly can. And you also have to understand what was she being stopped for. If she was not the target or the focus of the operation from ICE, you can always -- if you need to get the license plate of the vehicle, let her go. If there's people around or witnesses around who can identify her, then you can let her go, come back. So, you're trained to totally deescalate those situations. Get out of the way if you can. But to use deadly force, that is a high -- you know, the elements of that have to be so concerning to open a fire on an individual. So --

COATES: Well, Noem said earlier today that that same officer had previously been dragged back in June. Does that factor in for you at all in terms of how you assess his reasonableness in this circumstance?

ARRADONDO: No, you can't. Each situation has to be judged on its own merits, on the information at the time. And so, you can't use that.

COATES: It doesn't go into his reasonableness that the Supreme Court will say, I have to defer to you. That's different. It's each circumstance.

[23:40:01]

ARRADONDO: Each circumstance is going to be based on the merits of that situation, of that case. And so, that's something that the community is going to want to see transparency as the investigative process moves forward. It's going to be very important. I know the Minnesota BCA and the FBI are conducting the investigation jointly.

COATES: Is that a good thing if the local law police department is not the one in charge of investigation? Is that a good thing to have the Bureau of Apprehensions and also FBI here?

ARRADONDO: Community, just like back when Mr. Floyd was killed, they wanted an independent, thorough, transparent investigation. They want that here. Having the FBI, the feds conduct that investigation solely, I don't think the community is going to be comfortable with that. So, they're going to want an independent investigation.

I believe that our state officials have said they're going to do that anyway, regardless. But it's going to be very keen important that at each step of the way of this investigation, the community is briefed, that transparency is going to be so important because trust is eroded. There is a lot of --

COATES: How about the officer's name? That would be ultimate transparency. But there are, obviously, hurdles for that.

ARRADONDO: Yes. In a local investigation, local officer-involved shooting, the name of the officer would have been released at this time. Again, the federal policies and how they do that, the officer's name has not been released. We know that Secretary Noem has said that that person was admitted to the hospital, has been released to the family, but that his name is not known at this time.

COATES: Should it be?

ARRADONDO: I think it absolutely should be. For any other sort of law enforcement officer-involved shooting, at some point in time, that officer's name and identity is released. And so, that is also public data at a certain point. And so, that's part of transparency. And so, that's what's really going to be needed to continue to make sure that -- you know, I have often said that, you know, trust is earned in droplets, but it's lost in buckets.

This community is hurting right now. They're going to want to continue to make sure that they get the full story and it's transparent along each step of the way.

COATES: Chief, thank you so much for being here.

ARRADONDO: Thank you.

COATES: I want to bring in and continue this conversation on illegal (ph) issues with a former federal prosecutor and also criminal defense attorney, Mark O'Mara, who joins us now. Mark, I'm glad to have you here with me. Talk to me a little bit through this because the president says -- quote -- "The situation is being studied." Now, I don't know what that means exactly, but he's saying it's going to be studied. So, tell me what you think about this given that Kristi Noem says the FBI is also investigating. How is this investigation going to work exactly?

MARK O'MARA, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: Well, it needs to be absolutely transparent. That's the main concern because we know we have a lot of pre-existing concerns about ICE and what they're doing and the sort of invasion of neighborhoods that people are already responding to. And I think they need to be very, very careful to do as good a job to inform the public, the rest of us, exactly what was happening along the way. Having said that, you know, it's troubling to watch -- troubling to watch that video. It truly is.

COATES: It is. I was going to pick up and just say that the chief of Minneapolis was talking about the idea of transparency being top of mind. But then, you have the secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, Mark, saying that it should be investigated as an act of domestic terrorism, a very loaded term. People are questioning whether it's applicable here, even in the slightest bit. But she's also citing what she said were other alleged car ramming incidents.

Do you think what you've seen today, based on the videos that are available to the public, and I admit there might be additional information forthcoming, I don't know when or what, but does this meet that definition of domestic terrorism?

O'MARA: There's nothing that I saw in the video and any of the research that I've done, small as it has been so far to date, that would suggest that that woman is acting in any way or fashion that was domestic terrorism or, for that matter, that it really showed some type of potential danger to the officer.

Now, again, self-defense is going to be the defense here. And the officer is going to say, I was -- quote -- "reasonably in fear of imminent great bodily injury, and I responded to it with deadly force." He has to say those words because that's the only thing that justifies the use of deadly force.

Now, interesting, we know that a car can be used as a deadly weapon. And in effect, if I was his defense attorney, what I'm going to say is, watch the car, it was going towards the officer. If that's true, if that deadly weapon is going towards the officer, he can in that moment defend himself, even including deadly force.

But here's the other side of that same coin, Laura. I don't believe she had any intent whatsoever to go towards the officer. I don't even think she knew she was there because she was focused on the guy in the window.

And more importantly, if he is using deadly force to protect himself from that attack of deadly force imposed by her, it didn't bother him at all. He was not hit by the car. He was not touched by the car. He took one step to his right and got out of the way of the car.

[23:45:02]

Meaning that the use of the deadly force did not change the trajectory of the car, did not help the situation at all, and though it may have been justified under the law, absolutely unnecessary.

COATES: You know, when you're describing that, one thing that comes to mind to me is when you're assessing whether somebody is going to be defendant in an action like this, you look at the presence of other officers. What did they do? You know, the Supreme Court has said that it's the reasonableness standard for other officers, not laymen like you and I, but other officers on the scene. What they did or did not do might be instructive here.

But we're also using the word "defense" here. Defense means a prosecution. Can this case actually be prosecuted given his position as an ICE officer? And will it be prosecuted given that the FBI is going to be looking into it? O'MARA: Well, can it be prosecuted? Yes. I think, in transparency, we should look at this very closely because the determination of whether or not he was acting in self-defense, while it may be a prosecutor, they have the right to do so and therefore not prosecute. In today's day and age, we see this on video. I think the public deserves a trial by its peers to determine whether or not the community believes that this was a justified shooting.

Now, we know the politics have already started. We already know that the administration, for example, is standing behind ICE, have said words like domestic terrorism. That's inflammatory. I don't get political. You know that, Laura.

But that's just unnecessary in a situation where we have a loss of a young life, 37 years old. Unnecessary, I believe it was, because it didn't assist in saving the officer in its argument to protecting the general public and protecting the other officers.

There was no apparent danger to a non-target woman who seemed that best she was doing was evidencing her desire to block ICE a little bit, but to do so very, from what I can tell, peacefully.

COATES: I'm very curious what the guidance will be going forward for ICE agents in this area given what the president has said and possibly support. Mark O'Mara, thank you so much.

O'MARA: Great to be here.

COATES: A lot more ahead, including the elected officials who represent the city, who will join me next with their message for the administration and, of course, for their own community.

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[23:50:00]

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COATES: Welcome back. We're hearing chants of "no justice, no peace" live in Minneapolis a few feet from the vigil where it has been created, of course, for the death of Renee Good today, killed by an ICE officer just this morning. We learned that public schools here in Minneapolis will be closed now for the rest of the week -- quote -- "due to safety concerns," another sign of how on edge the city is after an ICE agent did shoot a woman in her car.

I'm joined now by two elected officials who represent Minneapolis, Democratic State Representative Samantha Sencer-Mura, also Democratic State Senator Omar Fateh who just recently was a candidate for mayor right here in Minneapolis. I want to know from both of you how your constituents are grappling with the realization of what has happened in their city today.

SAMANTHA SENCER-MURA, MINNESOTA STATE REPRESENTATIVE: Well, I can tell you that we are heartbroken today in Minneapolis. By all accounts, a beloved community member, Renee Good, has lost her life at a senseless tragedy at the hands of ICE who killed her in cold blood in the midst of many community members who witnessed this.

You know, I will say that I got on the scene quickly after this happened. And I saw something I will never forget, which is I saw Renee's car, I saw a deployed airbag that had blood scattered all over it, and I saw by all accounts what was the car of a mom. I'm a mom. I know a mom car. On the seat was full of stuffies, full of stuffed animals. A mom lost her life today who was just here trying to protect her neighbors.

COATES: What have you been hearing? Obviously, this is your actual rep -- you represent this very district and where we are right now.

OMAR FATEH, MINNESOTA STATE SENATOR: That's right.

COATES: What are you hearing about not only the presence of ICE, but also the aftermath of this shooting?

FATEH: Yes, folks are terrified and rightfully so. The last few weeks when we've seen federal agents and ICE descend upon the Twin Cities area, local elected officials, the boots-on-the-ground organizations have been warning that the escalation of violent rhetoric and violence would lead to someone dying. And, unfortunately, today, we lost a mother, a daughter, a wife, our neighbor, Renee Good, who was murdered.

And we saw a statement put out by Homeland Security that directly contradicts what we all saw what happened on camera. Renee Good was murdered, period.

COATES: What would be the impact of that contradiction that you're hearing? I think people have seen with their own eyes various angles of the video. They are suggesting that it is in self-defense, not in cold blood, as you said. Community members I have spoken to are up in arms at the suggestion that their eyes were lying to them. What is the reaction to the administration's framing of what has happened?

SENCER-MURA: I mean, I think we all know that we cannot trust the federal government at this point. They have lied to us about why they are descending on our communities. They have lied to us that they are keeping our communities safe. They are not keeping our communities safe. They descended on a high school at dismissal today. School is canceled for the rest of the week. They're taking away kids' education. So, we know we can't trust this federal government. We've known that.

And neighbors here in Minneapolis know, based on the history that we have, that we need to trust the video, we need to trust what people on the ground are seeing. We know the truth about what happened here.

COATES: To what end, given the FBI is going to be in part investigating this matter, this was not a Minnesota police officer who engaged in this behavior, so it doesn't have this straight local jurisdiction, who do you think should be spearheading the investigation, and what do you think justice would look like for people of Minneapolis? FATEH: It should be our state that should spearheading that. I think just like Sam said right now, that folks have lost complete faith in our federal government. What we're seeing right now is that these agents, they're not law enforcement.

[23:55:01]

We've seen law enforcement, elected officials come out and say these folks are untrained. They're just reacting out of emotion. We saw that here today. And folks --

COATES: Do you have any idea what that training is like for these officers? Do you know anything about the training for the ICE?

FATEH: Well, it seems like right now, they're getting a badge, a mask, a gun, and saying go out there. And so, right now, folks can go online. They can see the video for themselves. Renee Good was not a threat. She was a peaceful observer. She was in her car. She was not a threat to anyone, especially not the agents. And she was murdered in cold blood.

COATES: We'll continue to hear what's going on. Thank you so much for talking to us today. I appreciate it. A very hard time in this community in Minneapolis. I want to thank both of you for being here. Stay with me for live coverage from here in Minneapolis right after a very short break.

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