Without evidence, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem doubled down on her accusation that Renee Good, the woman shot and killed Wednesday by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis, was committing “an act of domestic terrorism.”
“She weaponized her vehicle to conduct an act of violence against a law enforcement officer and the public,” Noem said on Sunday’s episode of CNN’s “State of the Union.”
Just hours after the shooting Wednesday, Noem said in a news conference that ICE agents were trying to remove a vehicle that was stuck in the snow. Noem said a “mob of agitators” were “harassing” ICE agents and blocking them in with their cars, and “impeding law enforcement operations.”
Noem said Good was blocking traffic for several minutes, was yelling at the officers and “impeding a federal law enforcement investigation.” She went on to claim that officers ordered Good to get out of her car, but instead she attempted to run over Jonathan Ross, the veteran ICE agent.
“This appears an attempt to kill or cause bodily harm to agents, an act of domestic terrorism,” she said, adding that Ross “feared for his life” and fired “defensive shots.”
Jake Tapper, the host of CNN’s “State of the Union,” pressed Noem on releasing a statement on what happened before there was an investigation.
“Everything that I’ve said has been proven to be factual and the truth,” Noem said on Sunday. “This administration wants to operate in transparency. I have the responsibility as the secretary of Homeland Security to know this information as soon as possible.”
“You see how quickly the situation unfolded, how the officer was in front of the vehicle when she sped off, how she ran into him and how he had to take quick action based on his training to defend himself and his colleagues around him,” Noem said.
Multiple video recordings, however, show Good was trying to reverse away from the agents when Ross shot her through the windshield.
Good’s ex-husband told The Associated Press that Good was driving home from dropping off her 6-year-old son at school when she encountered the ICE agents. Good’s wife, Becca Good, told local media the two of them “had been trying to support their neighbors when she was shot.”