The fatal shooting of a woman in Minneapolis by a federal law-enforcement officer is laying bare the sharp divides in American politics – and threatening to inflame an already contentious debate over immigration policy.
The incident took place in broad daylight. There are multiple videos taken by bystanders from various locations. And yet even the basic facts are being disputed.
Almost immediately after the shooting, two starkly different accounts began to take shape. Any ambiguities in the videos shared online were seized upon - different angles and different screengrabs were used to push a particular narrative.
And on the public stage, state and federal officials openly disagreed.
According to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the driver – 37-year-old Renee Good – was to blame. As she drove away from ICE officers, she weaponised her car in a domestic terror attack, Noem said.
President Donald Trump, in a Truth Social post, blamed a professional agitator and a radical left movement of violence and hate.
National Democrats and state and local officials in Minnesota have painted a completely different picture. Jacob Frey, the Democratic Mayor of Minneapolis, said a federal agent recklessly used lethal force. He also issued an expletive-laced demand for immigration enforcement officials to leave the city.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz called the shooting totally predictable and totally avoidable, arguing it was a direct consequence of the surge in federal immigration officers into Minneapolis and surrounding areas in recent days.
Walz has put the state's National Guard on standby, and cautioned the hundreds of protesters who have taken to the streets not to resort to violence.
In the aftermath of the shooting, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension announced that the justice department and the FBI would no longer cooperate with its investigation into the shooting.
This clear division between the federal government and local officials was only further illustrated when it was announced that federal agencies would solely be responsible for handling the investigation into the use of lethal force by the ICE agent.
The shooting has rekindled protests against immigration status enforcement methods, echoing the intense sentiments surrounding police violence against marginalized communities. The incident to reinvigorate demands for oversight while simultaneously reigniting fierce defenses of federal immigration actions from the Trump administration.
