President Donald Trump’s Justice Department has decided there will be no civil rights investigation of the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti. Instead, two units of the Department of Homeland Security will investigate their officers and the man they killed, according to three people briefed on the steps and internal records reviewed by MS NOW.
A Customs and Border Protection office will investigate whether its own officers followed agency policy in the shooting, according to the people. Another DHS unit, Homeland Security Investigations, will investigate whether Pretti broke any laws, according to two people familiar with the decision. That unit is part of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and normally focuses on tracking down human-trafficking and narcotics rings and threats to national security.
It was widely assumed that the Justice Department would also not conduct an independent civil rights probe of Pretti’s shooting, after choosing not to launch a similar probe of the fatal shooting of Renee Good by an ICE officer on Jan. 7. That view was reinforced when news broke this weekend that DHS would take the lead in the Pretti probe.
An FBI document described to MS NOW says that Border Patrol officials requested FBI help gathering evidence after the shooting, but that “[a]ll evidence, excluding firearms and casings, were turned over to DHS.”
Officials from the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension say it is investigating Saturday’s shooting, but a spokesperson tells MS NOW that federal agents are not sharing information from any probe the federal government has launched, nor has the BCA been given access to any evidence.
A Justice Department official confirmed that there is no current DOJ investigation but said, “We are not going to prejudge the facts. At some later point, if the evidence presents itself, we may investigate.”
As the White House reels from Republican backlash over a second American killed in Minneapolis clashes between protesters and federal immigration officers, both current and former FBI and Justice Department investigators say the handling of the Pretti shooting, and of the shooting of Renee Good, violates Justice Department policy and deviates dramatically from how such a shooting by an officer would be probed.
They grimly warn that the Trump administration’s response since Saturday, which included a false description of the shooting before any investigation had been conducted, signals a Justice Department no longer devoted to facts and fairness.
Both of the former investigators and the current, who spoke on condition of anonymity to protect their positions, point to what they say is the alarming way evidence was handled and removed from the scene, including Pretti’s firearm. They note that the dead man’s gun was pictured on an officer’s car seat and used by DHS in a news release just hours after Pretti’s death, stating that he had been armed, but that it did not appear to have been properly bagged and photographed as evidence. The potential fouling of the chain of custody means the investigation is already somewhat tainted and the gun might not be used as evidence in any trial.
“The fact that this investigation has already been taken by the agency involved [DHS] speaks to them not wanting any outside agency having access to the evidence nor the ability to take statements from the agents involved,” said former FBI agent and MS NOW contributor Rob D’Amico. “No matter how good an investigation was conducted, it gives the perception of a cover-up if … charges aren’t brought against the agents.”
Stacey Young, executive director of Justice Connection, an organization that provides direct support to current and former Justice Department employees and fights to uphold the rule of law, said the administration isn’t trusted to be factual after giving a baldly misleading account of the Pretti shooting. She said even Republicans who support the president’s anti-immigrant policies lack trust after the administration’s clearly dubious statements.
“You see individuals are protesting but didn’t appear to incite any violence and were killed for doing so,” Young said. “It doesn’t matter what your politics are. Anyone who believes in democracy and the rule of law should understand that exercising your First Amendment rights should not result in your death.”
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She added, “Responsible Americans don’t react well when federal law enforcement jumps to conclusions when evidence hasn’t been gathered and witnesses haven’t been interviewed. They don’t like hearing top government officials refer to shooting victims as would-be assassins or domestic terrorists.”
Former FBI agent and MS NOW contributor Chris O’Leary agreed that multiple videos mostly show masked and militarized law enforcement officers using excessive force and violating the constitutionally protected rights of an American citizen.
“This is absolutely the kind of investigation that should be led by the FBI, as it has the authority, experience, capability and credibility to conduct a thorough, objective and unbiased investigation,” O’Leary said. “Unfortunately, the current director of the FBI and leadership in DOJ are blocking this from happening, and are therefore part of the problem and not part of the solution.”
Young said the administration created this dangerous climate in Minneapolis by first declaring the shooting of Renee Good justified, and by the Justice Department now refusing twice to independently investigate it.
“When the federal government failed to respond to seemingly excessive use of force, that sends a clear signal to agents that they can use that force with impunity,” she said. “The public needs to scream bloody murder until DOJ begins carrying out its duties.”
If that fails, she said state and local law enforcement agencies in Minnesota “need to work in overdrive to make sure these incidents are properly investigated” to fill the void left by the Justice Department.
Daniel Bremmer, who spent decades in the FBI as a case agent, said the bureau is the most qualified federal law enforcement agency to investigate a fatal shooting involving federal officers — particularly the question of whether the killing violated civil rights laws.
“They have the most experience, best tools, best laboratory,” he said. “To put HSI as the lead agency is detrimental to the investigation.”
Carol Leonnig
Carol Leonnig is a senior investigative reporter with MS NOW.
Ken Dilanian
Ken Dilanian is the justice and intelligence correspondent for MS NOW.
David Noriega
David Noriega is a MS NOW Reporter based in Los Angeles.
Marc Santia
Marc Santia is an investigative correspondent for MS NOW.
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