Judge unblocks feds from taking evidence from scene of Pretti’s killing

A federal judge in Minnesota lifted a temporary restraining order that prevented federal investigators from “destroying or altering” evidence related to the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis.

In his Monday decision, U.S. District Court Judge Eric Tostrud, a Trump appointee, determined the federal agents conducting the investigation of Pretti’s killing are “not likely to destroy or improperly alter evidence.”

Tostrud had issued the order to block U.S. officials from altering crime scene evidence after Pretti was shot to death by federal immigration enforcement officers in Minneapolis on Jan. 24.

Minnesota officials alleged that federal investigators denied them access to the scene after Pretti was killed. The Force Investigations Unit of the state’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, which typically leads inquiries into use-of-force incidents involving law enforcement officers, was also blocked from investigating the killing of Renee Good, the woman slain by an ICE agent last month in Minneapolis.

But in a court hearing last week, the federal government argued that the restraining order was not necessary and said that state law enforcement agencies had no constitutional authority “to dictate the federal government’s evidence-preservation procedure.” 

Minnesota Deputy Solicitor General Peter Farrell filed a declaration of support for the order last week. He raised concern about the Trump administration’s characterization of Pretti, a 37-year-old ICU nurse. Top officials including Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller labeled Pretti a “domestic terrorist” in the hours after his death. 

The FBI is now leading the federal investigation into Pretti’s death. The investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security is supporting the probe, a spokesperson for the agency confirmed.  Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Department of Justice has opened a civil rights investigation into the death, which is separate from the DHS probe.

Noem said the agency will give body cameras to every officer in the field in Minneapolis, “effective immediately.” She added that the “body camera program will be expanded nationwide” as funding is available.

The announcement came as the partial federal government shutdown stretched into Monday as Congress debated DHS funding in the wake of Pretti’s and Good’s deaths.