The family of Renee Good, a 37-year-old Minneapolis mother of three who was shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in January, filed two federal civil lawsuits Thursday in the US District Court for the District of Minnesota. The lawsuits were filed nearly nine months after her death.
The first complaint names the United States government as the sole defendant and asserts a claim of wrongful death, based on allegations of battery, assault, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and negligence arising from the conduct of ICE agent Jonathan Ross and other agents present at the scene. The complaint states that Good was unarmed, was not the subject of any law enforcement investigation, had no criminal history, and posed no threat to any agent when Ross fired three shots into her vehicle as she attempted to slowly drive away. The Hennepin County Medical Examiner determined that Good’s death was a homicide. The complaint seeks compensatory damages for Brent Ganger, as trustee, for Good’s pre-death pain and suffering and her next of kin’s pecuniary losses, as well as compensatory damages for Rebecca Good’s emotional distress and related physical injuries. It also seeks costs, post-judgment interest, and other relief.
The second complaint names agent Ross alongside White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, Border Czar Tom Homan, and other senior administration officials and federal agents as defendants. It alleges that senior federal officials and private actors coordinated a conspiracy to target Minnesotans of Somali and Hispanic descent during Operation Metro Surge, and that the operation was intended to intimidate these communities and silence their allies. The complaint seeks compensatory and punitive damages, attorneys’ fees, costs, interest, and other relief, and demands a jury trial.
Good was killed on January 7, on Portland Avenue in south Minneapolis, where she and her partner, Rebecca Good, had stopped their vehicle and were observing ICE activity in their neighborhood. Both Brent Ganger, Good’s brother, and Rebecca Good are named as plaintiffs in both suits.
