The Trump administration has reportedly tabled an investigation into the ICE agent who killed 37-year-old mom Renee Good in Minneapolis, even though FBI agents initially determined that the shooting warranted a civil rights probe, according to a new report.
An FBI agent in Minnesota found there were sufficient grounds to open a civil rights investigation into Jonathan Ross, 43, after an initial review of the Jan. 7 shooting, The Washington Post reported, citing three people familiar with the investigation.
CNN reported that the FBI briefly opened a probe into Ross before switching course, citing two sources familiar with the matter.
But the FBI called the Post’s report “false” in an X post, and said it was investigating “the shooting incident” and “ongoing criminal actors.”
The agency said that “the facts do not support civil rights investigation.” Any federal investigation into an officer’s conduct is considered a civil rights investigation.
This is false – the decisions referenced here were not made by the FBI.
The FBI still continues to pursue evidence in this case with our federal partners, investigating the shooting incident as well as the ongoing violent criminal actors and their funding sources.
The facts… https://t.co/uOilpKgrLr— FBI Rapid Response (@FBI_Response) January 19, 2026
A probe into Ross’s actions would be at odds with President Donald Trump and other administration officials’ insistence that Ross acted in self-defense against Good, whom they have labeled a “domestic terrorist.”
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche argued that an investigation into Good’s killing was not “appropriate” during an interview on Fox News Sunday.
“We don’t just go out and investigate every time an officer is forced to defend himself against somebody or putting his life in danger,” Trump’s former personal attorney said.
Blanche added, “We investigate when it’s appropriate to investigate. And that is not the case here. It wasn’t the case when it happened, and it’s not the case today.”
Antonio Romanucci, the attorney for Good’s family, questioned why Blanche had taken it upon himself to declare an investigation unnecessary.
“Todd Blanche is telling us that he’s determining on his own that that was a defensible act without an investigation. And that is not the way it’s done,” Romanucci said in an interview on CNN’s Erin Burnett OutFront. “We need to know, based on the totality of circumstances, not only looking at the video, but also looking at the intent that was there, looking at reasonable police practices.”
The lawyer questioned Ross’s decision to place himself in front of Good’s car. “Is that reasonable?” he asked. “Let’s send an investigator and get all the facts and, ultimately, let a judge or jury determine.”
But Justice Department leaders are instead seeking to open a probe into Good’s partner, multiple sources familiar with the matter told the Post. CNN reported that the FBI briefly opened a probe into Ross, but shifted it to focus on the conduct of Good and her widow, Becca Good.
According to the outlet, at least five prosecutors in Minnesota have resigned in protest of DOJ leaders’ demands that they investigate Good’s widow, who was at the scene of the shooting.
The FBI declined to comment when contacted by the Daily Beast. The White House referred the Daily Beast to the FBI.
Cellphone footage from Ross’s perspective of the shooting, which happened during an ICE raid on a residential Minneapolis street, shows Good calmly telling Ross, “I’m not mad at you,” when he approached the driver’s-side window of her SUV.
Becca Good, who was outside the vehicle, is then seen filming Ross herself, telling him they are U.S. citizens and asking, “You want to come at us? I say go get yourself some lunch, big boy.”
She tries to get back into the car and tells Good, “Drive baby, drive.” Good reverses and turns the steering wheel to the right, apparently attempting to pull away.
But as the vehicle began to move forward, Ross fired three shots into the car’s window. A man’s voice can then be heard off-camera saying “f–king b—h” immediately after the shooting.
Vice President JD Vance has claimed that Ross is “protected by absolute immunity” because he was engaging in “federal law enforcement action”—an assertion that has been met with a torrent of skepticism from experts.
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