A federal judge granted a temporary restraining order blocking the Trump administration from “destroying or altering evidence” in connection with the fatal shooting of VA nurse Alex Jeffrey Pretti.
Judge Eric C. Tostrud, who was nominated to the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota by Donald Trump in 2018, issued his ruling on Saturday evening. The Department of Homeland Security, ICE, Border Patrol, Attorney General’s Office, and the FBI are prohibited from tampering with any evidence they collected from the scene.
A hearing is scheduled for Monday to determine whether or not the restraining order should stay in place. Federal officials are able to submit any objections before then. The lawsuit was filed by the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office on behalf of local and state law enforcement. Minnesota attorney general Keith Ellison said the judge’s ruling will help protect their investigation.
“Alex Pretti was killed by DHS agents in broad daylight in front of all of our eyes,” Ellison said in a news release shared with The Daily Beast. “Both the rule of law and the sense of justice we all carry within us demand a full, fair, and transparent investigation into his death. We will not settle for less.”
In the aftermath of the shooting, federal agents attempted to block the Minneapolis Police Department and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) from securing the scene. In the complaint, BCA alleges that federal agents denied state investigators immediate access. The bureau also said the officers left after a few hours, “allowing the perimeter to collapse and potentially spoiling evidence.”
The complaint also alleged that the federal government had denied the state access to evidence connected to the fatal shooting of Renee Nicole Good earlier this month.
DHS denied destroying or altering evidence in a statement to The Daily Beast.
“Any claim that the federal government would ‘destroy’ evidence is a ridiculous attempt to divide the American people and distract from the fact that our law enforcement officers were attacked — and their lives were threatened — yesterday,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said. “We are actively investigating this matter and will continue to do so as we do for any officer involved shooting.”
Video of the shooting shows Pretti struggling as Border Patrol agents hold him down. In the footage, multiple gunshots are fired and some agents leave the scene. Federal officials have insisted that Pretti, who they said carried a gun, had “wanted to do maximum damage and massacre law enforcement.” However, witnesses said that they did not see Pretti brandish a firearm and multiple videos contradict federal officials’ claims that he was an active threat to agents.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom commented on the temporary restraining order, accusing Trump of destroying evidence.
“Wow. Donald Trump isn’t just trying to cook the books. He’s destroying them,” Newsom posted to X. “A federal judge had to step in to stop the Trump administration from DESTROYING EVIDENCE in the killing of Alex Pretti.”
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