Statement on the January 24, 2026, Minneapolis Shooting

Statement on the January 24, 2026, Minneapolis Shooting

For Immediate Release January 24, 2026

The Steady State unequivocally condemns the fatal shooting earlier today in Minneapolis by ICE paramilitary officers, in which a 37-year-old Minneapolis resident was shot and killed at the intersection of 26th Street West and Nicollet Avenue. This incident constitutes another lethal use of force by heavily armed federal agents in the city, following the January 7 killing of 37-year-old Renée Nicole Good by an ICE paramilitary.

Video circulating from the scene shows federal officers wrestling a person to the ground before multiple shots were fired, highlighting troubling questions about necessity, proportionality, and command accountability. Today’s killing, carried out during what has effectively become a militarized federal operation on Minneapolis streets, underscores a pattern in which ICE units are operating not as civilian law enforcement but as a paramilitary force, deploying overwhelming military force rather than restraint. Such actions, using these forces, are characteristic of dictators and authoritarians.

The Steady State rejects any characterization of such actions as acceptable or inevitable. These shootings, executed by federal paramilitaries equipped for combat rather than community policing, are not isolated incidents; they reflect an authoritarian approach, typical of autocrats, that diminishes civil liberties and erodes the foundational principles of accountable law enforcement in a democratic society. At a time when Minneapolis residents and many across the country are calling for transparency and oversight, the continued framing of these killings as justified without a full, independent investigation only deepens public distrust and compounds community injury.

We call for a fully independent, transparent inquiry into today’s shooting, immediate release of all relevant footage and evidence, and a suspension of all aggressive federal immigration enforcement operations that place heavily armed paramilitary agents in direct encounters with civilian populations.

A Message to Fellow Americans

We recognize the profound anger, fear, and grief that this shooting and the broader pattern of federal violence have ignited in communities nationwide. These emotions reflect real pain and legitimate concerns about the future of civil and constitutional order.

There is a natural temptation, in the face of state-sanctioned violence, to respond with violence to take up arms, to escalate, to meet force with force. But from the hard-won experience of many in The Steady State who have served in intelligence and diplomatic roles around the world, we must be clear: violent resistance against a technologically superior, fully resourced federal security apparatus will surely fail and only deepen harm. Agencies like DHS, ICE, the Department of Defense, and the FBI possess overwhelming material advantages that cannot be matched in armed conflict. A turn to violence will accomplish nothing, and the forces deployed by the Government will triumph.

If meaningful change is to come, it must be through strategic, disciplined, and peaceful civic engagement: sustained legal challenges, legislative reform, peaceful protest, documentation of abuses, and broad coalition building that centers on accountability and democratic norms. These pathways preserve life, protect community safety, and strengthen the long-term integrity of our republic. Violence begets violence. Democracy requires resolve, courage, and strategy, not an inevitably failed escalation.

Founded in 2016, The Steady State is a nonprofit 501(c)(4) organization of more than 360 former senior national security professionals. Our membership includes former officials from the CIA, FBI, Department of State, Department of Defense, and Department of Homeland Security. Drawing on deep expertise across national security disciplines, including intelligence, diplomacy, military affairs, and law, we advocate for constitutional democracy, the rule of law, and the preservation of America’s national security institutions.