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Deputy Attorney-General Todd Blanche confirmed Sunday that the Justice Department is investigating Democratic officials in Minnesota, but not the immigration officer who shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis this month.
In an interview on Fox News, Blanch said it was not appropriate for the DOJ to investigate the Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who shot Renee Nicole Good in her car, an incident widely viewed online.
The shooting sparked protests and raised new questions about tactics used by law enforcement officers as President Donald Trump’s administration cracks down on immigration.
“Every time an officer is forced to defend himself against someone who puts his or her life in danger, we don’t just go out and investigate. We never do that,” he said. Although there is an internal review, he said, there is a “big difference” between that and the DOJ investigation.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem told CBS on Sunday that “the shooter’s actions were reviewed using the same investigation and review process that we always have”.
Blanch, a former federal prosecutor who was Trump’s defense lawyer during his “hush money” trial in 2024, confirmed the investigation of city Mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, both of whom are Democrats and have encouraged peaceful protests.
“You’ve seen the governor and the mayor actively encourage criminals to go out on the streets and obstruct ICE. That’s not allowed under our law,” he said.
Blanch declined to talk in more detail about the investigation, but said: “The American people can see what the mayor is saying, they can see what the governor is saying and it’s clear this has to stop.”
The DOJ and Walz did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Protesters have taken to the streets in freezing temperatures in recent days as Minneapolis has become a focal point of anti-ICE protests since Goode’s death.
Trump has threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807 to deploy troops to quell the protests, and the administration has reportedly made preparations to send military personnel into the city. Walz has authorized the state National Guard to be on standby if needed.
Frey said the Trump administration was trying to “lure out” protesters by preparing to deploy 1,500 active-duty troops to Minnesota.
“This act was clearly designed to intimidate the people of Minneapolis… We are not going to be intimidated,” he said on CNN.
“I never thought in a million years that our own federal government would attack us.”
A spokesperson for Frey said he had not received any response from the federal government. In reference to the possibility of a DOJ investigation, he said, “This is a clear attempt to intimidate me into standing up for Minneapolis, our local law enforcement and our residents against the lawlessness and danger this administration has brought to our streets.”
Blanch posted on X last week: “Walz and Frey – I am focused on stopping you from your terrorism by any means necessary. This is not a threat. This is a promise.”
In the wake of the shooting of Good on January 7, Frey demanded that ICE “immediately leave the city and the state” and urged people to demonstrate peacefully and legally. Walz said in a video last week that Minnesota residents should protest peacefully and record federal immigration actions on their phones.
After reports of the DOJ investigation into him first surfaced on Friday, Walz posted on X: “Weaponizing the justice system against your opponents is an authoritarian strategy. The only person not being investigated for the shooting of Renee Good is the federal agent who shot her.”
