Keith Porter, Renee Good and Alexi Pretti – three individuals executed in the streets by ICE agents with, so far, no accountability. While the deaths of individuals like Renee Good have been proclaimed as a tragedy by Trump and VD Vance, there have been no calls for justice, claiming that ICE agents are immune to prosecution whilst carrying out their “duties,” which begs the question: do ICE agents really have absolute immunity?
A History of Violence and Negligence
In 2025, ICE had 32 deaths of individuals under ICE custody, matching a record set back in 2004. Many of these individuals died of “natural causes” such as stroke, heart or respiratory, and tuberculosis, while others died by suicide. Families and lawyers have alleged neglect and mistreatment by ICE agents who did not ensure the detainees had access to necessary medical care. This year, thus far, there have been six who have died under ICE custody.
Two of those were presumed suicide, while another, Geraldo Lunas Campos, was ruled as a homicide by asphyxia. The El Paso County Medical Examiner noted the purpling of the eyelids and neck that signaled asphyxiation. A witness told The Washington Post that Campos had been choked by the guards, even while the victim expressed that he could not breathe.
At this rate, ICE is on track to beat their 32 victim record, and that doesn’t even count the three recent victims of shooting by ICE agents - allegedly, in self-defense.
Renee Good Shooting - January 7, 2026
After the shooting of Renee Good, who was fatally shot multiple times after evading ICE agents on January 7th, 2026, Vice President JD Vance responded to the tragedy with this sentiment: “The precedent here is very simple. You have a federal law enforcement official engaging in federal law enforcement action – that’s a federal issue. That guy is protected by absolute immunity. He was doing his job.”
These sentiments were also shared by the Deputy Attorney General for the Department of Justice, Todd Blanche, who claimed, “The Department of Justice, our civil rights unit, 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. We never do."
Meanwhile, one FBI agent, Tracee Mergen, a supervisor for the Minneapolis field office, resigned shortly after looking into shooter Jonathan Ross, as the focus of the investigation shifted towards Good’s partner. After which, FBI spokesman Ben Williamson told CBS News that “the FBI does not comment on personnel matters,” stating "The facts on the ground do not support a civil rights investigation. FBI continues to investigate the incident as well as the violent criminal actors and those perpetrating illegal activity."
But regardless of whether or not one believes that the shooting of Renee Good was in self-defense or not, we also have the cases of Keith Porter (killed by an off-duty officer) and Alexi Pretti, which have not yet been thoroughly investigated.
Alex Pretti - January 24, 2026
Despite the claims of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem that Alex Pretti came at officers with a gun, multiple videos taken by bystanders show the ICU nurse holding a phone, recording ICE agents after they had pushed a woman to the ground. While he was carrying a legal firearm, the weapon in one video is shown to be taken by an officer moments before Pretti was gunned down in the streets as observers cried out in terror. ICE agents claim Pretti violently resisted arrest and fired accordingly, but the visual evidence and the “official story,” don’t seem to add up.
In response to this most recent shooting, Democratic representatives like Tim Walz and even republican senators like Thom Tillis and Bill Cassidy are calling for an investigation into the shooting, despite Kristi Noem’s response that “They responded according to their training and took action to defend the officer’s life and those of the public around them… This is a violent riot when you have someone showing up with weapons and are using them to assault law enforcement officers.”
Public outcry and video evidence paint a different picture, raising questions as to whether or not ICE agents have legal accountability. According to Trump’s Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, the answer is no. He told Fox News, “To all ICE officers: You have federal immunity in the conduct of your duties, and anybody who lays a hand on you or tries to stop you or tries to obstruct you is committing a felony. You have immunity to perform your duties, and no one—no city official, no state official, no illegal alien, no leftist agitator, or domestic insurrectionist—can prevent you from fulfilling your legal obligations and duties.”
According to legal experts like Michael J.Z. Mannheimer from Northern Kentucky University and federal prosecutor Timothy Sini that couldn’t be further from the truth. But the problem comes from proving that an ICE officer was acting outside of their duties. Secondly, in order for a state to prosecute an ICE agent, they would need access to all evidence available to them, including physical evidence, testimonies and other information collected – some of which a state prosecutor might not have access to. And even with all that, Timothy Sini told CNN, “Prosecutors would have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that there was a willful deprivation of the victim’s rights.”
Absolute Immunity or Absolutely Not?
So, to break it down simply: no, ICE officers are not immune to the law. However, if federal law enforcement won’t hold them accountable and state prosecutors are unable to prove an ICE agent acted outside of the law, then ICE agents might as well be immune.
What ties these recent shootings together isn’t just disputed facts or conflicting statements, but a system that consistently shields itself from scrutiny. When federal officials declare immunity before investigations are complete, when evidence is controlled by the same agencies under question, and when accountability hinges on an almost impossible legal standard, justice becomes theoretical rather than real. The result is a dangerous precedent: not that ICE officers are above the law on paper, but that in practice, the law may never reach them. Until independent investigations are guaranteed, evidence is made fully accessible, and immunity is treated as a legal defense rather than a blanket excuse, the question won’t be whether wrongdoing occurred—it will be whether anyone with the power to act is willing to confront it.
