Minneapolis Seeks Restraining Order After Border Patrol Shooting of Alex Pretti

Minneapolis filed a declaration on Jan. 26, 2026, asking a federal judge to rule on a temporary restraining order to halt Operation Metro Surge after U.S. Border Patrol agents fatally shot Alex Jeffrey Pretti on Jan. 24, 2026, officials said.

Operation Metro Surge has deployed about 3,000 ICE and Border Patrol agents to the Twin Cities and has been linked to the Jan. 7, 2026, killing of Renee Nicole Good and the Jan. 24, 2026, death of Alex Pretti, local leaders and records show.

President Donald Trump defended the federal surge in two Truth Social posts calling the deaths 'Democrat ensued chaos,' urged Minnesota officials to 'turn over' people in the country illegally and told The Wall Street Journal his team is 'reviewing everything,' while Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz urged on Jan. 25, 2026, that Trump pull the agents from the state, officials confirmed.

Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem characterized the Jan. 24 shooting as domestic terrorism and said agents fired in self‑defense, but Minnesota officials said state investigators were blocked from the scene and video evidence contradicts federal accounts, officials said.

The dispute has heightened a fight over Department of Homeland Security funding, with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer saying Democrats will block a spending bill and raising the risk of a partial government shutdown before midnight Friday, officials said.