Protesters demand immigration agents leave Minneapolis after man shot, killed

Minneapolis: Democrats demanded that federal immigration officers leave Minnesota after a US Border Patrol agent fatally shot a man in Minneapolis, drawing hundreds of protesters onto the frigid streets and increasing tensions in a city already shaken by another shooting death weeks earlier.

Family members identified the man who was killed as Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old intensive care unit nurse who protested President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown in his city. After the shooting, an angry crowd gathered, and protesters clashed with federal officers, who wielded batons and deployed flash bangs.

A federal judge has already ruled that officers participating in the federal immigration enforcement surge in Minnesota can’t detain or tear gas peaceful protesters who aren’t obstructing authorities, including when these people are observing the agents.

That decision came in a case brought by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of Minnesota activists. Minnesota and its two largest cities, Minneapolis and St. Paul, have also sued the

Trump administration, making similar arguments that the federal officers are violating the constitutional rights of Twin Cities residents.

The Minnesota National Guard was assisting local police at the direction of Gov. Tim Walz, officials said.