California prosecutors push back on ICE immunity claims

California prosecutors are expressing alarm at the Trump administration’s response to the fatal shooting of a Minneapolis woman by an immigration agent, pointing to statements that the agent has absolute immunity from prosecution and to the decision to exclude Minnesota investigators from the inquiry into the incident.

In interviews with KQED, state and local prosecutors vowed to investigate and, if necessary, prosecute federal agents who act illegally in California. But they acknowledged that those probes would be difficult to undertake without federal cooperation.

“Despite what Vice President [JD] Vance has irresponsibly and erroneously said ... there’s no such thing as absolute immunity,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, said. “Of course, there can be criminal liability for an ICE agent who commits a crime. ICE agents do not have carte blanche and license to kill and commit crimes and assaults and batter and rape and murder Americans. That’s what JD Vance is saying.”

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Amid aggressive immigration raids in Minneapolis, Renee Macklin Good was shot three times by an ICE agent as she appeared to turn her car away from the officer on Jan. 7.

Following the shooting, federal authorities — including President Donald Trump and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem — blamed Good for the shooting, excluded state and local law enforcement from the investigation and moved to focus the probe on Good’s possible activism, not the ICE agent’s actions.

“The precedent here is very simple — you have a federal law enforcement official, engaging in a federal law enforcement action,” Vance said from the White House podium two days after the shooting. “That’s a federal issue; that guy is protected by absolute immunity, he is doing his job.”

That claim prompted outrage from Democrats around the nation, in part because Macklin Good’s shooting, while she drove her car, is not unique.

Immigration agents have been involved in at least two nonfatal shootings of drivers in Los Angeles in recent months, and a Wall Street Journal investigation identified 13 times since July when ICE agents fired into civilians’ vehicles, twice fatally.

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem immediately defended the actions of the officer who killed a woman in Minnesota.

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Outrage in California and beyond

Vance’s comments in particular outraged law enforcement in California and beyond; the administration’s response led six federal prosecutors in Minnesota to resign this week.

“I’ve never in my career seen a government official, an elected official, or the head of a law enforcement agency come out and within minutes justify the conduct of the officer or agent [involved in a shooting],” San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said on KQED’s Political Breakdown on Tuesday.

“It tells me that there’s already been a conclusion drawn, that we will not have a full and fair and independent investigation because they’ve already told us that they’ve determined that this shooting was justified. And so there will not be an opportunity for justice should that need to happen.”

Jenkins, a Democrat, made headlines in October amid threats of Bay Area immigration raids when she said she would not hesitate to prosecute federal agents who break the law in San Francisco. Her comments prompted Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche to write a letter that offered a preview of the government’s response to the Minnesota case: He declared any arrest of federal agents “illegal and futile.”

But Jenkins’ comments were correct, San Mateo County District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.

San Mateo County's Stephen Wagstaffe said recent events have him worried about the public's trust in law enforcement

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“That’s exactly what I feel. I don’t care who they are; I don’t care who or what their role is. If they come into our county, violate the law, they get held accountable just like anybody does,” he said. “Stature or occupation is not relevant as to whether you get prosecuted if you violate the law.”

In one of the Los Angeles cases, TikTok streamer Carlitos Ricardo Parias was accused by federal agents of using his car as a deadly weapon; agents claimed they fired at him in self-defense. But a federal judge dismissed the assault charges filed by federal prosecutors, and video of the incident has raised questions about the agents’ account.

It’s not clear if there are state or local investigations into that incident: Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman declined an interview request for this story, and Bonta declined to confirm or deny a state investigation, saying he cannot comment on pending cases.

But prosecutors said that federal authorities’ actions are eroding trust in law enforcement — and making their jobs harder.

“Rule of law doesn’t truly exist in our country at the highest level right now,” Jenkins said. “We already know that based on the history in this country, there’s so much distrust when it comes to the prosecution of law enforcement for unlawful shootings or even fair investigations into those shootings.”

Wagstaffe said he was dismayed to see the rush to judgment by both the Trump administration and local elected officials, like Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. Within hours of the Good shooting, Frey declared the federal government’s self-defense claims “bulls—.”

Still, Wagstaffe said none of that should affect the investigation.

“What we’re trying to do here is inspire public trust,” he said. “But I’m not going to be influenced in even the slightest by what any other person says.”

Questions about state officials' power

Bonta, Wagstaffe and Jenkins all said that after Good’s killing and the subsequent decision by the FBI to shut out Minnesota investigators, they have real concerns about their ability to probe potential use-of-force incidents involving federal authorities.

Wagstaffe noted that federal prosecutors generally are not empowered to investigate homicides — local district attorneys are. Jenkins said if federal authorities take control of a scene and refuse to share evidence, “it would nearly negate our ability to prosecute.”

Bonta said that what should happen after a federal agent uses deadly force is a joint investigation.

“We should have access to the scene. We should have access to the evidence. We should get cooperation from the federal government,” he said.

California's response to ICE

California has made moves to push back on what Democrats here see as ICE’s overreach: Last year, the governor signed a law barring local and federal law enforcement from wearing a mask while on duty, a law that’s now tied up in court. The author of that bill, state Sen. Scott Wiener, is currently pushing legislation to make it easier for Californians to sue over violations of constitutional rights, like illegal searches and seizures or retaliating against someone for exercising their First Amendment rights.

Bonta urged Californians to report federal misconduct to a new website his office created, including video of encounters with ICE, which the public is allowed to record. But he also encouraged protesters and others not to take the bait if federal agents appear to be provoking a violent response.

“You cannot, and you should not, assault or strike or commit a crime against an officer. You just can’t, no matter what they did in terms of approaching you. If they use force and you think it was unreasonable, you’re not going to figure it out at that moment,” he said. “I’ll have to get it figured out later in a court of law.”

“Follow orders, be peaceful, but you can observe, you can record, and that can be used later as evidence in a case that you might bring.”