Hawaii protesters call for ICE shutdown after Minneapolis shooting deaths
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - Protesters on Oahu rallied against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Sunday over two shooting deaths in Minnesota that happened just weeks apart.
Organizers called the demonstration at the intersection of Atkinson Drive and Ala Moana Boulevard an “emergency protest,” and demanded justice for Alex Pretti, 37, a U.S. citizen who was shot and killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis on Saturday.
“Every morning I wake up, and I’m afraid to turn the news on because somebody else might have gotten murdered in the streets,” said protester Merry Gray.
Pretti’s death comes just weeks after another citizen, Renee Good, 37, was also shot to death by immigration officers in the same city.
“Extremely, extremely enraging,” said another protester. “I can’t even begin to describe how angry I am to see this fascism of our federal government.”
Retired FBI agent Tom Simon pointed out that federal law enforcement officers may only use deadly force to protect their own lives or the lives of someone else in the face of imminent danger.
“The public is justified in wanting an independent, politcal-free investigation to determine if the actions of these immigration agents were justified,” Simon said.
Graphic video of Pretti’s killing shows ICE agents holding Pretti down, one of them punching him, before a single shot is fired.
It is unclear who opened fire, but after the first shot, an agent shoots at Pretti multiple times while he is lying on the ground.
“Independent review and accountability, including a careful review of body cam and bystander video, are critical when any law enforcement officer’s actions result in a loss of life,” Simon added.
State Rep. Elijah Pierick hopes the truth will prevail in the investigation.
“It’s a big travesty that somebody died, and my heart goes out to the family of the person who died,” Pierick said.
But Pierick disagrees with shutting down ICE.
“If somebody has a heart that goes out to families that are being separated, somebody who’s being deported from their home, you know, that’s understandable,” Pierick said. “We want to have empathy for separation. At the same time, we should have a heart that leans towards justice and that once saking our streets and crime to go down, ICE is trying to decrease crime in our states and countries.”
The Department of Homeland Security reported Pretti had a handgun on him, but did not specify whether he was holding it when he was shot.
“The Department of Homeland Security says it’s going to investigate itself, and you know that really doesn’t engender trust by a long shot,” said Marcia Kimble.
A border patrol commander said agents tried to disarm him, and he resisted, and an officer fired defensive shots out of fear for his life and the safety of other agents.
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