The Minneapolis woman shot and killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent during a deadly confrontation Wednesday likely committed a serious felony offense – even if she did not intend to ram the federal officer with her vehicle, according to a former federal prosecutor and legal scholar.
Andrew C. McCarthy, the former Chief Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York, noted that to him, video footage of the events leading up to the shooting does not appear to show Renee Nicole Good, 37, trying to intentionally run over the ICE agent who fired the fatal shots.
But regardless, when Good sped away in the direction of the officer, she was committing an assault, according to McCarthy.
“[E]ven if the woman was mainly trying to get away (which is what it looks like to me), she was engaged in an actionable assault on a federal officer, a felony under Section 111 of the federal penal code,” McCarthy wrote in a piece for National Review.
The legal expert noted that even if Good’s car did not strike the agent, it could be considered assault.
“To constitute assault, there need not be battery,” McCarthy explained.
“If the agent is put in reasonable fear of imminent harm, that’s enough,” he added, noting that one of the first cases he tried as a federal prosecutor involved a defendant who appeared to be preparing to take a swing at a probation officer – but never actually struck the officer – and was convicted.
Since a vehicle was involved, Good may have faced decades behind bars, if convicted.
“In fact, in this instance — unlike in my case all those years ago — if the assault or intimidation is carried out with ‘a deadly or dangerous weapon,’ the penalty is up to 20 years’ imprisonment,” McCarthy wrote. “That’s a weighty felony offense.”
“Even if you believe, as I’m inclined to believe based on what we’ve seen so far, that the woman was just trying to get away, she did so by swiping the car in the agent’s direction,” the former prosecutor continued. “She may not have intended to run him over, but she sure didn’t appear to be trying to avoid running him over if that was necessary to escape.”
As for the ICE agent who shot and killed Good, he is unlikely to face charges because regardless of the driver’s intention, the officer’s “life was jeopardized” and his use of force was justified, according to McCarthy.
“It is settled Fourth Amendment law that a police officer may use deadly force against a fleeing suspect if he has a good-faith belief that the suspect poses a significant threat of death or serious physical injury to the officer or others,” he wrote.
“Here, I believe the driver was in the act of committing a dangerous assault when the agent opened fire,” McCarthy continued. “And the driver’s reckless operation of the vehicle, coupled with the fact that she was heedless of harming armed law enforcement agents as they were carrying out their official duties, underscores that it was reasonable to believe she posed a serious threat to the agents and others.”
Here’s the latest on the Minneapolis ICE agent shooting
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) policy allows officers to use deadly force on fleeing subjects when their actions pose a threat to law enforcement officers or civilians.
Under the policy, federal agents are authorized to use deadly force when dealing with fleeing suspects if they have “a reasonable belief that the subject poses a significant threat of death or serious physical harm” to others, and “such force is necessary to prevent escape.”
McCarthy further noted that an investigation into the shooting launched by Minnesota Democrats will likely go nowhere.
“The feds will not cooperate in the investigation. If state law enforcement brings charges, the federal government will seek to have the case removed to federal court,” he wrote.
“In federal court, I believe — even if any pardon didn’t void the prosecution — the agent would be able to claim immunity from state prosecution and that the use of force was reasonable under the circumstances,” McCarthy continued.“Consequently, I don’t think the agent faces a real possibility of being charged and convicted.
“That doesn’t lessen the tragedy, and it won’t stop Democrats from encouraging civil unrest,” he concluded.
