The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Monday that every Homeland Security officer on the ground in Minneapolis will be wearing a body camera, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.
The decision comes amid widespread protests and criticism due to the killing of two US citizens by federal agents in the city of Minneapolis.
Noem also pledged on X that DHS would “rapidly” expand the measure nationwide once funding became available. The US government is currently in partial shutdown amid a row between the Republicans and Democrats over DHS funding.
US President Donald Trump, who had rescinded a Biden-era order directing federal law enforcement officers to wear body cameras upon returning to the White House, seemed in favor of Noem’s decision.
“They [body cameras] generally tend to be good for law enforcement because people can’t lie about what’s happening,” he said in the Oval Office.
Decision follows fatal shootings by federal agents
The DHS decision comes amid growing demands for accountability for the shooting to death of mother of three Renee Good and ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minnesota during separate incidents.
Calls for accountability have even come from some within Trump’s own Republican party.
Noem had defended the officers who shot Pretti, saying several times that Pretti “came with a weapon and dozens of rounds of ammunition and attacked” officers, who took action to “defend their lives.” Other administration figures have echoed the claim.
However, this was contradicted by footage from the shooting that circulated on social media, which shows Pretti only had a mobile phone in his hands when officers tackled him to the ground, with one officer removing a handgun from his back pocket, before he was shot.
At least four officers present at the time of Pretti’s shooting were wearing body cameras, but the footage from the cameras has yet to be made public.
Homeland Security has not answered questions about whether the ICE officers at the scene when Good was shot dead in January wore body cameras.
Judge dissolves court order blocking DHS from destroying evidence
Meanwhile on Monday, a federal judge in the state of Minnesota dissolved a temporary restraining order issued to block the DHS from destroying evidence related to Pretti’s shooting.
US District Judge Eric C. Tostrud in Saint Paul said he was troubled by the Trump administration officials that rushed to defend the agents, also labeling 37-year-old Pretti a “terrorist.”
However, he ruled that the statements were not enough for an order blocking the DHS.
The initial order came after state and local officials accused federal officials of impeding their investigation.
Edited by: Rana Taha
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Monday that every Homeland Security officer on the ground in Minneapolis will be wearing a body camera, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.
The decision comes amid widespread protests and criticism due to the killing of two US citizens by federal agents in the city of Minneapolis.
Noem also pledged on X that DHS would “rapidly” expand the measure nationwide once funding became available. The US government is currently in partial shutdown amid a row between the Republicans and Democrats over DHS funding.
US President Donald Trump, who had rescinded a Biden-era order directing federal law enforcement officers to wear body cameras upon returning to the White House, seemed in favor of Noem’s decision.
“They [body cameras] generally tend to be good for law enforcement because people can’t lie about what’s happening,” he said in the Oval Office.
Decision follows fatal shootings by federal agents
The DHS decision comes amid growing demands for accountability for the shooting to death of mother of three Renee Good and ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minnesota during separate incidents.
Calls for accountability have even come from some within Trump’s own Republican party.
Noem had defended the officers who shot Pretti, saying several times that Pretti “came with a weapon and dozens of rounds of ammunition and attacked” officers, who took action to “defend their lives.” Other administration figures have echoed the claim.
However, this was contradicted by footage from the shooting that circulated on social media, which shows Pretti only had a mobile phone in his hands when officers tackled him to the ground, with one officer removing a handgun from his back pocket, before he was shot.
At least four officers present at the time of Pretti’s shooting were wearing body cameras, but the footage from the cameras has yet to be made public.
Homeland Security has not answered questions about whether the ICE officers at the scene when Good was shot dead in January wore body cameras.
Judge dissolves court order blocking DHS from destroying evidence
Meanwhile on Monday, a federal judge in the state of Minnesota dissolved a temporary restraining order issued to block the DHS from destroying evidence related to Pretti’s shooting.
US District Judge Eric C. Tostrud in Saint Paul said he was troubled by the Trump administration officials that rushed to defend the agents, also labeling 37-year-old Pretti a “terrorist.”
However, he ruled that the statements were not enough for an order blocking the DHS.
The initial order came after state and local officials accused federal officials of impeding their investigation.
Edited by: Rana Taha
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced on Monday that every Homeland Security officer on the ground in Minneapolis will be wearing a body camera, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.
The decision comes amid widespread protests and criticism due to the killing of two US citizens by federal agents in the city of Minneapolis.
Noem also pledged on X that DHS would “rapidly” expand the measure nationwide once funding became available. The US government is currently in partial shutdown amid a row between the Republicans and Democrats over DHS funding.
US President Donald Trump, who had rescinded a Biden-era order directing federal law enforcement officers to wear body cameras upon returning to the White House, seemed in favor of Noem’s decision.
“They [body cameras] generally tend to be good for law enforcement because people can’t lie about what’s happening,” he said in the Oval Office.
The DHS decision comes amid growing demands for accountability for the shooting to death of mother of three Renee Good and ICU nurse Alex Pretti by federal agents in Minnesota during separate incidents.
Calls for accountability have even come from some within Trump’s own Republican party.
Noem had defended the officers who shot Pretti, saying several times that Pretti “came with a weapon and dozens of rounds of ammunition and attacked” officers, who took action to “defend their lives.” Other administration figures have echoed the claim.
However, this was contradicted by footage from the shooting that circulated on social media, which shows Pretti only had a mobile phone in his hands when officers tackled him to the ground, with one officer removing a handgun from his back pocket, before he was shot.
At least four officers present at the time of Pretti’s shooting were wearing body cameras, but the footage from the cameras has yet to be made public.
Homeland Security has not answered questions about whether the ICE officers at the scene when Good was shot dead in January wore body cameras.
Meanwhile on Monday, a federal judge in the state of Minnesota dissolved a temporary restraining order issued to block the DHS from destroying evidence related to Pretti’s shooting.
US District Judge Eric C. Tostrud in Saint Paul said he was troubled by the Trump administration officials that rushed to defend the agents, also labeling 37-year-old Pretti a “terrorist.”
However, he ruled that the statements were not enough for an order blocking the DHS.
The initial order came after state and local officials accused federal officials of impeding their investigation.
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Edited by: Rana Taha
Source URL: https://www.dw.com/en/minneapolis-homeland-security-officers-to-wear-body-cameras/a-75777442