The Department of Justice has opened a civil rights investigation into the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti by Border Patrol agents, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced Friday. The announcement comes as questions surround the investigation into Pretti's killing, with the FBI and state officials also looking into the death. The DOJ had previously refused to open an investigation into the killing of Renee Good.
Separately, federal agents arrested former CNN anchor Don Lemon and three others in connection with a protest at a Minnesota church. Attorney General Pam Bondi confirmed the arrests on X, stating they were made at her direction. Lemon and independent journalist Georgia Fort were among those arrested. Fort stated that federal agents arrived at her home with an arrest warrant for filming the protest. The Freedom of the Press Foundation condemned the arrests, calling them "clear warning shots aimed at other journalists."
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries stated there is "no basis" for Lemon's arrest and accused the Trump administration of targeting journalists. President Donald Trump, however, weighed in on video of a confrontation involving Alex Pretti prior to his death, calling him an "agitator and, perhaps, insurrectionist."
Protests against the Trump administration's immigration enforcement were planned nationwide. In Knoxville, Tennessee, students walked out of class to join an ICE Out protest. Border czar Tom Homan outlined plans for operational changes in Minnesota, vowing that agents acting unprofessionally would "be dealt with."