#use-of-force

#use-of-force

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Taken Wednesday in Minneapolis, it shows an unidentifiable protester face down on the ground; two Border Patrol agents are on top of him, holding him there, while a third unloads pepper spray into his face from just inches away. The photo ran on the front page of The Minnesota Star Tribune on Friday and already feels like a defining image of the long ICE incursion in Minneapolis-a powerful illustration of how the agency has acted, in broad daylight, with excessive force and impunity.

Two United States federal agents involved in the fatal shooting of intensive care nurse Alex Pretti during an immigration raid in Minneapolis have been placed on administrative leave, as fallout from the most recent killing of a US citizen continues to cause outrage. The two officers have been on leave since Saturday, in what US officials said on Wednesday was standard protocol, when Pretti was shot multiple times after being forced to the ground by masked immigration officers in an altercation that quickly turned deadly.

Officers are trained to not stand in front of or reach into moving vehicles, to never pull their firearms unless it is absolutely necessary, and to use force only in proportion to a corresponding threat. They are trained to clearly identify themselves, de-escalate tensions, respect the sanctity of life and quickly render aid to anyone they wound.

According to a statement issued by her lawyer, Neha Chugh, defence lawyer Sudine Riley finished a trial late on Friday and was catching up on legal work in an interview room when uniformed officers challenged her presence in that room. In her statement, Chugh said police, who were working as security, slammed Riley's head on the desk and put their knees on her back and neck, and spoke to her with rage, disrespect, and contempt.

At its best, police education and training prepare law enforcement officers with the knowledge and skills-including principles of constitutional law, active listening and verbal de-escalation techniques, implicit bias awareness, how to recognize signs of mental illness or substance abuse, use of force standards, and ethical decision-making and professional conduct-that they will need to protect and serve the public as safely and effectively as possible.

In the moments after federal officers shot Minneapolis ICU nurse Alex Pretti dead, Trump administration figures almost immediately made public statements in press conferences, televised interviews and social media posts that were at best indifferent to the evidence available at the time and at worst completely fabricated. A pattern is emerging, in which the Trump administration prioritizes the vilification of the dead victim as to blame for the incident over preserving the neutrality of any investigative process.

The revolt comes in the wake of the border patrol shooting death of Minneapolis protester Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse who has been vilified by the Trump administration as a domestic terrorist who meant to massacre federal agents. In fact, Pretti possessed a lawful permit to carry a concealed weapon, and widely-scrutinized video has shown that he was disarmed before federal agents fired 10 shots at him as he was restrained.