Kristi Noem Faces Impeachment Threat After Deadly Minnesota Shooting
A congresswoman said she plans to file articles of impeachment against Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem after a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent shot and killed a woman in Minneapolis on Wednesday, sparking fury from protesters and condemnation from Democratic leaders.
“I will be filing Articles of Impeachment against Kristi Noem. I’ve had enough. She has turned ICE into a rogue force, violating the Constitution, tearing families apart, and leaving death in her wake,” U.S. Representative Robin Kelly, an Illinois Democrat, announced on X.
Renee Nicole Good, 37, was identified as the woman fatally shot by an ICE officer in Minneapolis during the Trump administration’s latest immigration crackdown, a killing federal officials said was carried out in self-defense in response to an “act of domestic terrorism.”
Videos captured by bystanders showed Good’s vehicle driving toward an agent and turning to speed away when the officer shot into the vehicle multiple times.
Newsweek reached out to DHS outside of normal operating hours for comment regarding the articles of impeachment. If a response is received, this article will be updated.
Why It Matters
The killing has sparked outrage from critics of President Donald Trump and his immigration policies, while many Republicans and supporters of the administration have defended the ICE agent. Kelly’s articles would be unlikely to pass in the Republican-controlled House, and would face an even tougher path to success in the GOP-controlled Senate, where a two-thirds majority is required for conviction.
While Kelly is the first Democratic lawmaker to announce an impeachment effort against Noem, she joined a chorus of condemnation against the secretary and Trump administration after the deadly shooting.
“From Chicago to Minneapolis, her recklessness cost lives, including Renee Nicole Good. This isn’t just dangerous—it’s impeachable. I’m fighting back,” Kelly wrote.
Fellow Illinois Democratic Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi quickly said he’d back Kelly’s impeachment effort. “I’ll be your first cosponsor,” he wrote on X, sharing his colleague’s post.
In a press release, Kelly’s office said that the three articles of impeachment would allege Noem “abused her office for personal benefit and steered federal dollars to associates”, “willfully obstructed Congressional oversight and withheld Congressionally appropriated funds in violation of her constitutional oath and federal law” and “compromised public safety, violated due process of American citizens, and directed unconstitutional actions.”
The congresswoman said in a statement: “Secretary Kristi Noem is an incompetent leader, a disgrace to our democracy, and I am impeaching her for obstruction of justice, violation of public trust, and self-dealing.”
An eyewitness to Good’s fatal shooting told Newsweek that her blood was visible on the snowy ground. Speaking in the hours after the gunfire rattled a residential neighborhood, the witness described the moments after the federal agent shot the woman through a car window.
“They just shot her in the head, she crashed, and then a lady came into the yard, and she was crying in the snow,” the witness, who spoke to Newsweek on condition of anonymity, said.
In the aftermath of the shooting, DHS defended the officer involved, posting to X: “Today, in an act of domestic terrorism, an anti-ICE rioter weaponized her vehicle against law enforcement. Our officer relied on his training and saved his own life, as well as the lives of his fellow officers.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, both Democrats, strongly disputed the DHS version of events after reviewing the video footage.
In a news conference, Frey directed his remarks to ICE, telling the agency to “get the f*** out of Minneapolis.” He added, “We do not want you here. Your stated reason for being in this city is to create some kind of safety, and you are doing exactly the opposite.”
Walz described the shooting as “totally predictable” and “totally avoidable.”
“We’ve been warning for weeks that the Trump administration’s dangerous, sensationalized operations are a threat to our public safety, that someone was going to get hurt. What we’re seeing is the consequences of governance designed to generate fear, headlines and conflict,” the governor said. “It’s governing by reality TV, and today that recklessness cost someone their life.”
