The Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer who fatally shot a Minnesota woman who struck him with her vehicle suffered internal bleeding following the incident, according to the Trump administration.
A Department of Homeland Security official told the Washington Examiner that Jonathan Ross suffered internal bleeding to the torso.
The information appears to shed further light on the shooting, which has stoked national controversy due to disagreements about whether Ross was truly in fear for his life when he killed Renee Good, as the White House has alleged.
Various footage of the incident on Jan. 7, including from Ross’s perspective, continues to split the country. Videos show Ross walking away from the scene after the incident. Several states, including Minnesota, have filed lawsuits seeking to restrict ICE from operating, while calls are growing from some on the Left to completely abolish the agency and immediately prosecute Ross.
The Trump administration has stood by its argument that the shooting was justified because Good “weaponized her vehicle” after refusing to comply with law enforcement. The government has said the footage proves that Ross killed the woman because he believed she was trying to kill ICE officers.
Critics have pushed back, saying the footage proves Ross and his colleagues grossly mishandled and escalated the situation, and that Good’s intention was to leave the scene, not murder federal officers.
Democrats have been unified in condemning the shooting, but are splitting on how hard to go against ICE.
Some favor reforms and placing more guardrails on federal funding for the agency, which would further restrict how ICE officers operate. Other members of the progressive House Caucus, including Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI), want to completely defund and abolish ICE.
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The divide mimics the split on approaches to Ross.
Leading Democrats in the House and Senate, as well as Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, have expressed support for allowing a federal investigation into the shooting to play out before pressing charges against Ross. That position sets them apart from colleagues such as Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), and Ro Khanna (D-CA), who have called for the ICE officer to be swiftly prosecuted.
