Candlelight Vigil Planned Wednesday At Jesse Brown VA For Slain MN Nurse

CHICAGO — Local members of National Nurses United will hold a candlelight vigil Wednesday, Jan. 28, in remembrance of fellow RN Alex Pretti, 37, who was killed over the weekend by federal agents while observing ICE operations in Minneapolis.

Nurses, allies and community members will gather at 7:30 p.m. in front of Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, 820 S. Damen Ave., Chicago. Bring candles or glow sticks. National Nurses United is the nation’s largest union and professional association of registered nurses with more than 225,000 members.

Pretti was a dedicated ICU nurse at a VA hospital in Minneapolis who cared deeply about people and was upset by President Trump’s immigration crackdown in his hometown. The deadly shooting on Saturday comes just weeks after 37-year-old Renee Good on Jan. 9. Like Good, Pretti had no prior criminal record.

Citizen video showed federal agents confronting Pretti as he was recording ICE operations. He was found later to be armed with a Sig Sauer 9mm pistol, for which he had a concealed carry permit. Footage showed Pretti’s hands were empty except for his phone, when he was taken to ground and shot, contradicting statements made by Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.

The National Nurses United issued a statement following Saturday’s expressing the union’s outrage over the deadly shooting of a fellow nurse:

“The nation’s nurses, who make it their mission to care for and save human lives, are horrified and outraged that immigration agents have once again committed cold-blooded murder of a public observer who posed no threat to them,” the statement read. “This time, they have executed one of our fellow nurses, Alex Pretti, who saved veterans’ lives as an intensive care unit RN for the Veterans Health Administration. He not only advocated for his patients inside the VA as a member of American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), but also took his advocacy to the streets to stand up for his community as nurses do. We demand justice and accountability for his murder.”

Questions about Wednesday’s candlelight vigil can be emailed to Kindra Perkins Minto kpminto@natoinalnursesunited.org or Jessica Fujan, jfujan@nationalnursesunited.org.