All Homeland Security Officers In Minneapolis Will Now Have Body Cameras: Noem

MINNEAPOLIS — Every Homeland Security officer in Minneapolis will now have a body camera, department Secretary Kristi Noem announced Monday afternoon.

“Effective immediately we are deploying body cameras to every officer in the field in Minneapolis,” she wrote in a post on X.

“As funding is available, the body camera program will be expanded nationwide. We will rapidly acquire and deploy body cameras to DHS law enforcement across the country.”

The move comes amid tension, turmoil and apparent shifting sentiment among some Republicans regarding immigration enforcement tactics after protesters Renee Good, a mother of three, and Alex Pretti, an intensive care nurse, were killed last month during encounters with federal agents in Minneapolis.

In the immediate hours after Pretti's death on Jan. 24, Noem went on the offensive, saying several times that Pretti “came with a weapon and dozens of rounds of ammunition and attacked” officers, who took action to “defend their lives.” Other administration officials painted a similar picture.

Multiple videos that emerged of the shooting contradicted that claim, showing Pretti had only his mobile phone in his hand as officers tackled him to the ground, with one removing a handgun from the back of his pants as another officer began firing shots into his back.

Homeland Security has said that at least four Customs and Border Protection officers on the scene when Pretti was shot were wearing body cameras. The body camera footage from Pretti’s shooting has not been made public.

The department has not responded to repeated questions about whether any of the ICE officers on the scene of Good’s killing earlier in January were wearing the cameras.

“This should have been the case long before they killed two Americans,” Gov. Tim Walz wrote in a post on X on Monday evening in response to Noem’s announcement.

“Border patrol agents should never have been sent in masks and camo to wreak havoc and aimlessly run around a state 1,500 miles from the Southern border.”

The governor also called for “impartial investigations, the departure of federal forces, and an end to the campaign of retribution against Minnesota.”

Democrats have been demanding changes to rein in the Trump administration's immigration enforcement operations. An additional $20 million for body cameras was included in the bipartisan federal funding package that was approved by the Senate late last week ahead of a deadline to prevent a government shutdown.

But the House has yet to approve the package, launching a partial government shutdown for certain agencies, including Homeland Security, last Saturday. But because many Homeland Security operations are deemed essential, they continue despite the federal funding lapse.

Noem’s move comes after Trump over the weekend endorsed the idea of body cameras for immigration officers.

After Noem's announcement on Monday, Trump said the decision was up to the secretary but said that he thought it was generally good for law enforcement to wear cameras.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.