Breaking — DOJ Killed the Civil Rights Probe on Good's Shooting

FBI found sufficient grounds to investigate Renee Good's killer. Trump's DOJ killed it.

While others stenograph, grift, or chase the next distraction—this is the news that matters and how it’s connected.

The FBI opened a civil rights investigation into the man who killed Renee Good. An agent in Minnesota reviewed the evidence and determined there were “sufficient grounds” to investigate ICE officer Jonathan Ross.¹

Then the Trump administration killed it.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche went on Fox News Sunday and lied: “It was not the case when it happened and is not the case today” that a civil rights investigation was warranted.¹ Three people familiar with the investigation told the Washington Post otherwise. The FBI’s own agent said there were grounds. Blanche doesn’t care what the evidence shows. He cares what the administration wants.

W. Anders Folk, who served as acting U.S. attorney for Minnesota under Biden, put it plainly: “No responsible prosecutor should determine what an outcome should be in such a case until such an investigation is completed.”¹ But Todd Blanche isn’t a responsible prosecutor. He’s a fixer.

The fix was in before the investigation could start. And once they killed the probe into the killer, DOJ leaders ordered prosecutors to investigate her partner instead.¹ The widow is now the suspect. About a dozen prosecutors have resigned rather than comply—including the office’s second-in-command and multiple Civil Rights Division attorneys who were excluded entirely.¹

The FBI probe has shifted from investigating whether Ross committed a civil rights violation to investigating whether he was assaulted—and the focus is now on “the conduct of Good and those around her, including her widow.”²

State officials have been blocked from investigating. The FBI claimed exclusive jurisdiction—denying Minnesota’s Bureau of Criminal Apprehension access to “case materials, scene evidence or investigative interviews.”¹ When state officials objected, the DOJ responded by opening a federal investigation into Governor Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey.¹ Subpoenas are expected within days.

That’s the pattern: ICE kills a citizen. People protest. A court says stop attacking protesters. The administration responds by investigating the governor. The people being held accountable aren’t the ones who pulled the trigger. They’re the ones who spoke up.

Meanwhile, the Pentagon has 1,500 active-duty soldiers preparing for possible deployment to Minnesota.² National Guard mobilized. A surge in CBP and FBI agents expected.² Mayor Frey’s response: “In Minneapolis, we’re not going to be intimidated.”²

Walz and Frey have accused the Trump administration of “weaponizing law enforcement for political purposes.”¹ That’s not rhetoric. That’s the precise description of what’s happening. A civil rights investigation into a federal officer was opened, then killed, then redirected toward the victim’s family—and now the Democratic officials who demanded accountability are under federal investigation themselves.

We’ve been tracking this story since January 14, when we reviewed Ross’s training, built a timeline, and documented one damning fact: Ross had nearly two full seconds from when he chose to stand still in front of Good’s vehicle to when he fired—time he could have used to step aside. We showed that ICE let her bleed for six minutes without CPR while blocking a physician who said “I’m a physician!”—only to be told “I don’t care.” That left us with a question: Why didn’t they try to save her?

On January 16, we answered it. The fire department findings confirmed four gunshot wounds—blood from her left ear, a headshot that likely came last. Renee Good was alive the entire time they failed to give her life-saving aid. And our frame-by-frame analysis confirmed what the video showed: Ross was clear of the vehicle when he fired.

Now we know what DHS wanted buried. The FBI found grounds for a civil rights investigation—and the Trump administration made it disappear.

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The Call

This isn’t an isolated incident. We track stories like this using the fascism syndrome—ten indicators that a democracy is sliding into fascism—so you don’t lose the thread in the daily chaos:

• Weaponized justice: The FBI found sufficient grounds to investigate the killer. DOJ killed the probe and ordered prosecutors to target the widow instead. That’s not law enforcement—it’s persecution.

• Capture of the state and elimination of accountability: The Civil Rights Division was excluded from the civil rights investigation. Career prosecutors who refused to comply are gone. The apparatus answers to one man now.

• Normalization of political violence: Four gunshot wounds. No investigation into the shooter. “Absolute immunity,” as the vice president promised. This is the message: agents can kill with impunity.

• Erosion of due process: The widow is now the suspect. The governor faces subpoenas for demanding accountability. The evidence is being withheld from state investigators. Rights depend on whether you comply.

When the state protects its killers and prosecutes their victims, there’s a word for that. It’s not justice.

But naming the disease is only half the job.

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• Fighting Fascism: How We Push Back and Win — The strategic playbook for reclaiming power

• The Trump Regime Messaging Guide — How to talk to people who’ve been captured by the machine

• The Freedom Illusion — How we got here, and the counter-ideology that gets us out

1. Perry Stein, “FBI opened probe on Minneapolis shooting; none exists now, Justice Dept. says“, Washington Post, January 18, 2026.

Documents that the FBI launched a civil rights investigation into ICE officer Jonathan Ross immediately after the shooting, with an agent determining “sufficient grounds existed” for the probe. Reports that Deputy AG Todd Blanche publicly claimed no investigation was warranted despite this evidence. Confirms DOJ leaders instead tried to pursue a probe against Good’s partner, prompting at least five Minnesota prosecutors—including the office’s second-in-command—to resign. Notes multiple Civil Rights Division prosecutors left because they were excluded from the investigation. Reports DOJ has launched an investigation into Governor Walz and Mayor Frey, with subpoenas expected. Quotes former acting U.S. Attorney W. Anders Folk warning that determining outcomes before completing an investigation undermines public confidence.

2. CNN, “FBI probe into Renee Good’s killing focused on ICE agent before pivoting to her and those around her, sources say“, CNN, January 19, 2026.

Live updates confirming the FBI “briefly opened a civil rights probe into the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent who fatally shot Renee Good” before shifting focus to whether the agent was assaulted and the “conduct of Good and those around her, including her widow.” Reports 1,500 active-duty soldiers preparing for possible deployment to Minnesota, National Guard mobilized, and a surge in CBP and FBI agents expected. Documents Mayor Frey’s response: “In Minneapolis, we’re not going to be intimidated.”