by WorldTribune Staff, January 25, 2026 Real World News

Reactions from Saturday’s fatal shooting of 37-year-old Jeffrey Pretti by a Border Patrol agent:

President Donald Trump posted to Truth Social:

“This is the gunman’s gun [photo at left], loaded (with two additional full magazines!), and ready to go – What is that all about? Where are the local Police? Why weren’t they allowed to protect ICE Officers? The Mayor and the Governor called them off? It is stated that many of these Police were not allowed to do their job, that ICE had to protect themselves — Not an easy thing to do!

“Why does Ilhan Omar have $34 Million Dollars in her account? And where are the Tens of Billions of Dollars that have been stolen from the once Great State of Minnesota? We are there because of massive Monetary Fraud, with Billions of Dollars missing, and Illegal Criminals that were allowed to infiltrate the State through the Democrats’ Open Border Policy. We want the money back, and we want it back, NOW. Those Fraudsters who stole the money are going to jail, where they belong! This is no different than a really big Bank Robbery.

“Much of what you’re witnessing is a COVER UP for this Theft and Fraud. The Mayor and the Governor are inciting Insurrection, with their pompous, dangerous, and arrogant rhetoric! Instead, these sanctimonious political fools should be looking for the Billions of Dollars that has been stolen from the people of Minnesota, and the United States of America. LET OUR ICE PATRIOTS DO THEIR JOB! 12,000 Illegal Alien Criminals, many of them violent, have been arrested and taken out of Minnesota. If they were still there, you would see something far worse than you are witnessing today!”

Human Events editor Jack Posobiec:

“Lawful gun owners don’t go around without ID conducting armed Antifa roadblocks to interfere with ICE. Who does? Domestic terrorists.

“Last 24 hours were a great litmus test to see who is going to crack under pressure and fall for leftist agitprop. So many ‘based anti-tyranny’ people have no stomach for what needs to be done to take our nation back.”

Reaction from Pretti’s parents:

Michael and Susan Pretti said Saturday that they are “heartbroken but also very angry” and condemned the version of events presented by law enforcement as “sickening lies.”

“Alex was a kindhearted soul who cared deeply for his family and friends and also the American veterans whom he cared for as an ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital,” the couple wrote on social media.

“The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs. He has his phone in his right hand and his empty left hand is raised above his head while trying to protect the woman ICE just pushed down all while being pepper sprayed,” they continued.

Joey Jones of Fox News posted the following to social media:

My analysis of Minneapolis incident based on currently available information:

Calling him a domestic terrorist and acting like he was a “gunman” because he was carrying a pistol is neither accurate to the videos and information we have, nor helpful or necessary in defending the actions of the CBP agents.

If he was not carrying his state ID and carry permit he was not legally carrying his gun.

However, none of the videos I’ve seen show him reach for or brandishing the gun, or even use it to threaten anyone. Granted, I don’t know what, if anything, was said before or during the incident.

I don’t know what was said by either of the protestors prior to the CBP agents aggressively pushing them.

One video shows him in the middle of the street trying to direct traffic through what looks to be an active ICE/CBP operation.

It is clear that the CBP agents at that scene were in a zero tolerance posture for any agitators or protesters interfering with their operation. That is their prerogative and probably something that they felt necessary considering the increasingly emboldened agitators they have encountered in recent weeks.

Several videos from many angles appear to show he was disarmed by one agent from behind during the struggle to subdue him, and then shot by another agent who would not have been able to see he no longer had his gun.

So, what would qualify the shooting as a “good shoot”?

It’s necessary to refer to the landmark SCOTUS case Grahm v Connor

(Text received by career SWAT officer and use of deadly force instructor)

“Under the 4th amendment, did the officer who pulled the trigger truly believe HE WAS IN IMMINENT DANGER based on the at that moment, based on the totality of the circumstances with reasonableness being the key to the 4th amendment”

(Pulled from internet)

“The ruling requires courts to assess an officer’s actions from the perspective of a reasonable officer on the scene, considering the totality of the circumstances, such as the severity of the crime, the suspect’s resistance, and the immediate threat, rather than with the benefit of hindsight.”
This ruling specifically EXCLUDES the benefit of hindsight, which would include information that’s obvious to a bystander or all of us watching a video from a completely different perspective, but not known to the office using force.

What does this mean? It means that if the officer who fired at him felt immediately threatened because: 1) suspect aggressively resisting arrest 2) fellow officers shouting “gun, gun, gun” 3) [possibly] a gunshot negligently discharge- all happening at the same time, then an investigator, judge or jury could easily discern that the officer met the reasonableness clause for justified deadly force.

If this narrative derived from several videos I’ve seen is accurate then a few things are true.

1) it was not necessary to shoot him to save anyone’s life.

2) the agent who fired did so legally based on a totality of circumstances known to him at that time.

3) the man who was shot was committing multiple crimes/felonies leading up to being shot.

4) negligence on behalf of the agent who disarmed him and potentially accidentally discharged the firearm helped lead to the confusion.

My opinion: the second amendment is a right, not a privilege. I believe any law abiding citizen has the right to carry a firearm to protect themselves. However, it does not exclude us from exercising common sense or remove our responsibility for public safety when carrying… especially in public. Our actions when carrying matter. And should be influenced by the very fact we are carrying a firearm. Our interactions with police officers and federal agents should be influenced by the fact we ARE CARRYING A FIREARM.

Stupidity, ignorance, or moments of passion shouldn’t be a death sentence. But it is at our own hands, by our own actions that our lives are at risks, not those enforcing the laws we are breaking. They are acting on the very limited information we have offered them by carrying while breaking the law

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