How Mary Moriarty could approach prosecuting ICE agent Jonathan Ross for killing Renee Good

MINNEAPOLIS — Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty and Attorney General Keith Ellison’s pursuit of an independent investigation into Renee Good’s killing faces significant hurdles, hindered from the start by a lack of access to evidence and a high legal threshold for leveling charges against ICE agent Jonathan Ross for firing the fatal shots.

Yet unique potential scenarios remain in play, including a state prosecution of the case that could take place in federal court.

Federal officials removed the state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) from what had been a joint investigation following Good’s Jan. 7 shooting death, causing the BCA to announce one day afterward that it “reluctantly withdrew” from the probe without access to evidence.

Moriarty and Ellison are working in close coordination to gather evidence to turn over to the BCA, but a charging decision would ultimately come from Moriarty’s office.

“Since last Wednesday our offices have been in consistent contact,” Moriarty said Jan. 12. “The support from the attorney general and his staff has been extremely valuable and we look forward to continuing to collaborate with them.”

The decision of whether to charge Ross with a crime presents the most visible moment in Moriarty’s already highly visible and, at times, controversial tenure as the top law enforcement officer in Hennepin County.

While Vice President J.D. Vance has claimed Ross has “absolute immunity” shielding him from prosecution in the shooting, Moriarty said she has legal authority to charge Ross, and the 10-year ICE veteran’s federal law enforcement duties do not grant him immunity if he committed a crime in Hennepin County.

Murder or manslaughter charges against Ross would be one of the rare instances of a law enforcement officer facing that crime in Minnesota, and are difficult for prosecutors to prove. The only case in modern state history where a police officer’s conviction for murder was upheld through the appeals process was Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin for the killing of George Floyd.

Moriarty has kept a collaborative focus in the wake of Good’s killing as Minneapolis has been inflamed, once again, over questions about the legality of deadly use of force by a law enforcement officer against a citizen.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey and Gov. Tim Walz have characterized Good’s death as a result of the Trump administration targeting the state with immigration enforcement out of vindictiveness. Police experts, including Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara, have questioned Ross’ tactics in shooting Good.

President Donald Trump, on several occasions, has questioned Good’s actions and referred to her as a professional agitator. Vance said Good endangered Ross’ life by driving her car forward when Ross was standing in front of it. The Department of Homeland Security accused her of stalking and impeding ICE agents.

Moriarty has strayed from any political commentary on the situation, instead staying focused on the need for a robust investigation into the shooting.

“Let me be clear, we have no preconceived opinion on what the evidence will show,” Moriarty said last week. “Making a charging or decline decision in an officer involved case requires us to evaluate the evidence in the context of complicated legal issues.”

In the past, county attorneys have used various charges against law enforcement officers for deadly use of force including murder, manslaughter and assault to cause great bodily harm.

Sources familiar with the process said Moriarty’s office and the U.S. Attorney’s Office were key to creating a joint investigation between the FBI and the BCA Force Investigations Unit into the killing of Good, only to see it upended by Minnesota U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen’s decision to remove state law enforcement from the investigation.

The Minnesota Star Tribune reported Monday that Rosen told his attorneys to “say nothing” to the press or law enforcement and that only attorneys “designated by me” can communicate with investigators.

Rosen’s decision to isolate the BCA went against what several sources said was routine cooperation between state and federal law enforcement during past criminal investigations over use of deadly force by federal officers in Minnesota.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said last week that Minnesota investigators “have not been cut out, they don’t have any jurisdiction.”

Department of Public Safety Commissioner Bob Jacobson said last week that it would be “extremely difficult” to conduct a thorough investigation without the FBI case file, but Moriarty said criminal prosecutions are never perfect and charges can be filed if the evidence justifies it.

“We never have ideal investigations,” Moriarty said. “Not because of the fault of officers, but we have cases submitted to us where we would like to have other types of evidence.”

Moriarty said the FBI currently has sole possession of Good’s car, a shell casing and extensive evidence collected at the scene in south Minneapolis, including witness interviews. The Daily Mail reported Friday that masked federal officers were seen taking large plastic crates from Ross’ home in Chaska. Moriarty said there is no guarantee that Ross or other ICE agents on the scene when Good was killed would cooperate with the investigation, but that’s no different than when local law enforcement are investigated for potential criminal charges.

“What access do we have to federal officers? Really none,” Moriarty said. “Any officer can decide whether they want to give a statement or not. As always, we would like anyone who has anything to do with the case to give a statement. We don’t always have that. It’s hard to say right now how important or not that would be.”

Several agents left the scene in the minutes immediately after Ross fired three shots at Good.

Moriarty and Ellison said their probe was not a criticism of the investigation that the FBI field office in Minneapolis is conducting under Special Agent in Charge Alvin Winston Sr.

Moriarty said the larger issue is that if the FBI decided to charge Ross or declined to do so, state law enforcement would not have access to the case file, limiting transparency for Minnesotans. Announcing that the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office would open a secure data portal for citizens to submit evidence related to the shooting, Moriarty and Ellison said the preservation of evidence is essential in deciding whether to charge Ross with a crime.

Hennepin County Attorney’s Office spokesman Daniel Borgertpoepping said a “substantial number” of submissions had been made through the portal as of Monday morning. Moriarty said last week that BCA investigators were also typing reports based on what they learned before the FBI took over the federal investigation.

Several sources familiar with the legal process said if Ross were to be charged in Hennepin County he would have the ability to file a petition to remove the case to U.S. District Court. That petition would be litigated, but, if granted, the case would move to federal court and remain a state prosecution under state law.

Ross’ attorneys would likely file an immediate motion to dismiss the case, which would trigger evidentiary hearings. The case would follow federal judicial procedure and be overseen by a federal judge and considered by a federal jury. While that process is not uncommon, it is more typically applied to civil cases than criminal.

The circumstances of Good’s killing also carry echoes of the most controversial charging decision in Moriarty’s tenure.

In 2023, Minnesota state trooper Ryan Londregan was charged in Hennepin County District Court with second-degree murder, first-degree assault and second-degree manslaughter for the shooting death of Ricky Cobb II after Cobb attempted to flee a traffic stop.

Londregan’s partner was slightly inside the car when Cobb shifted the car into drive. Londregan said he believed Cobb was reaching for a weapon and shot him twice. Cobb died at the scene. Cobb had been pulled over for driving without taillights when troopers learned he was wanted for violating a domestic no-contact order.

Moriarty said she charged Londregan based on the evidence available at the time and that a Hennepin County judge affirmed there was probable cause to proceed with the case. Her decision came to be criticized by police organizations and Londregan’s lawyer, Chris Madel. Walz said he considered removing the case from Moriarty and giving it to Ellison.

Moriarty said that when new evidence came to light, she dropped the case. She said that decision was not about her office “backing down” from holding law enforcement accountable for acts of brutality.

“We could theoretically prosecute this and just let the jury decide,” she told the Star Tribune in 2024. “However, we ethically can’t do that because we don’t believe at this point that we can disprove that affirmative defense.”

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