Additional Coverage:
Minneapolis, MN – The family of Renee Good is grappling with immense grief and unanswered questions following her fatal shooting last month by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis. Describing agonizing “hours in limbo” as they awaited details, her loved ones are now calling for accountability and change.
“It’s the complete antithesis of who she was to die in that way. It doesn’t feel real still,” Renee’s brother, Brent Ganger, shared in an interview with “CBS Evening News.”
Her brothers, Brent and Luke Ganger, first heard the devastating news from their older sister, then relayed it to their parents, uncertain of Renee’s condition at the time. Their father, Tim Ganger, recalled the profound shock: “I mean, there’s just no way to even prepare yourself to hear that…There’s nothing to say. But it was just a complete, utter shock.”
Renee’s mother, Donna Ganger, described the moment she received the call from her son. “He said, Renee’s been shot by an ICE agent,” she recounted.
“And you know, she’s passed away, she’s gone. I think I just said no a whole bunch of times.”
“Always a Very Calming Presence,” Family Says
In the immediate aftermath of the shooting, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem characterized Good’s actions as “an act of domestic terrorism.” Luke Ganger expressed his disbelief at these words, stating, “it just doesn’t even register. Those words are just so far removed from who she was as a person.”
As videos of the shooting began to circulate online, family members urged each other to avoid them. The only footage they have seen shows Renee in her car, telling an officer, “It’s fine, dude.
I’m not mad at you.” Her family believes these words were an attempt to de-escalate the situation.
“She always was a very calming presence,” Tim Ganger affirmed.
Luke Ganger added, “It feels like an exaggeration, but it feels true to say that she’s like the least combative person I’ve known.” They remember her as someone who brightened any room she entered. “She made you feel like you are the most important thing in her life, but she could do it to all of us,” Donna Ganger fondly recalled.
The Ganger family represents a diverse political spectrum, with Tim Ganger having voted for President Trump, who at one point suggested Renee might have been a “paid agitator.” However, Tim Ganger firmly rejects the notion that his daughter would ever weaponize her vehicle against a federal agent. “Absolutely not,” Brent Good reiterated.
Calls for Accountability and Change
Amidst their sorrow, Renee’s family is focusing on preserving her memory through “her goofy laugh…her singing voice, and her hugs.” Concurrently, her mother is emphasizing the critical need for a thorough investigation into her fatal shooting.
When asked about accountability, Tim Ganger stated, “I’m not sure that’s up to us.”
The family was further heartbroken to learn weeks later of the shooting death of ICU nurse Alex Pretti in Minneapolis during an encounter with Customs and Border Protection agents. Brent Ganger articulated their growing concern: “Something is broken and something needs to be fixed, because this shouldn’t happen and it certainly shouldn’t happen again in such short order after Renee.”