Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz activated the state’s National Guard in the wake of the fatal shooting of an armed Minneapolis man who allegedly tried to intervene as federal agents arrested a migrant, a decision made after a plea for assistance from the Hennepin County Sheriff’s office with National Guard Major Gen. Shawn Menke calling the number of troops “adequate for this request” as state and local officials responded to unrest following the death of 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti during a federal immigration operation, Walz sharply criticizing the Trump administration at a news conference by declaring, “The federal government cannot be trusted to handle this investigation,” and charging, “They killed a man, created chaos, pushed down protesters, threw gas indiscriminately and then left the scene and then we’re left to clean up,” while asserting, “Minnesota’s justice system will have the last word on this,” and demanding President Trump “remove this force from Minnesota,” stepping up the political battle over federal law enforcement’s role in the state amid widespread protests and clashes between demonstrators and officers.
