Baltimore groups protest ICE in aftermath of deadly Minnesota shooting
Baltimore protesters are pushing back against the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after an ICE officer fatally shot a woman in Minneapolis on Wednesday.
Two rallies were held on Thursday in downtown Baltimore, calling for justice for all victims of ICE shootings. Protesters gathered at the George H. Fallon Federal Building, which is Baltimore's ICE Field Office, and at McKeldin Plaza.
The protest organizers included the Baltimore branch of the Party for Socialism and Liberation, Baltimore Eyes on ICE, Free State Coalition, and Baltimore CPUSA.
Protesters held signs, spoke out, and chanted, demanding that ICE get out of their communities.
"It shows that these struggles are the same; they happen whether you're Black, white, Spanish, and we're out to say no to that," said protester Carrington Scott. "Not just know, we're out to demand an absolute and immediate change."
They walked from McKeldin Plaza and passed the federal courthouse, where they all met in front of the Baltimore ICE Field Office.
Regina Schneider, a protester who is a German native but has lived in America for part of her life, said Americans fighting for what they believe in is what sold her on the "American dream."
"American people are brave," Schneider said. "They get up for the right things, and Freedom of Speech, and helping each other, and whoever needs it. We can't turn a blind eye to what's going on here."
As protesters walked through the streets, the collective group said ICE is doing more harm than good, and that it needs to be stopped.
"Everything is so twisted around by the government, and ICE has to go," Schneider said.
"The abolition of ICE, the ending of ICE, the disarmament, all of that," Scott added.
Woman killed by ICE officers in Minnesota
Renee Good, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, wasn't a target of the ICE Operation when she was shot and killed, according to Minneapolis officials.
The shooting sparked protests in Minnesota and across the country, which have led to clashes with immigration officers. Good was a mother of three who recently moved to Minnesota with her 6-year-old son and her partner, according to CBS Minnesota.
Police said Good was found by emergency responders after she had been shot in the head in Minneapolis. She was taken to the hospital, where she died.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem called the shooting an act of self-defense on the part of the ICE officer, alleging Good, "attacked them and those surrounding them and attempted to run them over and ram them with her vehicle."
CBS News reports that multiple videos circulated online, showing the driver in a maroon Honda Pilot SUV on a residential street when an ICE agent approached and addressed her through the window of her vehicle, as several other agents stood nearby.
In one of the videos, according to CBS News, an officer was heard telling the woman to "get out of the f****** car" before reaching for the vehicle's door handle. The video showed the Honda reversing as another agent stood in front. The driver started to take off when an officer fired three shots, hitting Good once in the head.
Noem said the officer was hit by the car, treated at the hospital and later released.
The FBI is investigating.
Christmas Eve shooting involving an ICE officer
On Christmas Eve, ICE said an officer shot a man who attempted to ram them with a van in Anne Arundel County.
Officials said ICE officers were doing a detail around 11 a.m. in the 500 block of West Court in Glen Burnie when they approached a white van.
ICE told WJZ that the driver ignored orders to turn off the engine and then rammed the van into several ICE vehicles and appeared to have driven at officers before he was shot. The van crashed into two buildings, injuring its passenger.
ICE identified the driver as Tiago Alexandre Sousa-Martins, an undocumented immigrant from Portugal. The passenger was identified as Solomon Antonio Serrano-Esquivel, an undocumented immigrant from El Salvador.
"This incident, which is still under investigation, comes as the extremist anti-ICE rhetoric and outright lies of politicians, the news media, activists, and violent agitators continue to fuel a more than 1,150% increase in assaults against ICE officers," ICE told WJZ. "Our brave officers are risking their lives every day to keep American communities safe by arresting and removing illegal aliens from our streets. Continued efforts to encourage illegal aliens and violent agitators to actively resist ICE will only lead to more violent incidents, the extremist rhetoric must stop."
Increase in ICE officers and agents
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security said it hired more than 12,000 ICE officers and agents within the past year, after receiving more than 220,000 applications.
The department says it has doubled its immigration enforcement officers from 10,000 to 22,000.
"The good news is that thanks to the Big Beautiful Bill that President Trump signed, we have an additional 12,000 ICE officers and agents on the ground across the country," said Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin. "That's a 120% increase in our workforce, and that's in just about four months."
In its recruiting efforts, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has offered $50,000 signing bonuses and expanded student loan repayments as incentives, while eliminating age restrictions, according to the website govexec.com.
Bill would bar some ICE agents from working for state police
A Democratic Maryland lawmaker said he is proposing a bill that would deny ICE officers who were sworn in since President Trump took office in January 2025 from working as state police.
State Delegate Adrian Boafo, who represents Prince George's County, is sponsoring the "ICE Breaker Act of 2026."
The bill does not apply to immigration officers who were hired before Mr. Trump was sworn in, or those who have served in administrative capacities.
"These are a group of people who, under the cover of masks and without proper identification, are willfully executing Donald Trump's racist immigration policies through harassment, intimidation, and violence against innocent people," Boafo said. "In so doing, they have taken parents from their children, left struggling families without their breadwinners, and have left countless Marylanders afraid to leave their homes."
