Hundreds march in memory of Alex Pretti as one month mark looms

Hundreds of people rallied and marched in South Minneapolis Saturday morning, to remember the life of Alex Pretti and call for continued change following his death.

Pretti, 37, was shot and killed by federal agents during the morning of Saturday, January 24 on Nicollet and 26th in South Minneapolis. His death sparked massive protests and ultimately led to the departure of Border Patrol Chief Greg Bovino, who had been handling the control of Operation Metro Surge.

Four weeks later, roughly 500 federal agents remain in Minnesota, according to Democratic US Representatives Angie Craig and Ilhan Omar. Border Czar Tom Homan has also promised a complete drawdown of additional federal agents.

For protestors Saturday, it's been an encouraging sign.

"I think there was definitely a shift. While we are nowhere near claiming victory, we're feeling a lot better," said an organizer, who asked to be only identified as Wes. "We are seeing record volunteer applications across every org – people wanting to get involved more and more every day."

For many in the crowd, however, the attention turns to what's next. For Hans Jorgensen of St. Paul, that could involve charges for agents involved in the killings of Pretti and Renee Good.

"I feel like the district attorney should be pushing to gain as much information as we can – they should not be letting this go at all – it should be one of their primary focuses, to make sure the community knows they are working for us," Jorgensen said.

For others, it's simply moving forward as a community.

"There's going to be a lot of healing not only as the families affected – just as the communities as a whole, just because of all the disruption that's gone on to our economy," said Sammy Hamlin of Roseville.

Saturday's march ended at the memorial for Alex Pretti, just over a mile away from where demonstrators rallied at Whittier Park.