By Trendsetter Tribune 
Senior Justice Department officials resigned in protest after the Trump administration declined to investigate the fatal ICE shooting of Minneapolis woman Renee Good, sources say.
Resignations at the highest levels of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division signal deep internal unrest over how federal law enforcement accountability is being handled under the Trump administration. The departures raise serious questions about whether political considerations are shaping decisions traditionally insulated from partisan influence — particularly in cases involving the use of deadly force by federal officers.
What Happened
At least four senior Justice Department officials have resigned in recent days in protest over the administration’s response to the fatal shooting of Renee Good, a 37-year-old woman killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer in Minneapolis.
According to three sources briefed on the matter, the officials — all leaders within the criminal section of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division — stepped down after Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon decided not to open a federal investigation into the shooting.
Those who resigned reportedly include the section chief, principal deputy chief, deputy chief, and acting deputy chief, marking the most significant mass resignation at the Justice Department since President Donald Trump returned to office.
The Shooting and the Dispute
The fatal shooting occurred earlier this month during an ICE operation in Minneapolis. Administration officials, including Trump and Vice President JD Vance, have asserted that Good attempted to ram ICE officers with her vehicle — a claim used to justify the officer’s actions.
However, video evidence reviewed publicly appears to contradict that account, showing Good’s vehicle wheels turned away from the officer when he fired three shots into her car, killing her.
Despite the conflicting evidence, DOJ leadership informed Civil Rights Division prosecutors last week that the department would not investigate whether the ICE officer used excessive or unlawful deadly force, according to a source familiar with the internal discussions.
Internal Backlash
Kristen Clarke, who led the Civil Rights Division during the Biden administration, sharply criticized the decision.
“Investigating officials to determine if they broke the law, defied policy, failed to de-escalate, and resorted to deadly force without basis is one of the Civil Rights Division’s most solemn duties,” Clarke said.
She emphasized that prosecutors in the division have long served as the federal government’s leading experts in police accountability and civil rights enforcement.
Sources told MS NOW that concerns among departing officials extended beyond this single case, pointing to broader unease with other decisions made by division leadership since the change in administration.
A Pattern of Departures
The resignations echo a similar episode in February, when five leaders and supervisors in the DOJ’s Public Integrity Section resigned rather than comply with orders from Trump appointees to drop a bribery case involving then–New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Together, the departures suggest a widening rift between career prosecutors and political leadership over the independence of federal law enforcement decisions.
Political Signals and Social Media
Tensions escalated further after Dhillon retweeted an X post from a prosecutor warning protesters against using vehicles near immigration officers — a message critics say implicitly reinforced the administration’s narrative surrounding Good’s death.
Civil rights advocates argue that such messaging, combined with the refusal to investigate, risks undermining public trust in the Justice Department’s ability to impartially review law enforcement conduct.
What Comes Next
As protests continue in Minneapolis and scrutiny intensifies, pressure is mounting on the Justice Department to explain why the case does not meet the threshold for a civil rights investigation — particularly given the conflicting evidence.
For now, the resignations stand as a rare and public rebuke from within the DOJ itself, highlighting the growing tension between career prosecutors and political leadership in one of the department’s most sensitive roles.