The skyline of Downtown Los Angeles remains the backdrop for intense civil unrest this Sunday as the “ICE Out For Good” weekend of mass action enters its second day. What began as a massive march from Pershing Square on Saturday has transformed into a sustained occupation of the civic center, as protesters demand justice for the killing of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good and the immediate removal of federal agents from the city.
The Spark: What Happened to Renee Nicole Good
Renee Nicole Good, a poet and mother of three, was fatally shot by an ICE agent on Wednesday, January 7, in Minneapolis. Her death has become a rallying cry due to the haunting nature of the footage captured in her final moments. According to government officials, as seen in a video recorded by the ICE agent’s who captured the encounter on his phone, Renee is seen sitting in her SUV, while allegedly blocking traffic as part of an organized brigade of locals bent on antagonizing ICE Agents. As the agent made his way around the vehicle, you can see Renee smiling and expressing to ICE Agent Jonathan E. Ross, “It’s fine dude, I’m not mad at you.” Seemingly, her last words.
Despite her non-threatening demeanor, as agents surrounded the vehicle Renee attempted to drive away, while Ross fired three shots into her face through her front shield and driver side window.
As the vehicle rolled down the street with Renee fatally wounded, you can hear Ross’ voice on the recording calling her a, “F—ing bitch.”
Ross is a 43-year-old, 10-year veteran of federal law enforcement and a member of ICE’s elite Special Response Team (SRT) in the Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) division. While the Department of Homeland Security and the White House have officially refused to release his name—stating only that he “acted according to his training”—he was identified by the Minnesota Star Tribune and The Guardian through court records and prior incidents.
Standoff at the Edward Roybal Federal Building
The Edward Roybal Federal Building and the nearby Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) have been under constant siege by demonstrators since the shooting. Since June, the federal building has seen a revolving door of protests, but this weekend marks a significant escalation. On Saturday night, the LAPD issued a series of dispersal orders as a skirmish line of officers in riot gear moved to push hundreds of protesters off Alameda Street.
By Sunday morning, the remnants of Saturday’s chaos were still visible—protesters remained at the federal building gates, holding vigils and chanting the names of those killed in recent federal enforcement actions. Tensions remain razor-sharp; while the massive crowds have ebbed and flowed, the heavy police presence and the threat of further arrests for “refusal to disperse” continue to hang over the civic center.
A Warning Ignored: Los Angeles as a “Testing Ground”
The current unrest comes as a grim fulfillment of a warning issued by Mayor Karen Bass. In June 2025, following a wave of aggressive federal raids in the Fashion District and Westlake, the Mayor warned the city that Los Angeles was being used as a “testing ground” for militarized federal enforcement tactics.
The Mayor’s office stated months ago that the federal government’s strategy in L.A. was designed to provoke a response, using the city’s dense urban landscape and its status as a sanctuary city to refine tactics that are now being seen nationwide. The killing of Renee Nicole Good—a U.S. citizen—is being viewed by local organizers not as an isolated accident, but as the inevitable result of the “terror tactics” the Mayor warned about nearly seven months ago.
Navigating the Conflict
For those in Downtown today, the area between Aliso, Temple, and Alameda remains highly volatile. The 101 freeway, man gathering at Pershing Square and all of the Historic Core streets leading to it, will no doubt become a traffic nightmare.
The Federal Building stands as a fortress, and for the second day in a row, opposing groups are making it clear that they will not let the death of Renee Nicole Good go unanswered.
