ICE agents’ killing of the nurse in Minneapolis mobilizes fellow nurses and unions in Florida.
By Jackson Rothman
Original Air Date: January 28, 2026
Host: ICE and immigration enforcement are on people’s minds after the killings of two activists in Minneapolis. WSLR reporter Jackson Rothman was at an event Tuesday night in downtown Sarasota.
Jackson Rothman: A candlelight vigil at Five Points Park honored the life of Alex Pretti, who died after being shot by ICE agents in Minnesota last week. The shooting follows weeks of unrest after another Minneapolis resident, Renee Good, a mother of three, was shot and killed in her car by ICE agents. Good was killed only a few blocks from where George Floyd was killed in 2020.
ICE has been running a large-scale operation in Minnesota for several weeks, following up on Donald Trump’s campaign promise of mass deportation.
200 Sarasota residents turned out to pay their respects to Pretti, and show solidarity with a growing movement against what many describe as abuses surrounding immigration policy and enforcement.
Amanda Just: My name is Amanda Just. I’m on the board of the Democratic Women’s Club of Sarasota County. We got overwhelming comments and shares and messages about, “What can we do?” People are hurting. We’ve heard from nurses. We’ve heard from veterans. We are hurting too as organizers especially.
JR: Pretti was an intensive care nurse, working for a Veterans Affairs Hospital. Healthcare workers across the country have spoken out in support of him since his death.
One of the participants in the candlelight vigil identified herself as a nurse.
Nurse: I cannot say how Alex’s murder has impacted the nursing community, but I do hope that it will lead to every nurse in this country to use their collective voice to say, “Enough is enough.”
JR: The West Central Florida Labor Council is calling for a protest Thursday at the office of Ana Paulina Luna. The unions are targeting the U.S. Representative after she posted on social media that “half the country is siding with criminal illegal aliens over American citizens and the enforcement of federal law.” Pretti was a member of the American Federation of Government Employees union.
In a message calling for people to join the protest, the Tampa-based AFL-CIO affiliate said: “As we mourn our union brother, Representative Anna Paulina Luna is escalating tensions for political gain.”
JR: The Sarasota vigil was co-hosted by El Pueblo Unido Tampa Bay, an activist group that supports immigrants, and The Democratic Women’s Club of Sarasota County. The organizers collected food donations for vulnerable families affected by the immigration crackdowns. Ermelinda Velazquez, an organizer with El Pueblo Unido, was proud of the turnout.
Ermelinda Velazquez: I’m Ermelinda Velazquez. I’m from El Pueblo Unido Tampa Bay. We’re based out of here in Sarasota County, Manatee County and we try to also help out Hillsborough County. I am very happy with the turnout. I didn’t expect this many people. We had one in December right before Christmas. It was probably a third of this crowd. We are very pleased that a lot of people are paying attention to what is going on out there in America and they’re trying to come together as one.
JR: Second Amendment supporters are up in arms over the Trump Administration’s defense of ICE actions. White House Chief of Staff Stephen Miller has characterized Pretti as an assassin, while Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem claimed Pretti attacked officers while brandishing a gun. But footage appears to contradict their statements. FBI Director Kash Patel implied Pretti broke the law in bringing a firearm to a protest, but no such law exists in Minnesota.
Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara said he believed Pretti had a permit to carry.
Velazquez brought up this controversy during the vigil.
EV: After this, I did notice that a lot of people were stunned and appalled by the administration’s reaction of Alex practicing his right to bear arms. We should all have the right to bear arms peacefully and not be executed just because you’re trying to save someone from being abused and thrown down and beaten.
JR: This incident highlights a potential rift within the MAGA flank of the Republican party. Texas Senator Ted Cruz, normally a staunch defender of the president, has expressed concern that Trump may face impeachment after the shooting in Minnesota. Ileana Garcia, the Republican state senator from Miami, criticized the treatment of Pretti on social media.
Julie Forestier, chair of the Democratic Women’s Club, talked about the political split at the vigil.
Julie Forestier: This is already working. We are seeing elected officials who have long aligned themselves with the Trump administration begin to back away. We are seeing calls for investigation. We are even seeing Republicans speak out and call for ICE to be removed from Minnesota.
[Crowd cheers]
JR: The president’s approval ratings continue to drop over the issue of immigration and have accelerated their decline since ICE has begun their public actions in Minnesota.
Demonstrators are hopeful that ICE will change its tactics going forward but are prepared to continue the fight.
Crowd: The people united will never be defeated. The people united will never be defeated. The people united will never be defeated.
Reporting for WSLR News, Jackson Rothman.
WSLR News aims to keep the local community informed with our 1/2 hour local news show, quarterly newspaper and social media feeds. The local news broadcast airs on Wednesdays and Fridays at 6pm.