A new video of the killing of Alex Pretti shows the interaction between him and a swarm of DHS officers from start to finish … and, it batters the credibility of Trump officials who came out of the gates swinging, calling Pretti a domestic terrorist
The video shows Pretti directing traffic before it appears he is asked to move out of the street, which he does. As he walks toward the sidewalk, a DHS officer violently pushes a woman to the ground and Pretti moves toward her to help her up. Officers then pepperspray both Pretti and the woman and drag Pretti to the ground. He never pulls a weapon.
As Pretti is swarmed, you see an officer pull a gun — presumably the concealed weapon Pretti was carrying. A second later another officer fires nine shots at Pretti, killing him.
As you know, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said the incident “looks like a situation where an individual arrived at the scene to inflict maximum damage on individuals and to kill law enforcement.” Border Patrol Chief Gregory Bonvino also defended the shooting as justified, saying Pretti was there to massacre law enforcement. The video shows the opposite.
Pretti had a concealed weapon with ammunition, but he had a legal permit to carry it. There is no evidence he ever brandished or pointed the gun at anyone. Trump officials have made a big point that he was carrying the weapon at all, but as Trump has touted, people have a right to carry a gun under the Second Amendment.
Pretti’s family released a statement in the aftermath of the shooting blasting the Trump administration. The statement reads, in part, “The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting. Alex is clearly not holding a gun when attacked by Trump’s murdering and cowardly ICE thugs. He has his phone in his right hand and his empty left hand is raised above his head while trying to protect the woman ICE just pushed down all while being pepper sprayed.”