A resident who was “caring for her neighbors”: These were the words used to describe the woman who died in a confrontation with federal officers this week in Minneapolis.
Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent on January 7, 2026. She was just blocks from home when the fatal encounter unfolded, a place where she was familiar, loved, and trusted.
Now, what happened in those final moments has torn through the community like wildfire, sparking outrage across the country.
For some, it has reignited fierce debates over immigration enforcement. But for those who knew Renee — her family, her neighbors, and those who witnessed the incident — this is not just about politics.
This is about a devastating loss that should have never happened.
A Devoted Mother, Creative Soul, and Proud American
Good was 37 years old and lived with her partner just a few blocks from where she was killed in Twin Cities, according to her mother, Donna Ganger.
She was, herself, the mother of several children, including a 15-year-old daughter and a 12-year-old son from her first marriage to a man who declined to be named to protect their children. Later, Good welcomed another son with her late second husband, Timmy Ray Macklin Jr. That child is now six years old.
In the days since her death, more details about her life have come to light, and one message continues to ring clear: she was a bright, loving, and moral woman.
Good studied at Old Dominion University in Virginia, focusing on creative writing. Her passion for words led her to win the school’s undergraduate poetry prize in 2020 for her piece titled “On Learning to Dissect Fetal Pigs.”
She also co-hosted a podcast with her late husband, Macklin Jr., at some point. A small bio from the university’s English Department revealed just how immersed she was in her craft. When she wasn’t writing, she was always engaging with language and learning more.
“She has movie marathons and makes messy art,” the post added.
Though her Instagram account is private, its bio makes her passions clear. It reads, “Poet and writer and wife and mom and [expletive] guitar strummer from Colorado; experiencing Minneapolis, MN.”
Above all, there has been another fact has come glaringly into the light: Good was a United States citizen. She was born in Colorado and had previously lived in Colorado Springs before relocating to Minnesota from Kansas City, Missouri.
She had no criminal record and no history of trouble with the law, aside from a traffic ticket.
Online, she was like many other women her age. Her Pinterest profile showed her smiling with her youngest son. Her posts were filled with pins about home décor, tattoos, and hair inspiration.
Her first husband emphasized that Good was never an activist, never an agitator. She was not involved in protests or any form of public unrest. instead, she was a devoted Christian who had even gone on youth missionary trips to Northern Ireland in her younger years.
In addition to writing, she had a passion for singing. She participated in her high school chorus group and later studied vocal performance in college.
Although she had worked as a dental assistant and at a credit union, in recent years, she had poured herself into motherhood, choosing to stay home and raise her children full-time. While completing one of her regular duties as a parent, the unthinkable happened.
A Morning School Drop-Off Turns Into a Fatal Confrontation
On that a snowy Wednesday morning, Good’s ordinary routine became a nightmare. According to Politico, she “had just dropped off her 6-year-old son at school Wednesday and was driving home with her current partner when they encountered a group of ICE agents.”
Some residents had already noticed their unusual activity that day. Officers were seen heavily patrolling the neighborhood, particularly near the elementary school just a short distance from Good’s home.
Around 9:30 a.m., several people spotted federal vehicles gathered near the 3300 block of Portland Avenue. Multiple SUVs were parked across the middle of the street, drawing attention from concerned neighbors.
Some cautiously approached the area with their phones, unsure of what was going on. While a few stood by and recorded quietly, others began yelling at the agents.
Then, one video captured the senseless tragedy.
Good was inside a dark SUV when one of the agents walked up to the driver’s side and grabbed the door handle. Good suddenly threw the car in reverse, pulling back as though she was trying to flee.
At that moment, another agent appeared directly in front of her vehicle. Still, Good pulled forward, appearing to intend to drive straight toward him. Some video angles suggest Good clipped injured him with her car.
In a split-second decision, the officer drew his handgun and fired multiple times directly through the windshield. The bullets struck Good. Her vehicle surged forward, then lost control and crashed further down the block.
In the chaotic aftermath, neighbors and bystanders caught another scene on video. A woman, devastated and crying, sat near the crashed SUV, shouting, “That’s my wife, I don’t know what to do!”
That woman was later said to be Good’s wife who had been in the car. A neighbor who had come outside to investigate tried to comfort her.
“I made her come down here, it’s my fault,” she said through tears. “They just shot my wife.” In another moment caught on camera, she seemingly can be heard saying, “They shot her in the head. I have a 6-year-old in school.”
