The White House has initiated an internal review into potential protocol violations by federal agents during the Minneapolis protest incident that resulted in the fatal shooting of 37-year-old nurse Alex Pretti. Senior Presidential Advisor Stephen Miller confirmed the investigation Tuesday, marking a significant shift from previous administration statements that falsely characterized the victim as a would-be assassin.
Miller, who serves as Deputy Chief of Staff and architects the administration’s immigration policies, disclosed that Customs and Border Protection personnel might have deviated from established operational guidelines during Saturday’s protest against immigration enforcement measures. The admission follows President Trump’s expressed desire to de-escalate tensions in Minneapolis amid growing national scrutiny.
According to Miller’s statement, the White House had issued explicit directives for additional personnel to establish physical separation between arrest teams and demonstrators. “We are evaluating why the CBP team may not have been following that protocol,” Miller acknowledged, while simultaneously attributing his earlier inflammatory remarks to preliminary information provided by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem.
Video evidence subsequently contradicted initial claims that Pretti was brandishing a weapon when approached by federal agents. Footage confirmed that although the nurse legally carried a sidearm, agents had already secured the firearm before firing multiple shots at close range. This visual evidence directly contradicts Noem’s initial assertion that Pretti threatened agents with a weapon.
Miller’s statement represents the administration’s first public concession regarding potential procedural failures in the incident, which has sparked nationwide protests and intensified scrutiny of federal immigration enforcement tactics.