General President Coleman’s statement on the shooting of Alex Pretti

SMART General President Michael Coleman released the following statement after the shooting of Minnesota resident Alex Pretti on January 24, 2026:

“On Friday, January 23, tens of thousands of working people in Minnesota — including thousands of our union brothers and sisters — exercised their First Amendment right to take a stand against the conduct of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, including the shooting of Renee Good just weeks ago. They did what working people have done for generations in the fight for justice, equality and the American dream: They brought everything to a stop and said, enough is enough. No more chaos in our streets. No more shootings of civilians.

“The facts are clear about what happened the next day. Alex Jeffrey Pretti, our American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) union brother, was exercising his First Amendment right and his Second Amendment right, legally carrying a firearm while filming ICE officers. Brother Pretti was pepper sprayed, tackled and killed in the street. Multiple eyewitness videos appear to show that Pretti was not holding his weapon. What he was doing, in his last moments before he was shot multiple times in the back, was helping a woman who herself had been pepper sprayed.

“Our union is full of brothers and sisters just like Alex Pretti. Proud Americans who care deeply for our veterans, as Pretti did — he was a dedicated intensive-care unit nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital. Union members who aren’t afraid to stand up for what they believe in. Working people who practice their right to own and legally carry a firearm, just like Alex Pretti.

“This cannot stand. We cannot have government agents killing people in the street. We cannot have people afraid to go to work because of what’s happening outside their doors. We cannot sit back and let government agencies dictate the everyday lives of working people without facing any consequences.

“We mourn Alex Pretti, and our thoughts and prayers are with his family, his loved ones, his AFGE brothers and sisters, and the working people of Minnesota. We urge SMART members to contact their members of Congress and call for the immediate end to this chaos and violence.”