Jonathan ross has a history of using excessive force
Executive summary
Public reporting shows Jonathan Ross was involved in at least two high‑profile uses of force in 2025–2026—one in June 2025 where he was dragged by a fleeing vehicle during a detention and another in January 2026 in which he shot and killed Renée Good—facts that have prompted questions about whether his tactics and decisions reflect a pattern of excessive force, though no final legal finding of a recurring constitutional violation has been established in the record reviewed here [1] [2] [3].
1. The documented incidents: dragging in June 2025 and the killing of Renée Good
Court records and multiple news outlets identify Ross as the ICE agent who in June 2025 became stuck in a car window during an arrest, was dragged roughly 100 yards, and deployed a Taser that did not incapacitate the driver, and later as the agent who fired three rounds into a moving vehicle on Jan. 7, 2026, killing Renée Good during an immigration operation in Minneapolis—events that are central to assessments of his use of force [1] [4] [2] [3].
2. What critics say: training, precedent and experts flag excessive force concerns
Legal analysts and public experts have characterized the killing of Good as potentially excessive, pointing to video and to policing and CBP reviews showing that placing oneself in front of a moving vehicle and firing at a car are risky and often contrary to safer use‑of‑force guidance; several outlets report lawyers and use‑of‑force specialists who say the available evidence raises serious constitutional questions about whether lethal force was justified [5] [6] [7].
3. What defenders say: self‑defense, prior injury and institutional backing
Department leaders and some officials have framed Ross’s actions as defensive, emphasizing that he had been seriously injured in the June incident and that he perceived an imminent threat during the Minneapolis encounter; administrations and spokespeople have described him as an experienced agent with military and DHS tenure, arguing his conduct was consistent with facing a lethal risk [2] [3] [4].
4. Evidence that complicates a simple “history of excessive force” label
While two forceful confrontations are documented, the sources do not establish a court‑adjudicated pattern of excessive force prior to the January 2026 killing; experts differ and investigations were—and remain—ongoing, with the FBI taking the lead and legal commentators noting that whether a constitutional violation occurred depends on details of imminence, training adherence and intent that are still being litigated or investigated [5] [6] [7].
5. Patterns, institutional context, and what the reporting cannot yet prove
Reporting connects Ross to tactics—approaching vehicles and placing agents near a car’s path—that broader federal reviews have criticized in other agencies, suggesting his actions fit known risky patterns in vehicle‑related shootings, but the available sources stop short of establishing a repeatable pattern of egregious misconduct with independent findings or convictions specifically for excessive force beyond existing prosecutions tied to the June incident; the public record reviewed here therefore supports concern and scrutiny but not a definitive, legally sustained finding of a multi‑incident history of excessive force [5] [4] [2] [8].