Is Jonathan Ross have a record of excessive force
Executive summary
Public reporting shows ICE agent Jonathan Ross was identified as the officer who fatally shot Renée Good and that he was involved in a separate June 2025 incident in Bloomington in which he was dragged by a fleeing suspect while attempting an arrest [1] [2]. There is extensive debate among legal experts and officials about whether his actions in Minneapolis constituted excessive force, but the sources do not establish a prior formal finding or sustained record of excessive-force violations against Ross [3] [4].
1. Background: who Jonathan Ross is and the earlier “dragging” incident
Multiple outlets identify Jonathan Ross as an ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations agent who has served with Border Patrol and ICE since 2007 and 2015 respectively, and who was publicly tied to a June 2025 Bloomington arrest in which an agent was pulled roughly 100 yards by a car — an incident described in court records and jury instructions as involving Ross [2] [5] [6]. Court documents and testimony detail that Ross and others approached the vehicle, that Ross fired a stun gun while being dragged, and that he later testified about fearing for his life after the encounter [2] [7].
2. What the reporting actually shows about “excessive force” prior to the Minneapolis killing
None of the sources reviewed report a prior internal or judicial finding that Ross committed excessive force before the Minneapolis shooting; they document an injurious on-the-job encounter (the June dragging) and subsequent prosecutions of the fleeing suspect, not disciplinary conclusions against Ross [6] [2]. Several outlets describe the June episode as violent and note injuries to Ross, but the reporting frames that event as part of an operational arrest and a later criminal case against the suspect rather than as a formal finding that the officer used unlawful force [2] [8].
3. Conflicting testimony and questions about tactics and training
Reporting highlights contradictions in testimony about tactics in the June case and suggests Ross’s decisions — for example putting himself in front of a vehicle or approaching a car door — may run counter to FBI or federal guidance on interacting with vehicles, with at least one FBI agent’s sworn testimony reportedly contradicting Ross’s account [9]. Independent reviews of Border Patrol and similar cases cited in the coverage found patterns in which agents positioned themselves in front of vehicles and concluded that stepping out of the vehicle’s path is often the safer alternative, raising questions about operational choices though not amounting to proven misconduct in Ross’s record [9] [8].
4. The Minneapolis shooting, investigations, and legal debate over excessive force
After the fatal shooting of Renée Good, federal and state agencies — including an FBI joint investigation with Minnesota authorities — were reported to be probing the use of force, and legal experts diverged: some called the shooting excessive, others said it was too early to determine culpability pending evidence and official inquiry [3] [1]. Political actors and agency spokespeople have defended Ross as following training and facing a perceived imminent threat, while critics and some legal analysts argue his experience and choices could undercut a self‑defense claim [1] [4]. Reporting also notes that the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division was not immediately reported as opening a separate probe, a procedural detail that matters for potential federal civil-rights scrutiny [10].
5. Bottom line — does Jonathan Ross have a record of excessive force?
Based on available reporting, Ross has a documented history of being involved in violent on-duty encounters — most prominently the June 2025 dragging incident — but the sources do not show a preexisting formal finding, sustained disciplinary record, or conviction against him for excessive use of force prior to the Minneapolis fatal shooting; the question of whether his conduct in Minneapolis or earlier encounters legally or constitutionally constituted excessive force remains contested and subject to active investigations and differing expert views [2] [3] [4]. The public record assembled in the cited coverage therefore supports noting prior dangerous incidents and contested tactics but does not establish that Ross had an official, adjudicated “record of excessive force” before the latest case; reporting limitations prevent ruling on allegations that go beyond what the court documents and journalism have verified [2] [9].