As of this writing, the latest ICE and Border Patrol involved shooting has garnered a great deal of criticism and critique from all corners, and every self-defense guru out there feels compelled to put in their two cents. Rather than do the same, I will try and say the obvious: this incident is a bit sketchy, it is probably legal, but the optics are bad. It is very difficult to determine exactly what happened when looking at the different video footage available. Bottom line, a man named Alex Pretti was shot and killed by CBP agents during a violent struggle with them.
It appears that Pretti was carrying a concealed handgun when the altercation took place, legally. Interestingly, the 2A and concealed carry community are rather split on their interpretation of this incident. Essentially, many believe that Pretti was a leftist agitator who was aggressively impeding federal agents and he FAFO. Others think that he was executed by federal thugs just because he was legally carrying a firearm.
To begin, I am a 2A absolutist and Mr. Pretti had every right to be carrying a gun, as he was. The fact that he was a leftist agitator does not deny him that right. If he was, indeed, wrongfully executed for merely being armed, then that is excessive and unconstitutional government overreach. However, I am quite skeptical of that overall view.
Alex Pretti was, indeed, impeding federal law enforcement officers from doing their job. A felony offense. Now, if the shooting was not justified, that fact should not excuse an execution. But the fact that Pretti was impeding ICE activity, then aggressively put hands on one of the agents, leading to the dogpile and shooting, can’t be ignored. Your personal feelings about immigration and immigration enforcement do not entitle you, or others you support, to obstruct federal agents from doing their constitutionally mandated job.
Several lessons should be clearly learned here:
First, don’t impede federal officers from doing their job when it is clearly Constitutionally sanctioned. Again, I will make this point, if these federal agents were kicking in doors and unconstitutionally taking firearms, these leftists would be celebrating, not impeding. They only wish to impede deportations because illegal invaders aid in the goals of the left. Period.
Second, while I think all citizens have the right to be armed all the time, if you plan to go to a riot and violently assault law enforcement officers, don’t carry a gun while doing so. Stupid much? While nobody deserves to be killed just for being stupid, excessive foolishness tends to lead to bad outcomes.
Third, for all of my big L libertarian friends who think that ALL law enforcement is the machination of Satan, I remind you that the drafters of our Constitution feared “the mob” as much as they did the overreach of government. I would submit that the rioting in Minneapolis would qualify as unconstitutional mob rule.
Over fifty people were killed in ICE operations during the Obama administration, in which over three million people were deported. Do you remember any rioting over that? Yeah, neither do I. This is entirely manufactured chaos by the left as an effort to destabilize and divide our society, and that is what Alex Pretti chose to be part of, which is the crux of this issue.
While very few of us are constitutional scholars or use of force attorneys, we can all do our best to approach these incidents will pragmatism, not emotion.
Reflex Handgun 
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