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Man Shot & Killed By Fed. Agents In Minneapolis; DHS Says Man Was Armed; Man Fatally Shot In Minneapolis Identified As Alex Pretti; Minnesota Gov. Calls On Trump To Order ICE To Leave The State. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired January 25, 2026 - 01:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN HOST: Hello, and welcome to all of our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Polo Sandoval live in New York. And we want to begin in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and that's where federal agents shot and killed a 37-year- old man during a protest on Saturday. Alex Pretti, he was an intensive care nurse at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs hospital. His family says that in the moments before he was killed, Pretti was trying to protect a woman that ICE agents had pushed down, and all this while he was being pepper sprayed, as we've seen in recent footage.

CNN has examined some of that video of the deadly encounter. We want to show you some of that footage to try to get a better understanding of what happened. But first, a warning, the video is graphic and disturbing. The footage shows several federal agents wrestling Pretti to the ground. At least one agent appears to be kicking him, and then later in the video, federal agents fired at least 10 gunshots. The Department of Homeland Security says that officers took this handgun from Pretti and that and then they fired in self-defense. However, at no point in any of the videos reviewed by CNN can he be seen wielding this weapon. And Minneapolis police say that he was a lawful gun owner with a permit, but still, Trump administration officials, they are calling Pretti a, quote, "domestic terrorist."

Here is some of what DHS Secretary Kristi Noem had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTI NOEM, U.S. HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: When you perpetuate violence against a government because of ideological reasons and for reasons to resist and perpetuate violence, that is the definition of domestic terrorism. This individual who came with weapons and ammunition to stop a law enforcement operation of federal law enforcement officers committed an act of domestic terrorism. That's the facts.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SANDOVAL: And Minnesota officials, they are now suing the Trump

administration to prevent alleged hampering and destruction of evidence related to the shooting. The suit also says that federal defendants have already removed evidence from the scene, preventing state authorities from inspecting it. Governor says that video disproves the Trump administration's, quote, "nonsense and lies" about how the shooting unfolded. The Minneapolis Mayor, Jacob Frey, sending this message straight to the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACOB FREY, MAYOR, MINNEAPOLIS: To President Trump, this is a moment to act like a leader. Put Minneapolis, put America first in this moment. Let's achieve peace. Let's end this operation. And I'm telling you, our city will come back. Safety will be restored. We're asking for you to take action now to remove these federal agents.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: CNN's Julia Vargas Jones joining me now from Los Angeles. Julia, you have covered this. You were on the ground just last week. I'm curious what developments are you hearing about now, and also some of this possible fallout on the street of Minneapolis after Saturday's shooting.

JULIA VARGAS JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, what we're hearing, Polo, from the people that we had been in touch all week on the ground, and seeing both those protesters and people who are staying home, is just a state of shock. I had someone text me this morning and say, how are we supposed to live like this? How do I tell my three-year-old the reason behind those helicopters flying above our house? Why that hasn't stopped?

Now, the level of disruption of life in Minneapolis has already been to an untenable level to most people. Before this shooting happened, this has just escalated to a completely new level. It is a full-scale political, illegal and institutional battle now playing out, as you pointed out very eloquently, there between those federal officials, local officials, fighting not only for the control of the city, for the peace keeping of the city, Polo, but also for control of the investigation into what happened on Saturday morning.

We have heard differing accounts. Now, I know we played some video. There is now so many different angles to echo what the governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, said earlier, thank God, we have video so we can look over this, and CNN analysis has now brought a number of things that I would love to go over with you. So, this one video, this is a video from one of the witnesses that shows from inside that white car what is happening. This is the moments right before the shooting.

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Now, we don't see the shooting of Alex Pretti from this angle here, but we see him desperately trying to shield a woman, she has an orange backpack, from getting some kind of chemical on her face, Polo. This is one of the angles that shows that just so clearly what was happening there. But again, still so many questions on -- especially about the response from the administration on this.

Now, we heard from Gregory Bovino earlier today that the officer involved in the shooting had eight years of experience, that he had less than lethal training. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, as you pointed out, categorizing the scene as a violent riot. The language used from DHS earlier today was that this person, Alex Pretti, was there to massacre law enforcement, and then again, amplifying -- really blaming the officials on the ground in Minneapolis for not keeping peace.

But I will say, Polo, one of the things that we noticed in Minneapolis is that the moment that we saw that local law enforcement there, that is the moment when tensions actually went down and people were happy to be able to communicate with them and to actually have those tensions subside. It's pretty clear that ICE, DHS, federal officials are not the ones who are welcome in Minneapolis.

SANDOVAL: Yeah. Without a doubt. The events of Saturday will certainly further stoke the tension and the fear there on the ground with so many people you've spoken to.

Julia Vargas Jones, thank you so much for your reporting tonight and last week.

Saturday's incident, this comes just over two weeks after another Minneapolis resident, Renee Good, was fatally shot by an ICE agent. Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar now has this message for immigration officials.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR (D-MN): Our message is really clear and straight forward. We need ICE out of Minnesota. They are not making us more safe as the tragic, tragic killing this morning, and the people saw it viscerally on that video shows us they are making us less safe. With 3,000 agents, which, of course, includes border control, outnumbering the sworn police officers in Minneapolis and St. Paul by three to one, and even larger than the 10 metropolitan police departments, this is completely out of whack, completely out of balance, and now three people have been shot, two resulting in death, one, Renee Good, mother of three, and now Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old, Minneapolis man, a citizen, also a nurse. They both have families that love them very much. This city has been under siege.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Let's get some analysis now from our expert joined by -- out of Los Angeles, Steve Moore. He is a retired FBI Supervisory Special Agent who spent 25 years with the Bureau and certainly glad that you can join us again, Steve, to offer your expert insight on this situation. Steve, I'm curious if we could maybe pick up where you left off with your conversation with my colleague Jessica in the last hour. What do you believe that the city of Minneapolis should be doing to create this buffer, as you described it, between protesters and ICE in an effort to try to decrease the chances of this happening again? STEVE MOORE, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CONTRIBUTOR: Well, first of all, in

order to discuss this intelligently, we need to take politics out of it for just a little bit. While Minneapolis may be trying to get ICE out of Minneapolis and out of Minnesota right now, in the mean -- until it happens, you've still got the problem that you have protesters in direct contact with ICE agents. ICE agents may be trained for a lot of things, but if they've gotten any training on crowd control, it's been ad hoc.

So, what usually happens in a situation like this is the local police, Minneapolis Police Department, maybe even Minnesota State Police, they deal with the protesters. They deal with agitators, if there are any. They're the ones who handle the streets, because this is their city. They know it. They can deescalate better. They use different techniques, and they're the ones who could be between ICE and the protesters.

The issue is that both shootings occurred while agents were not directly involved in immigration enforcement. They occurred while they were dealing with protesters and/or alleged obstructionists.

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So, if there had been a barrier of Minneapolis State Police, I mean, think about it, would you have rather had Minneapolis State Police dealing with Ms. Good and Mr. Pretti? Or would you like to have had ICE doing it? And Minneapolis has been absent. Minneapolis police have been absent.

SANDOVAL: So, I certainly see your point there, Steve. I am curious, though, when you consider at least two things, and that is, I think the Senator from Minnesota just briefly touched on it about the sheer number of federal authorities that have descended on Minneapolis recently, sent there by the Trump administration, and because of that, tempers and emotions have really been extremely high among these demonstrators. And so, it almost seems like it would be fairly impossible to try to keep some of these very passionate protesters, most of whom have remained peaceful, but very vocal, and in some cases, even appear to be getting under the skin of these agents. So, I'm curious how that balance is struck, in your view.

MOORE: That balance is going to be a political decision. What I'm talking about is law enforcement in the short term. I'm thinking that if Renee Good had been dealt with and kept away from ICE agents, it's possible she would -- the horrible thing that happened wouldn't have happened. And it doesn't -- it isn't because Minneapolis doesn't have enough officers to do this. It's that they have made a choice not to, because they disagree with what ICE is doing, and in a de facto way, they're allowing the citizens of Minneapolis and Minnesota to express their displeasure with it.

And this is not victim blaming, by the way, some people have alleged, because it isn't the Minneapolis police who are the victims here. It is citizens, the people who Minneapolis police are responsible for protecting, who they could have protected, and that they chose not to. SANDOVAL: Right, and then certainly the onus, I assume, would be also

on federal authorities to try to also coordinate with their local and state counterparts, which is very difficult to achieve, I'm sure.

MOORE: Absolutely. Absolutely.

SANDOVAL: Steve, I'm curious --

MOORE: I don't mean to be --

SANDOVAL: Sure. Please. Please. Go ahead. I'm sorry. Steve, I'm wondering we could just also --

MOORE: I just -- I don't mean to be this one side or the other.

SANDOVAL: Right. No. I completely understand, Steve. No. We really do value your perspective here, especially when it comes to the training and what we saw play out that you saw this from multiple angles, I'm sure, in all these videos. The situation quickly unravels into chaos. Was there any points in these videos where you see that the federal agents did appear to have control of the situation?

MOORE: No. No, I don't think so at all. The way I saw it, and this is -- please understand, this is preliminary, and I'm not testifying before it in a court, but it appears that they had a problem with a woman protestor who was -- I didn't even see what their issue was. They pushed her down. It appears that Mr. Pretti then tried to either pick her up or protect her. They dragged him off of her, and then the video shows what happened next.

When you deal with somebody who you determine to be armed and you didn't know it beforehand, it gives them latitude. It gives officers latitude to protect themselves. But at the same time, you are not relieved of the responsibility of reacting with deadly force only when you see imminent -- threat of imminent death or grave injury. And I wasn't in that scrum, but I didn't see that occur. I'm not saying it didn't. I'm just saying that we don't have evidence so far that convinces me that occurred.

SANDOVAL: Yeah. No. Even Border Patrol officials said today that the investigation is still ongoing, and there is certainly no room for speculation right now, with tension so high on the ground.

Steve Moore, it's so grateful for your analysis and your time, as always. Thank you.

MOORE: Thanks, Polo.

SANDOVAL: So, top Senate Democrats, they are now threatening a partial government shutdown following the fatal shooting in Minneapolis. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer posting this tweet criticizing ICE's actions in Minnesota. He also said Democrats would not provide the votes to push through government appropriations if the Department of Homeland Security's funding bill was included. And this comes as the Senate now faces a Friday deadline to pass the spending measure, which will need at least 60 votes in order to advance. And our other big story that we're closely following, including parts

of Washington as well, a potentially catastrophic winter storm that could affect millions from Texas all the way to New England.

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We'll bring you the latest forecast and the situation on the ground in moments.

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SANDOVAL: Welcome back. We do want to get you back to our breaking news story out of Minneapolis, the family of a man shot and killed by U.S. Border Patrol agents denying the official accounts of the incident. They say that Alex Pretti, seen here in a baseball hat, was clearly holding a phone and not a gun before the incident on Saturday morning, and they say that he was trying to protect a woman that was pushed by ICE agents, while he was being pepper sprayed. The Homeland Security Department says that the agent fired defensive shots after an armed man resisted attempts to take his weapon away from him. So, a top border official later criticized both state and city leaders.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GREGORY BOVINO, BORDER PATROL COMMANDER-AT-LARGE: We will not allow violence against our law enforcement officers, and we need state and local help, state and local law enforcement to help us coordinate to get violent criminals off the streets. Mayor Frey and Chief O'Hara, just a few minutes ago, did the opposite of that by omitting the fact that the suspect had a gun and magazines full of ammunition.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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SANDOVAL: And during a very short Q&A, Bovino did not say if Pretti pulled a gun before he was shot. Minneapolis police say that he had a legal gun permit, and they believe that he was a U.S. citizen.

Well, hands off, NYC staged an emergency rally here in Manhattan, following the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis. Many people holding signs and banners, calling for a general strike, and this in protests of the killing. In a statement, the group said, quote, "No one should be killed for protecting their neighbors."

CNN's Gloria Pazmino was at the march and shares these details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GLORIA PAZMINO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Well, in the hours since the shooting in Minneapolis, there are thousands of demonstrators who have taken to the streets here in New York City to protest ICE and to respond to what's happened in that city. And in comparison to what we are seeing in Minneapolis today, this demonstration, for now, remains peaceful. They are walking on the street demonstrating, talking about asking to get ICE out of the cities. They specifically are saying that ICE should be abolished. Many of the signs here that demonstrators are carrying are calling specifically for that, getting ICE out of U.S. cities.

Now, we've spoken to some people here today who said that they came out in protest to what they are seeing by this administration in response to what some people here say is the administration's targeting of democratically-led cities like Minneapolis. We've spoken to some people who said that the actions of ICE in Minneapolis and in other cities around the country is what made them come out here today.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (on camera): I'm not the next person killed in Minneapolis. It's getting ridiculous. The overreaching of the federal government over immigrants and against human rights and the rights of U.S. citizens is just impossible. We can't put up with it any longer.

PAZMINO (on camera): Now, there are thousands of protesters that have come out to New York City streets in the hours since the shooting in Minneapolis, and many of them protesting ICE's presence across U.S. cities.

Matt, tell me what brought you out here today?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (on camera): I'm here because we need to protect the innocent. We need to protect our citizens. We need to protect our immigrants. I am really concerned that ICE is becoming like a military police with no rules or regulations, no concern for the Constitution. I'm from Minneapolis originally. So, I feel terrible.

PAZMINO (on camera): What's your reaction to what you saw happening in your hometown?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (on camera): Absolutely horrendous, just horrendous. Inexcusable.

PAZMINO (on camera): What do you want to see happen?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (on camera): I want to see those responsible held accountable. I want to see them in court. I want to see U.S. laws being followed, and I want the Constitution.

PAZMINO (on camera): So, that is the sentiment that we are hearing from demonstrators here today, a concern about the lack of accountability, a real desire for more accountability for ICE, for this agency, that's been deployed across so many U.S. cities, but largely a message that they want ICE out of U.S. cities, that they want the federal administration to scale back what they are doing in Minneapolis right now, and to get those agents and that federal law enforcement out of the cities.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Our thanks to Gloria Pazmino. As you see there, she was all bundled up, and here is why. U.S. officials, they're are urging Americans to stay at home, as a massive winter storm sweeps through the country. It's bringing heavy snow and crippling ice, and it's now stretching, really, over 1,300 miles, and this system is slowly moving east. In fact, we're already getting reports of some power outages that are -- that seem to be increasing, as well as some conditions on roads that are pretty much impassable.

Airlines, they have canceled almost 15,000 flights that are scheduled between Saturday and Monday, and that's a number that you can expect to continue to climb, as you can track that on tacking site FlightAware.

Video out of Arkansas shows just how intense the storm is actually getting, with cars sliding off the slick roadways. The State Department of Transportation saying that all roads in Arkansas are showing winter weather impacts.

But look, some people, they are trying to make the best of a really bad situation. Right now, you see video out of Little Rock showing someone either skiing through the snow, while others are also sledding down a hill. I've seen that on a snowy street in New York in the past.

Aaron Reddin, he is the Founder and Executive Director of The Van and The One Inc. organizations dedicated to serving people who are unhoused.

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He joins us live from Little Rock, Arkansas. It is wonderful to see you. Thank you so much for joining us.

AARON REDDIN, FOUNDER & EXEC. DIRECTOR, THE VAN & THE ONE, INC.: Thanks for having me, Polo. I appreciate it.

SANDOVAL: Of course. Aaron, hopefully you're staying warm, as are the people that you're helping. We're seeing these plunging temperatures. How are people without a home? How are they particularly at risk during these weather situations?

REDDIN: It's really rough here in Arkansas, because we're not prepared for this to happen a lot. We don't get a lot of wintry weather, few times a year. And so, we do mobile outreach to our neighbors who are experiencing specifically unsheltered homelessness, sleeping in cars, sleeping rough somewhere in a tent, anything like that. We do outreach year-round.

But our most important part of our work is making sure that people survive homelessness, so that they can one day overcome it, and that means opening up these emergency winter shelters and move into weather shelters.

SANDOVAL: And because these conditions are quite rare in the part of the country that you're in, do you often see people perhaps underestimate the deadly potential of this weather, and sadly, may not actually take up some of these opportunities to seek shelter?

REDDIN: Unfortunately, we do. We've gotten to a point where we're having far more emergency shelters and municipalities that are participating and getting spaces open to get people in, than I've ever seen in the 20 years that I've been doing this type of work here. But there are some people that are resistant, for whatever reason, they may have seen barriers to entry and some shelters, and assume that it applies to all and things like that. And so, we operate absolutely no barrier shelters. We welcome anyone in, and then we usually see a swell of about 20 percent per day as people's blankets get wet, or perhaps their tents collapse from snow or ice accumulation, things like that.

So, yeah, we see a little bit of it all, but we definitely do see more people come in the worse the weather drags on here.

SANDOVAL: Yeah. Aaron, give me some insight into what the last couple of days have been like for you and the other great folks there at the Van. I mean, have you been out there on the streets, for example, trying to offer those services and really try to convince some of those individuals who maybe perhaps just not tempted to take up the opportunity?

REDDIN: Oh, Polo, we beg them. We beg them, please come in. It's dangerous. We try to put out as much warning as possible, and then we've got teams of drivers out in shuttles, getting folks to any shelter that they prefer. And then we had to park our shuttle because of bad tires until we get a tire shop to replace them. So, we've got an army of personal vehicles that are out now getting people in and responding to calls. We run a hotline to get people in. We do whatever it takes to make sure that people --

SANDOVAL: Yeah.

REDDIN: -- have an opportunity to get inside.

SANDOVAL: And does it -- do these kind of weather conditions also impact your ability to be able to offer some of those services?

REDDIN: Not too terribly. We've definitely heavily invested in some heavy vehicles that stick to the road well here, and we've got several great drivers, and we've got people that are just brave and committed. That's -- we operate -- I've got a three-person staff. But with a massive amount of volunteers just in -- here in little old Little Rock, we've got almost two -- I think it was 150 to 260, maybe more people into shelter last night, and then we were shuttling and running people today. And then we've got people out tonight, picking people up as well. So, it's all hands on deck, and it's whatever it takes. I think we're going to be tomorrow night or Sunday night. I think we're looking at maybe getting close to zero here, maybe two degrees, and that's --

SANDOVAL: Yeah.

REDDIN: -- going to be a definite record breaker for us. We just don't see temperatures like that frequently. So, it's definitely deadly. A year ago, last January, we had one winter storm, and just in the folks that we serve, we saw seven amputations. And so, we just want to do anything that we can to mitigate that. We want to cut down on first responders having to get out there and try to find people and things like that, and just make sure that the community is safe and everyone has a way to get in. SANDOVAL: No. That's such an important point too, is by getting out

there, potentially eliminating the need to tie up a first responder and assisting somebody, which is why you all are out there. Look, I've been covering these storms in the past and seeing the

deadly potential there, and seeking shelter usually means the difference between making it through the night or not.

So, Aaron Reddin, thank you and that amazing team of three. You're doing some great work. Appreciate your time.

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REDDIN: Thank you so much for having me on.

SANDOVAL: It's our pleasure.

We do have a lot more breaking news to get to at this hour, growing unrest in Minnesota following another deadly shooting involving federal agents and protesters. Stay with us. You're watching CNN.

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SANDOVAL: We want to get you back to our breaking story out of Minneapolis. The family of a man who was shot and killed by Border Patrol agents on Saturday is denying the official account of the incident. They insisted Alex Pretti, seen here in a baseball hat, was clearly holding a phone and not a gun before the incident, and they say that he was trying to protect a woman that was pushed by ICE agents on the ground, while he was being pepper sprayed. The Homeland Security officials saying that the agent fired defensive shots after the armed man resisted attempts to take his weapon away from him.

I want to get more expert analysis now and head over to Chris Clem. He is a retired Chief Patrol Agent for U.S. Border Patrol. Chris, it's great to see you again. Thank you so much for joining us.

CHRIS CLEM, RETIRED CHIEF PATROL AGENT, U.S. BORDER PATROL: Yes. Good morning to you. Thank you.

SANDOVAL: So, you've had an opportunity to view, I'm sure, multiple angles of the incident. Again, just to remind viewers, these are all angles that were captured by bystanders on their cell phone. What fundamental questions are you left with after seeing all of the footage?

CLEM: You bring up a great point, right? We've seen a lot of angles from bystanders, and there is a lot of footage out there. I've seen several takes from when they first engaged, or when Alex first engaged with agents. There is some active pushing back and forth, some resistance him out the streets. But I'm really focused on the actual encounter when he was, I would just say, actively resisting and almost being assaulted when the agents were on him, right?

[01:35:00]

He was fighting them. That's the part that's key to me, because that's where everything happens in such a flash point. And there is video of a gun being removed. Is that his gun? Is it another agent's gun? So, there is some points there that are going to be very, very important and that investigation is going to play out. I used to always say, you don't ever get an award for getting the wrong information out the fastest, and unfortunately, that's the way this world has played out with the advent of social media and everybody having a camera phone. So, we've really got to take a deep breath. There is people mourning right now, and there is people relieved that there wasn't their loved one that was injured or killed. So, we've got a long ways to go.

But again, it's something that I've got to see. I got to see where that gun -- who that gun belonged to, and what happened there, and hopefully we get the results sooner rather than later.

SANDOVAL: When it comes to the training too, is there -- typically, Chris, whenever these agents, obviously, go through their training, are they trained to when they're encountering an individual who is armed, if they manage to disarm that individual without any further incident before they take them into custody, do they usually work under the assumption that that person could still pose a threat until they pat them down?

CLEM: Absolutely, and that training starts pretty much day one of any basic law enforcement academy. Now, I can speak about the Border Patrol Academy 30 years ago that I attended, but we had every quarter, my entire career, 27 plus years, we were doing use of force and firearms training.

Yes, the idea is to control the threat. You obviously -- we don't want to have to use deadly force. But to your point, if we've got somebody that's armed, the goal is to just arm them, control them, get them in handcuffs, and then they're not clear until we pat them down. It's also rule of thumb, when you pass that subject up who is detained to another officer, you pat them down again because you want to make sure that they're no longer a threat. And that was the key, and that's always been the key when you were dealing with somebody that has a deadly weapon or any weapon, whether it's a sharp stick, a knife or a firearm.

SANDOVAL: And Chris, you also highlight another really good point here, which is the importance of taking a breath, is to letting an investigation take its course. Border Patrol Commander Greg Bovino could not say if Alex actually brandished the weapon and that the investigation was still ongoing. But by the time that he said that, his boss, Secretary Chris Noem, had already -- Kristi Noem, I should say, had already said that it looked like he arrived at the scene looking to inflict maximum damage. And her agency, DHS, had previously posted on social media that he was trying to, quote, "massacre law enforcement".

So, is it too soon to come to that conclusion?

CLEM: In my opinion, I say, yes. But we are operating under a different time now, where, again, back to social media, which is, it can be a great thing, but you also have, I would say, opponents of this administration that are putting out information and omitting information. So, I think that both Commander Bovino and the Secretary felt like they needed to get something out there. And I would tell you, again, in my opinion, in this situation, the Secretary should have the most accurate information at the time. Again, she probably doesn't have everything yet, because it's still unfolding and it's an investigation.

But again, there is a lot of back and forth that's going on between the State of Minnesota and this administration. So, I think it's -- they're trying to get out there and get the facts as they know them as quickly as possible. I wish both sides would say, tragic situation. Our officers are saved. We're dealing with the loss of a U.S. citizen and the investigation is playing out. We'll have further information as the facts come out.

But unfortunately, in today's day and age, we don't see that as often as we should.

SANDOVAL: Yeah. The importance of hearing from officials, information and not speculation.

Chris Clem, thank you so much for your perspectives, as always. Appreciate your time.

CLEM: Have a great morning. Thank you.

SANDOVAL: You too.

Well, thousands of flights, they have been canceled already ahead of this massive winter storm that's sweeping across the U.S. Just ahead, we'll break down which areas will be hit with some of this freezing ice and snow, and just how difficult the rest of this weekend could be for some.

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SANDOVAL: Hoping that you're bundling up right now, a crippling winter storm is moving across the U.S., and it could dump more than a foot of snow in some areas. Forecasters are warning the dangerous ice will continue to accumulate, bringing down trees and power lines. The snow and ice, they are pushing east, stretching 1,300 miles right now.

CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam is on the ground in Kentucky with your latest forecast.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST (on camera): I'm in Louisville, Kentucky, where a multifaceted block buster of a winter storm is unfolding before our very eyes. The snow starting to accumulate on the roadways here and expected to pick up an intensity. We could get easily over a foot of snow, which will rival some of the largest snowfalls in this city's history. This is a multifaceted winter storm, meaning that we've got snow on

the cold side, the northern periphery of this storm that stretches nearly 2,000 miles from South Texas all the way to New England, but we have the potential for a crippling, if not debilitating, ice storm that will evolve across the Southern Plains and into the Tennessee River Valley, into the southeastern portions of the U.S., particularly across the Appalachians and into the southern Piedmont.

These areas could pick up easily over a half to a three quarters an inch of ice, which becomes extremely dangerous, and not to mention the brutal Arctic air that will settle in behind this cold front. Once it finally passes, it has the potential to bring down tree limbs and power lines and allowing for that frozen precipitation to stay frozen, only exacerbating and elongating these -- the impacts from this massive winter storm.

All right. The scene is set here, and we are preparing for several inches of snow in Louisville, but elsewhere, especially across central portions of Kentucky, a state of emergency with winter storm warnings. Over 80 warming shelters that have been opened up ahead of the storm are all in place, as residents here brace for the worst.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Our thanks to Derek.

Let's go out to the field again here. Let's go live to Storm Chaser Aaron Rigsby. He is joining me from Florence, Kentucky. Aaron, you look like you're staying warm out there. I'm wondering if you could just bring us and our viewers around the world up to speed on the conditions that you're seeing there in Kentucky, as pretty much a majority of the Commonwealth there is under some sort of a winter weather watch.

AARON RIGSBY, STORM CHASER: Yeah. Good morning. So, this is actually the entrance way to I-75 and I-71, and I'll tell you, I actually started the morning in Mississippi and made my way up here for those potential historic snow numbers, and it is a seven-hour drive. It took me 12 hours to get up here to tell you the kind of conditions that we've been dealing with over such a widespread area.

[01:45:00]

I've come across multiple accidents, and some of those being fairly serious, where cars and trucks collided with the middle barriers, the walls, and in other cases, overturned STEMI (ph), and that's why we express so much with this particular storm that it's essential, if you have to travel to carry those extra items with you, like food, water and warm here, in case you find yourself in an accident or backed up traffic with these frigid, cold temperatures coming in behind them.

SANDOVAL: You're in Kentucky. You mentioned being in Mississippi. These are some of the states that aren't used to experiencing severe winter weather like this, at least on a regular basis. Do you get a sense there that local officials are able to keep up with the demand to keep those roads in shape?

RIGSBY: For the short term, yes. However, when this storm really starts to ramp up, because today was just round one. That wasn't even the worst that is yet to come with this particular system. When we start seeing the snow fall rates increase to one, potentially two inches an hour, and the ice start to accumulate in the south, there is really no amount of manpower that can really keep up with that. They have to clear those roadways as quick as they can, and then the snow just falls right back on to it, which is why we really are yielding with this particular system, to stay off of those roadways, to let those hard workers at the DoT to clear those roadways, because any accident and any traffic backups, that can hinder those processes, to get those highways clear and get those essential crews and really keep up with this snow storm.

And it's going to be interesting with this particular system, because the numbers that we're talking up here in the Midwest, where they're no stranger to snow, could exceed the snowfall totals from the blizzard back in 1978. Now, it's not to say we're going to see those conditions, because the winds aren't going to be nearly as strong with this, but it tells you how long that this area has been since they've seen double-digit snowfall totals in this particular area over such a widespread location.

SANDOVAL: That's -- yeah. That's some great historic context. Just finally, your message, I have a few seconds left with you, your message to some folks who come morning may be inclined to head out there if they don't necessarily have to hit the road.

RIGSBY: If you absolutely have to hit the road today, make sure you bring those essential items, bring extra gas; bring extra water, bring extra food, and those warm clothes, just in case you find yourself in a bad situation. But long-term advice, if you can, just stay home today. Stay inside. Stay warm. Stay with your loved ones, and let the storm pass and let these crews work and get you on your way as quickly as they can, especially before the workweek begins, and we're going to see an increase in that traffic come Monday.

SANDOVAL: Storm Chaser Aaron Rigsby with that live report from Kentucky. Aaron, thank you so much for being our eyes out there. Do stay warm and be safe.

All right. Let's bring in Justin Lonon now. He is the Chancellor of Dallas College, and joins us from Dallas, Texas. It is wonderful to be speaking to a fellow Texan. We're not used to this kind of weather. So, I'm curious just what conditions you're seeing where you are, and also some of the measures that Dallas College took to ensure the safety of everyone.

JUSTIN LONON, CHANCELLOR, DALLAS COLLEGE: Well, first of all, great to be with you. And you're right. This is not normal for us here in Texas. So, we're not used to this. The good news is the community comes together when we need to. And so, it is certainly icy out there right now. We just had some freezing rain and sleet blow through a little while again, a little while ago again. But Dallas College, every single day, we focus on being in the

barrier-busting business to support our 130,000 students and to support our community. And so, certainly leading up to this. We did all the things we would do to ensure safety of our students. So, our operations are remote. Our instructions are remote through Monday at this point, and our facilities team is making sure our facilities are OK. But one of the big things that we do is we have 14 food pantries that we operate year-round to serve our students and serve our community. And so, as this was nearing, we really geared up with our partners to prepare for it, because we know it's a critical time for so many people.

SANDOVAL: Were there any lessons that were learned going back to 2021, and that awful winter storm that left so many people without power, not just there, where you are, but also surrounding regions, some lessons that were perhaps learned back then that were put to use this time around?

LONON: Yeah. I think so. I mean, I think we were surprised in 2021 with some of the lasting power outages. I know, at my home and so many others, where we had issues with busted pipes and people that have power out for a long time.

[01:50:00]

And so, I think we individually prepared in different ways to ensure that we could weather some of that, if need be, and then community- wide and collectively to ensure that we could support those that may need additional services from us. And -- but, yeah, that was an interesting time that none of us want to go through again.

SANDOVAL: Yeah. It was absolutely awful. Like, the timing is fairly convenient, though. At least it's on a Sunday. So, that hopefully will limit the traffic. What is your message, though, to students and parents, in the final seconds I have with you here, about what the coming days may have in store come Monday or Tuesday?

LONON: Well, first of all, everybody, hunker down and stay safe, and know at Dallas College, we're going to continue to serve our students in the virtual environment we can. Again, we see ourselves as the bridge to economic mobility and prosperity for those seeking to get into the educational pipeline, and then for our business and employers seeking to build their workforce pipeline, we're right at that intersection.

So, we're going to continue to do that. We're just not going to do it on campus face to face, and we look forward to seeing our students here in a few days when everything falls out.

SANDOVAL: Chancellor Justin Lonon from Dallas College, really appreciate your time. Have a great weekend. Stay warm.

LONON: Thanks so much.

SANDOVAL: Also to come here on CNN Newsroom, Trump administration officials, they say that the Minnesota nurse who was killed by federal agents was trying to attack them. But what does the video show? We'll look at it after the break.

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[01:55:00]

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SANDOVAL: Back now to our breaking news out of Minneapolis. Tensions are escalating after a man was shot and killed by federal agents. Alex Pretti, he was an intensive care nurse who worked at the Veterans Affairs hospital. A warning that the video we're about to show you is graphic and disturbing, but important to get a better idea of what happened on Saturday.

The Department of Homeland Security says that the agents fired in self-defense, saying that Pretti approached Border Patrol officers with a nine millimeter semi-automatic handgun, but videos, including this one here, suggests otherwise. It shows Pretti in a baseball hat, moving between an agent and a woman that federal officers had shoved to the ground. Pretti is sprayed with a chemical irritant and then dragged to his knees. Officers later opened fire. We heard at least 10 shots while he is on the ground.

Well, the other major story that we're closely following at this hour, a massive winter storm, it is sweeping through the United States, bringing heavy snow and crippling ice that's now stretching some 1,300 miles. You see the massive swath that it's covering. By the time Washington, D.C. wakes up tomorrow, the snow will be picking up, and the first flakes are expected to start falling here in New York City, shortly after sunrise. Thousands of people in the south, including in Texas, they have already lost power, as freezing temperatures set in across the state. Important to stay warm and most importantly, stay safe.

Really appreciate you watching the last hour of CNN Newsroom. I'm Polo Sandoval in New York. Our coverage of the shooting death in Minneapolis and a massive winter storm continues after a short break.

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