Return to Transcripts main page

The Story Is with Elex Michaelson

ICE Agent Shoots And Kills Woman In Minneapolis; U.S. Seizes Russian-Flagged Oil Tanker Linked To Venezuela; Trump Administration Reveals Strategy for Venezuela; Rescues Underway After Flooding in Kosovo; U.S. Citizen Killed by ICE in Minneapolis; Ron DeSantis Calls for Special Session to Redraw State's Congressional Districts; Nick Reiner's Arraignment Delayed Until February; Altadena Holds Vigil to Mark One Year Since Eaton Fire; Spencer Pratt Announces Mayoral Run on Fire Anniversary. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired January 08, 2026 - 02:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:01:48]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

ELEX MICHAELSON, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Elex Michaelson live in Los Angeles.

Because of the breaking news, we are staying on late for an extra hour of THE STORY IS. That breaking news is in Minneapolis, where police are in an elevated state of readiness right now with additional resources on standby after the fatal shooting of a U.S. citizen by an immigration agent. Crowds have gathered for a huge vigil near that scene.

Before we show you what happened, a warning, the video is graphic and disturbing. It's viewed in different ways by different people. It shows two officials approaching a maroon SUV as the -- that's not what we're looking at right here. Let's show you this scene from a few different angles, and what we're talking about here, as the woman tries to drive away, an officer in front of the vehicle opens fire three times. Here's the scene from a different angle. Watch this.

So, the driver, 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good was pronounced dead a short time later at a hospital. Trump administration officials say the woman intentionally tried to run over ICE agents. Here's what the mayor of Minneapolis had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACOB FREY, MINNEAPOLIS MAYOR: The narrative that ICE is spinning immediately after this was that this was purely self-defense, and that the act by the victim was some sort of domestic terrorism. That, and I'll say it again, is bullshit. That is bullshit. The way they've been conducting themselves is also bullshit.

They are coming in here. They are claiming it's about safety, and it isn't. They are claiming it's about enforcing the law and it's not. What they are doing is terrorizing communities. They are ripping families apart, and they are creating danger, as we saw, where they claim to be creating safety. That's not OK in Minneapolis, that's not OK in any city in the entire country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Now, Governor Tim Walz is calling for immigration agents to leave Minnesota, but he says he's taking steps to keep residents safe.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. TIM WALZ (D-MN): I have a very simple message, we do not need any further help from the federal government. To Donald Trump and Kristi Noem, you have done enough. There is nothing more important than Minnesotan's safety. I have issued a warning order to prepare the Minnesota National Guard. We have soldiers in training and prepared to be deployed if necessary.

I remind you, a warning order is a heads up for folks and these National Guard troops are our National Guard troops. They're teachers in your community, they're business owners, they're construction professionals. They are Minnesotans. Minnesota will not allow our community to be used as a prop in a national political fight. We will not take the bait.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem is defending ICE and says the agents who opened fire, that agent feared for his life, she accused the victim of committing an act of domestic terrorism. Noem says the immigration officer lawfully used deadly force after the driver turned her car into a weapon.

[02:05:11]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTI NOEM, U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: It's very clear that this individual was harassing and impeding law enforcement operations. Our officer followed his training, did exactly what he's been taught to do in that situation, and took actions to defend himself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: President Trump echoed that explanation, he said in a Truth Social post, "The woman driving the car was very disorderly, obstructing and resisting." He says that the ICE agent was acting in self-defense.

Minneapolis Police Chief says there's no indication that Good was the target of any law enforcement operation. Adding this:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHIEF BRIAN O'HARA, MINNEAPOLIS POLICE DEPARTMENT: I was very specific about asking if anyone else was injured, and at the time, I was told that it was -- it was only the woman. So, I don't know anything further.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: So, a man who lives in the area shot this video right after the incident. He says agents moved Good's body out of the vehicle, then carried her to the end of the block until an ambulance arrived. Other videos show angry residents confronting law enforcement.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I go check the pulse.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, back up. Now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm a physician.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't care.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Listen, I understand, we got EMS coming and I get it. Just give us a second. We have medics on team. We have our own medics.

EMILY HELLER, WITNESS: Where are they? Where are they? How can I relax? You just killed my (EXPLETIVES DELETED) neighbor. We caught her in the (EXPLETIVES DELETED) face. You killed my (EXPLETIVES DELETED) neighbor. How do you show up to work every day? How the (EXPLETIVES DELETED) do you do this every day? You're killing my neighbors. You're stealing my neighbors. What the (EXPLETIVES DELETED) man.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: So, the woman who shot that video later spoke with CNN Erin Burnett.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HELLER: There was an ICE convoy that was -- that seemed to be stuck, and then there was a protester who was blocking traffic so they couldn't progress. And she was totally peaceful and ICE seemed completely unorganized. They didn't really know what they were doing. They were screaming at her to move, move, move. And then they approached her vehicle aggressively, grabbed, tried to open her door. And then that's when she got spooked, and she reversed her vehicle to turn her wheels to try to escape. And that's when an ICE agent stepped in front of her vehicle and said, stop.

And then, I mean, she was already moving, and then, point blank, shot her through her windshield in the face.

I don't want to be here, but I knew that this would be twisted and it would be self-defense, and that's absolutely not what happened. But it's just -- my life is forever changed from having witnessed this and I just can't let this narrative that it was self-defense go any further, because it's absolutely not what it was. And yes, my neighborhood, my neighbors, we're all going to be pretty traumatized for the -- from this for a long time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: CNN's Omar Jimenez is talking to neighbors on the ground.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A lot of pain and anger in this community, not too far removed from this ICE shooting, this is the vigil that's been growing over the course of Wednesday and beyond here in Minneapolis to remember Renee Good, 37 years old, shot and killed in this incident here, where you see the flowers, see the candles, you see the signs as well.

Now, this is the neighborhood and community where everything really unfolded. There are multiple videos really of what happened. One of the first videos that started to circulate was from the ground level, where you see her SUV backing up. You see sort of the ICE officers surrounding the vehicle. One tries to pull on the driver's side door, and then when those wheels start turning to the right, there's an officer that appears to be in front of that vehicle, that is when the shooting starts, and that officer moves to the side of the vehicle, and the shooting then continues.

There's another video as well that comes from a much higher angle that shows that there was actually contact made with the officer as that vehicle was sort of turning to the right and as those gun shots began.

But there were gunshots that we know then killed Renee Good as that car then careened into what became its final resting place here at this vigil.

Now, as you can imagine, a lot of pain in the community, as I've talked about, has emanated from this event in particular, and a lot of questions over what comes next. The Department of Homeland Security was very quickly to come out and claim that this was domestic terrorism that the officer feared for their life.

[02:10:03]

Well, the mayor of Minneapolis and the governor here in Minnesota pushed back on that significantly, saying that was not the case and that they plan to move forward and do everything in their power to make sure that this is investigated properly, but bottom line is moving forward. There are many in this community who did not want ICE here to begin with. There are now even more angered that an incident like this ended the way that it did.

Omar Jimenez, CNN, Minneapolis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAELSON: Our thanks to Omar, and we have some brand new video just into CNN, first time we've shown this that shows what happened just before and during the shooting. You can see the maroon SUV in the upper right of the screen, positioned sideways across the street for about three minutes. Other cars are clearly able to drive around it. One SUV pulls up behind the vehicle. Another enters the frame from the right. That's when the agents approach the maroon SUV and then opened fire.

So, it is remarkable how many different angles there are of this that will all be looked at as part of an investigation, potential prosecution. Though we do not know of any potential criminal charges being filed, but certainly we know so many different interest groups. We want to know more about what happened here.

Joining me here now live in Los Angeles, is Karen Tumlin. She's the founder and director of the Justice Action Center, which is focused, you say, on Immigrant Justice through litigation and storytelling. Thanks so much for coming in.

KAREN TUMLIN, FOUNDER AND DIRECTOR, JUSTICE ACTION CENTER: My pleasure. Thanks for having me.

MICHAELSON: When you see all of that, what goes through your mind? What's your first reaction?

TUMLIN: I mean, my first reaction is, really, as a mom, it's not as a lawyer, it's not as an immigration advocate, it's realizing that a fellow mom was going about her day and her son doesn't have her to come home to.

And so, what I really want to know is, what are we going to do to make sure that doesn't happen to another child?

MICHAELSON: So, the Trump administration would say she wasn't just going about her day, that she sought these people out, that she was harassing them, that they tried to arrest her. She drove away after being given an obey by law enforcement, and then she hit one of the officers.

TUMLIN: Yes, but you and I are sitting here watching this story unfold, and you just showed a video clip that we haven't seen before, right? So, what happened is someone died who was unarmed. Some of the videos that we see of her being shot while she's trying to flee at point blank range are terrifying and scary.

And what needs to happen is a thorough, complete, unbiased investigation, not name calling, not blaming, not calling one another domestic terrorists or these kind of things. But we got to be asking ourselves, how have we gotten to the point where people are terrified of ICE agents?

And the answer is simple, this isn't the first time something like this has happened. We live in Los Angeles, and we witnessed what happened in this city when National Guard was deployed here and when ICE raids were present.

And now we have seen in the months since then, parents being pulled out of their vehicles by armed ICE agents just trying to drop their kids off at school. Folks are terrified, and we need to dial this back. It's not keeping us safe or making anything better.

MICHAELSON: Well, and the mayor of Los Angeles to that point posted on X late tonight some pretty dramatic language, saying, the senseless killing of an innocent and unarmed wife and mother by ICE agents today in Minneapolis is shocking and tragic because it never occurred. It happened because of the brutal and racist policies the Trump administration that Unleashed these agents in Minneapolis go after a specific population, Somalians.

Obviously, this woman is White, not a Somalian. But what do you -- how should immigration enforcement be done, and should there be a way to enforce somebody being in this country illegally?

TUMLIN: I really appreciate that question, because I think we've gotten so far away from that question and that we're in this land of name calling and, in fact, racism and a lack of safety.

And so, what we need to be asking ourselves are, are we safer when we have armed agents hunting people down and running and chasing people near home depot parking lots? I don't feel safer. Does that make for a better city? Are we better off when we have today? Parents were afraid to go to school events because they were worried they might run into immigration enforcement.

I don't think that's furthering our goals in this country. That's indiscriminate. It's based largely on racial profiling, and it says one group of people belongs and another group doesn't belong. I don't think that improves our communities. It doesn't get at issues that I think all of us care about, and I think that's a lot of what's underneath what the mayor is saying.

MICHAELSON: But what is the consequence for being in this country illegally? And how do you track those people down?

[02:15:05]

TUMLIN: So, it isn't quite that simple, right? We have folks, if you are here in this country, for example, and you've been here undocumented for 20 years, but you have two teenage kids who are U.S. citizens. Do we want to be a country that says that's it, that's enough. There's your only -- the only thing you've done wrong with the law is you came here without papers because there probably was no way for you to come here with papers.

And so, those are the questions we have to address. That's -- it's a totally different thing. No one has said that this woman, this mother, who was killed today, was a suspect of anything.

MICHAELSON: Yes, and she was here legally. U.S. citizen too.

Karen Tumlin, thank you so much for coming on and sharing your views. We appreciate it.

TUMLIN: Thank you so much.

MICHAELSON: Coming up, Renee Good's parents have been speaking to the media about their daughter. Last hour, we brought you thoughts from the mother. Now the Washington Post is sharing how her father remembers his daughter. He says, in part, she had a good life, but a hard life. She was a wonderful person. She was caught in a bad situation today, but we don't know the facts. Two people, so we'll continue to follow that story.

Want to get to some other story, which is breaking tonight, we're reporting now for the first time. Two people were killed in a shooting outside a church in Salt Lake City. It happened in the parking lot during a funeral of all things, six people were also injured in that shooting. All the victims were adults. One witness said she heard several gunshots.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I heard before that, I think it was around, like, four or five, and then we turned on our camera, and then I heard maybe three more. And then we were like, hey, that's gunshots. That's not the fireworks. And then opening the door, hearing the screaming and crying and the wailing, confirmed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Police say that shooting did not appear to be targeted against a religion or anything similar. Essentially, a random attack. This happened right near a Mormon event. They are still searching for the suspects.

The White House is sharing its plan for Venezuela's oil as the U.S. military captures another two oil tankers, including one of them from Russia, we'll have details on that on this very busy news night, and this extra bonus hour of THE STORY IS.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:21:40]

MICHAELSON: An update now on the growing death toll in Venezuela. The interior minister now says at least 100 people were killed during the U.S. raid last weekend, when then President Nicolas Maduro was captured. We're told a similar number were injured. All this comes as the Trump administration is outlining its plans for Venezuela's oil.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Step one is the stabilization of the country. We don't want it descending into chaos. Part of that stabilization, and the reason why we understand and believe that we have the strongest leverage possible is our quarantine.

As you've seen today, two more ships were seized. We are in the midst right now, and in fact, about to execute on a deal to take all the oil they have oil that is stuck in Venezuela. They can't move it because of our quarantine and because it's sanctioned, we are going to take between 30 and 50 million barrels of oil. We're going to sell it in the marketplace, at market rates, not at the discounts Venezuela was getting. That money will then be handled in such a way that we will control how it is dispersed in a way that benefits the Venezuelan people, not corruption, not the regime. So, we have a lot of leverage to move on the stabilization front.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Those two ships mentioned by Secretary of State Marco Rubio were oil tankers. The U.S. had been following one of them for weeks before seizing it south of Iceland. This is a significant here. First time we've heard this, Russia claimed that tanker was under its protection, even sending a submarine and other naval assets to defend it, according to an official.

CNN's Melissa Bell picks up the story from there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The United States has begun much more forcefully, enforcing the embargo it's placed on Venezuelan oil, taking two tankers that have been carrying the oil, one captured in the Caribbean and now said to be on its way to the United States under U.S. Coast Guard escort.

The first that was captured this Wednesday, the Bella 1, as it was known before. The United States Coast Guard, we understand, had tried to seize as it left Venezuela, failed to do so and then tracked. It was captured 190 miles south of the Icelandic Coast.

In the meantime, the crew, over the course of their journey had painted a Russian flag on the hull. Moscow has since placed the tanker in its registry of ships, placing it under a Russian flag and renaming it.

The United States says, through the shape of Karoline Leavitt in a press conference that it will continue to seize such tankers, even if it causes diplomatic rows, and in the hope, she says that Donald Trump will maintain his solid relationship with Vladimir Putin.

Still, that diplomatic row brewing as a result of the fact that that tanker was under a Russian flag, Moscow has insisted that the crew must be returned to Russia. Karoline Leavitt explaining that the crew will head to the United States to face American justice.

These seizures of tankers come even as Washington seems to be considering and trying to put pressure on Venezuela that it cut its ties with countries like Iran, Cuba, China and Russia, in order that the United States become the sole client of its oil.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAELSON: More heavy rain and snow are forecast after intense downpours flooded communities and caused power outages across Kosovo. Take a look at this drone footage of submerged vehicles and homes. Contaminated drinking water in many areas have forced authorities to cut the water supply. Dramatic pictures here. Emergency teams are helping to rescue those homes who have been flooded.

[02:25:05]

Officials are warning that the situation could get worse, and have ordered all schools to remain closed until next Monday.

Pope Leo XIV is holding his first large scale meeting with Cardinals since he took the helm of the Catholic Church, began a two day get together with the so-called princes of the church in the Vatican. On Wednesday, Pope Leo wants a more participatory church. He and the Cardinals will discuss the need for church leaders to collaborate more.

A head, more on our breaking news coverage of the shooting in Minneapolis, including the outrage on the streets, strong reaction from local officials, our Whitney Wild reports next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:30:00]

MICHAELSON: Welcome back to "The Story Is." I'm Elex Michaelson. Let's take a look at today's top stories. Trump administration officials have begun revealing their strategies for Venezuela's oil. Complex plan centers on selling millions of barrels of oil at market value and convincing American oil companies to make major investments in rebuilding Venezuela's energy infrastructure.

Intense rain is causing severe flooding and power outages in Kosovo. Authorities have cut the water supply in many areas after drinking water was contaminated by floodwaters. Emergency services are rescuing people from their flooded homes. Schools remain closed until at least Monday. More rain and snow is forecast for the coming days.

And a growing vigil in Minneapolis for a U.S. citizen shot and killed by an ICE agent. Trump administration officials say the woman tried to run over that agent with her vehicle, the agent acted in self-defense. State and local officials are disputing claims that shooting was done in self-defense.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CROWD: ICE, out now! ICE, out now! ICE, out now!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Crowd there in Minneapolis chanting, "ICE, out now!" amid protests over that shooting. Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz has issued a warning to prepare the Minnesota National Guard for a potential deployment. So far, that has not been necessary. CNN's Whitney Wild has been reporting from Minneapolis. First, a warning that her report contains strong language and some disturbing video.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAYOR JACOB FREY, (D) MINNEAPOLIS: Get the fuck out of Minneapolis. WHITNEY WILD, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The mayor's strong message to ICE as protests are growing along with outrage, following the death of a 37-year-old U.S. citizen named by officials as Renee Nicole Good, who was shot in the head by an ICE officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota Wednesday.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: [Expletive] Oh my God!

WILD (voice-over): Several shots are heard as she appears to drive away from the middle of the street at the site of an immigration enforcement operation.

TREVOR HEITCAMP, EYEWITNESS TO SHOOTING: I was standing parallel to the car on the sidewalk, maybe 10 to 15 feet away and it was moving slowly, and I believe they overreacted in a way that cost somebody their life.

WILD (VOICE-OVER): Minnesota's governor saying he feared recent ICE operations would lead to tragedy.

GOV. TIM WALZ, (D) MINNESOTA: So preventable, so unnecessary, but you have no decency.

WILD (VOICE-OVER): The Department of Homeland Security says she had tried to use her vehicle as a weapon against officers.

FREY: That is bullshit. This was an agent recklessly using power that resulted in somebody dying.

WILD (VOICE-OVER): The mayor lashing out at ICE and saying federal units were removed from the scene to create calm after protesters were shoved, sprayed, and forcibly knocked to the ground by members of a Border Patrol tactical unit.

FREY: What they are doing is causing chaos and distrust. Your stated reason for being in this city is to create some kind of safety and you are doing exactly the opposite.

CHIEF BRIAN O'HARA, MINNEAPOLIS POLICE DEPARTMENT: The preliminary information that we have indicates that this woman was in her vehicle and was blocking the roadway. A federal law enforcement officer approached her on foot and the vehicle began to drive off. At least two shots were fired.

WILD (VOICE-OVER): The mayor and police chief's description of the events that led up to the shooting are in stark contrast to the accounts from DHS and Secretary Kristi Noem.

KRISTI NOEM, SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY: She had been stalking and impeding their work all throughout the day. ICE agents repeatedly ordered her to get out of the car and to stop obstructing law enforcement, but she refused to obey their commands. She then proceeded to weaponize her vehicle and she attempted to run a law enforcement officer over.

WILD (VOICE-OVER): The deadly conflict comes one day after around 2,000 federal agents, including DHS Secretary Noem, descended on the Minneapolis area Tuesday in an immigration crackdown in the city. Noem blamed protesters for the violence.

NOEM: These vehicle rammings are domestic acts of terrorism.

WILD (VOICE-OVER): The scene of the shooting now filled with protesters is just four blocks from where George Floyd was killed in 2020. Very little is known about the victim.

O'HARA: She appears to be a middle-aged white woman. There is nothing to indicate that this woman was the target of any law enforcement investigation.

WILD (VOICE-OVER): Local law enforcement is now calling for full transparency and the governor has put the Minnesota National Guard on alert.

WILD: Elex, let me show you the most striking scene that we've seen all day here. This is where that woman lost her life. Earlier today, it started with just a few flowers and they were placed on top of where her blood was still visible in the snow. And you see it is now grown with dozens of candles, dozens of bouquets of flowers, and at least a hundred people or more paying their respects to a woman they very likely did not even know, Elex.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:35:00]

MICHAELSON: For more now, we are joined by CNN National Security Analyst, Juliette Kayyem. Juliette, thank you so much for being with us. Talk to us about what kind of relationship Minneapolis PD has with ICE and how that impacts all of this.

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: So, it very much impacts -- it may have impacted what happened today and it's very much impacting tonight. What we've seen in the past, we certainly saw it in L.A., in Chicago, and D.C. actually, is police chiefs in these local jurisdictions basically saying publicly, we have no idea what this federal footprint is, whether it was an ICE deployment or a National Guard deployment.

That's not safe public safety planning. That's not effective public safety planning and you also worry about lack of organization, lack of crowd control, lack of an understanding of a neighborhood. What you saw after the shooting of Good was you really saw the state step in with the National Guard, the state police, the city, the city police chief, and basically take over the crowd control issues that were seen tonight, which is exactly right.

And what's happened with these ICE deployments is, they pitted law enforcement against a community, and you can you know fill in the blank what community. Could be an immigrant community, it could be a liberal community, it could be a community that's grieving after a killing like this. And that is why I think you really did see the governor and the state apparatus say, we're going to forward position National Guard. We are your neighbors. We are not the outsiders in terms of law enforcement.

MICHAELSON: And of course, the Trump administration's argument to that would be, we wish that they would work with us in some of these communities --

KAYYEM: Yeah.

MICHAELSON: -- that are so-called sanctuary cities. If they would talk with us, we'd communicate with them, but they're not. We have a responsibility to pursue law enforcement. If they're not going to work with us, we're going to go forward with them or without them. That's been the Trump administration perspective.

KAYYEM: Yeah. And I'll respond to it that. We've had immigration enforcement since ICE was created in a different form in a different mechanism for decades. There's no theory of the deployment of federal law enforcement assets that would put them at war, in other words, no disclosure of what the action is because that's what is happening with these ICE deployments. No disclosure of who the targets are, no prepositioning of crowd control, or law enforcement.

So, I hear -- when I hear the department say that, say "Well, we want their help." They're actually not asking for it. This deployment as we know, from yesterday, Noem showed up, announced that they were deploying 3,000 personnel, ICE personnel. No pre-planning with local law enforcement, community leaders, people in criminal law enforcement who might be able to find or help assist in these kinds of arrests.

So, it would make someone like me suspicious of the purpose of these deployments and I think the 3,000 people coming in overnight, which resulted in this tragedy, is sort of proof that it may not be public safety that is animating this. And I think that's a -- I think it's a fair criticism of the White House.

MICHAELSON: So, when Republicans passed what they call the Big Beautiful Bill --

KAYYEM: Yeah.

MICHAELSON: -- one of the big aspects of that was a massive expansion of ICE. And they have now hired 12,000 new ICE agents this year, growing the agency from 10,000 to 22,000 in a year. And some wonder about what kind of training can you do for everybody? You got a whole lot of people that don't have a lot of experience, haven't been through these things. How does that potentially impact what we're going to see? Maybe not specifically this particular incident, but for larger community relations with ICE, you know, in that context.

KAYYEM: I Think it's a great question and we don't know the name or where the specific ICE agent -- where he was. So let me just explain to the audience the pools of what is an ICE agent when we say that because this is a very, very important point. All people in Immigration and Customs Enforcement are guided by rules of engagement and rules of force.

[02:40:00] Most -- none of them -- let's put it this way. Simply because you feel under threat, does not necessarily lead to a death sentence of the person who's threatening you. Law enforcement is trained to de- escalate. So the three pools of people that were look -- of ICE agents, and we don't know where we are -- who the person is, is a legacy ICE agent someone who got trained for months, six to seven months in the past, has been in ICE. The changes by the Trump administration were -- didn't impact them.

The second pool is other law enforcement agencies, so I've been doing a lot of work and studying this to the extent that they're put -- ICE is pulling from DEA, FBI, other law enforcement activities and those people are being absorbed with ICE. They are not trained immigration enforcement agents, but they are law enforcement agents.

The third pool is the one that you mentioned, the -- in acute owed to Donald Trump, they limited the number of months of training. It was about six to eight months down to 47 as the number of president he is, 47 days. And those people are the ones that have had limited training, limited experience. Changes to their qualifications, both physical and age, in terms of recruitment. These are just the facts. You -- people can say whether this was right or wrong and deconstruct the videos.

But, the surge of agents into ICE by DHS' own admissions altered who was coming in, the age, the physical capacity, and of course, the judgment and training. We -- and that's just -- that's going to exist for a long time, whether it's relevant about what happened today.

MICHAELSON: And again, we don't know the specifics in terms of --

KAYYEM: Yeah, right.

MICHAELSON: -- this particular agent, but you just think about any organization or any business. If you hired 50 percent more people --

KAYYEM: Yeah.

MICHAELSON: -- in just a few months, that those people would not necessarily have the training or the institutional knowledge of other people who have been there for a long time. And so, we'll see.

KAYYEM: I'm glad -- I'm glad you say --

MICHAELSON: And the last point real quickly.

KAYYEM: Oh, yeah. No, very quickly. I'm glad you say this because, you know, CNN has been running what this neighbor said and it really did ring true to me as a national security expert. She said they look like children that didn't know what to do, the ICE agents, and it really made me think that this surge, like we all assume that the driver, that Good, that she heard or knew what she was supposed to do. But we also are hearing that she was told to get out of the car. But she was also told to move the car.

And I think it's very likely she may have been confused about what --

MICHAELSON: Yeah.

KAYYEM: -- ICE wanted from her, and that I think is important to mention. It's not at all clear she was evading. She may not have known what the directives are, and it's that lack of organization that comes from a massive untrained, or a massive surge for any institution.

MICHAELSON: And importantly, we don't know exactly what happened before those videos started.

KAYYEM: Yeah. That's exactly right.

MICHAELSON: And it's also not clear if there was a body cam which would tell us some of that. Juliette, thank you so much. Really appreciate it.

Some other stories were following after the break, including the one- year anniversary of the devastating California wildfires. I'll talk live to the founder of an organization that's helping with the rebuilding effort. They are incredible. They're literal CNN Heroes, and they -- we talked with them, when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:48:07]

MICHAELSON: Florida is growing a joining -- growing list of states that are racing to redraw congressional districts ahead of the midterm elections. Governor Ron DeSantis says he plans to call a special session in April for Florida's Republican-led legislature to draw a new map. The arraignment for Nick Reiner has been delayed until next month after his high-priced attorney, Alan Jackson asked a judge on Wednesday to be removed his counsel. The judge and Reiner both agreed. He was then assigned a public defender.

Reiner is charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the stabbing deaths of his parents last month. Hollywood director, Rob Reiner and photographer, Michele Singer Reiner.

Well, the resiliency of L.A. County shined bright tonight. Altadena residents gathered for a candlelight vigil to mark one year since the devastating Eaton Fire. The Eaton Fire along with the Palisades Fire killed at least 31 people and destroyed more than 16,000 structures, while flames raged uncontrollably for weeks.

Some survivors have criticized state and city leaders for their response to those fires, one of them has been reality TV star, Spencer Pratt, who lost his home in the Palisades Fire and just today, on the first anniversary, he announced that he is running for mayor of Los Angeles, challenging L.A. Mayor, Karen Bass This comes as many residents are still trying to pick up the pieces. The organization, "A Sense of Home" is helping with that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is your living room.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAELSON: Since the fires broke out, A Sense of Home has furnished more than 600 homes and brought some relief to families who lost everything. Joining me now is the President and Founder of A Sense of Home, Georgie Smith, joining us live here on "The Story Is." Thank you for everything that you do.

GEORGIE SMITH, TOP 10 CNN HERO FOR 2016, PRESIDENT & FOUNDER, A SENSE OF HOME: Thank you. And thanks for highlighting that story of Michael that -- we created that home today for he and his wife and his mother.

[02:50:00]

MICHAELSON: Yeah, so talk to us about what was going on there, as we watch that video.

SMITH: Yeah. Yeah. So, we did three homes today. And so, we're doing that three days a week where we're actually doing typically six homes a day, where volunteers come to our El Monte operation center and we select items, all of the items that someone needs to rebuild for their new space, to create a home out of their temporary digs or their actually new dwelling.

And so, today, that was a very emotional Michael saying, his new living room and dining area that he could begin to rebuild. So he's been couchsurfing for an entire year and now, they're starting over.

MICHAELSON: Because you think about it, when a home burns, you literally lose everything.

SMITH: Everything.

MICHAELSON: You don't have your sheets. You don't have your TV. You don't have --

SMITH: Your coffee mug.

MICHAELSON: -- your coffee mug. You don't have it and you don't know where to start. And so, you guys have 330 items --

SMITH: That's right.

MICHAELSON: -- that you put together as a pack --

SMITH: That's right. Yeah.

MICHAELSON: -- to help people and you didn't start with this fire. You started with foster youth, right?

SMITH: Yeah, we did. We started actually 10 years ago, creating homes for former foster youth, when they age out of the system. So it helps secure them apartments, but then they don't have any family or friends to go to for hand-me-down items. So with volunteers, we would create the entire home and we'll install it for them. So when the fires struck, a lot of people turned to us for help, realizing that themselves or their neighbors were going into empty temporary dwellings without the ability to make it a home and they're already overwhelmed with so many -- so much, the rent, the expenses of -- the mortgage, the rebuild, but also just overwhelmed with everything to do that they couldn't possibly put this together.

So, it's actually volunteers that really lovingly select all of the items and stage it, and then we load it up into their truck, so that they can take it home, and the really important part is the community aspect of it. So we have a very beautiful community ceremony, so that they feel seen and heard, and especially now that everyone is moving on and they don't feel like that they are remembered and everything -- everyone, the town or the world has just moved on to the next story.

MICHAELSON: Well, let's talk about that because there still is a lot of --

SMITH: Yes.

MICHAELSON: -- need a year later.

SMITH: That's right.

MICHAELSON: I mean in the Altadena region, we learned that 70 percent of the victims are still not back home, 70 percent.

SMITH: Or, and those that aren't actually -- haven't even gone into temporary homes. They are couchsurfing, going from motel rooms to friend's homes, that they haven't got a permanent base to rebuild their lives. And so, it's very -- the trauma is still very fresh for them. For Michael today, very fresh, and it's really important that we continue to support them and people can come and volunteer with us. They can donate their furniture and home goods.

But it's 15,000 structures that were destroyed. That is together the largest catastrophic fire in California history. And these numbers are only going to increase, not just in California, but around the world, in terms of -- it's 400 percent, the number of natural disasters that are increasing.

MICHAELSON: Yeah.

SMITH: And we do need to come together as a community and realize that our neighbors are needing our support and we just need to share what we have too much of --

MICHAELSON: Yeah.

SMITH: Our time and extra furniture that we no longer need, that they could desperately use.

MICHAELSON: Well, you have done such good work for so long, profiled often by my old colleague, Christine Devine at Fox 11.

SMITH: Yeah. MICHAELSON: And here on CNN, you were a CNN Hero back in 2016 and Richard Gere honored you. Let's show some of that. What did that moment do for you and for your organization?

SMITH: That was amazing because it was at the very beginning of us creating homes for former foster youth and that moment there gave us so much credibility that it really sprung board us into this organization we're now opening up in New York this year and we're going to be scaling to new regions, even to other countries, because the need is so great for foster youth.

But now, we've discovered this new need with disaster relief and that's what we've been working on today. And we continue -- we -- there's -- it was over a hundred foster youth that we had served that were also impacted by the fires. We helped them find new homes. We created new homes for them. The Hilton Foundation partnered with us to give them hotels at the beginning. So, they also need new jobs and new places to go and study.

So, we've -- we continue to serve our foster youth. But also, we've wrapped our arms around the larger L.A. community.

MICHAELSON: We've only got about 30 seconds left. How do people get involved? How do they get involved with your organization?

SMITH: ASenseofHome.org, that's a great question. So, we would love volunteers. ASenseofHome.org, go into Volunteer, but also to donate furniture and home goods. We absolutely -- we've done 600 homes since the fires. There'll be another 600 homes that we need to do this year and next, and we're partnering with Steadfast and Habitat on the rebuild.

[02:55:00]

So it's not just the temporary, but the permanent homes that we're supporting. So we're here for the long haul.

MICHAELSON: Georgie Smith, thank you for the great, great important work that you do.

SMITH: Thanks for your time.

MICHAELSON: And we're thinking of you and all of the victims of this fire on this one-year anniversary. And thanks for staying up late with us tonight. Thank you all for watching us --

SMITH: Thank you.

MICHAELSON: -- on this --

SMITH: Cheers.

MICHAELSON: -- very long night of coverage of so much news. But we end with a moment of hope and thinking of everybody. We appreciate it.

We'll see you back here tomorrow for more news on "The Story Is." CNN's coverage of tonight's Breaking News continues right after this.

[02:55:37]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:00:00]