An Emmy-winning queer journalist says she was shoved and pepper-sprayed by federal agents in Minneapolis while reporting on the aftermath of Alex Pretti’s death. According to local NBC affiliate KARE TV and Queerty, reporter Jana Shortal was covering the scene Saturday after Pretti — a 37-year-old U.S. citizen and ICU nurse at the Minneapolis VA hospital — was killed by federal agents. Reports say Pretti was shot 10 times after agents had already wrestled him to the ground and disarmed him.
Shortal said she was clearly behind crime scene tape, with visible press credentials, as tensions rose between federal agents and a crowd of 75 to 100 community members. Shortal informed, “They started to just aggressively say ‘Move back,’ but nobody knew what was happening…And so, an agent probably twice my size pushed me pretty hard and I said, ‘Don’t push me, I’m press.’” Moments later, she says a chemical irritant went almost directly into her left eye.
In a video posted online, Shortal wrote, “I played by the rules doing my job. They did not.” She described the scene as chaotic and terrifying, adding, “Someone has to take control of this situation.”
