Pretti, an intensive care nurse at the Minneapolis VA Medical Center, was shot multiple times on Saturday as he was filming Border Patrol officers during an immigration enforcement operation, according to an account shared by the family’s spokesman. His parents said they had retained Steve Schleicher to represent them in the aftermath of what the spokesman described as a “horrific tragedy.” The spokesman said the lawyer was hired to “protect the family’s interest in the aftermath of this horrific tragedy,” as the family prepared for legal and public scrutiny following the shooting.
Schleicher is a partner at the Minneapolis law firm Maslon and a former federal prosecutor. Before entering private practice, he served as a state prosecutor and worked for 13 years in the office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Minnesota, where he handled cases that included murder, organized crime, racketeering and federal civil rights violations, according to an online resume.
Schleicher also served as a special prosecutor for Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison in the 2021 trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, the account said. The family’s spokesman said the representation for Michael and Susan Pretti would be pro bono.
Pretti’s death comes after other developments in Minneapolis involving federal officers. The report said Pretti’s killing followed the Jan. 7 death of Minneapolis resident Renee Good, who was described as a mother of three and whose family has hired the Chicago-based firm Romanucci & Blandin, which previously represented George Floyd’s family.
The family said Pretti’s younger sister, Micayla Pretti, has also hired counsel. Micayla Pretti has separately retained attorney Anthony Cotton of Kuchler & Cotton in Milwaukee, the report said.
Authorities and legal proceedings related to use-of-force incidents involving federal officers in immigration operations have faced intense scrutiny in recent months, and the move by Pretti’s family adds to the legal steps underway following killings that have drawn attention to those operations.