The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a sharp rebuke to singer Billie Eilish, following her Instagram Story posts that labeled Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) a “terrorist group.” This controversy erupted in the wake of a fatal shooting involving an ICE officer in Minneapolis earlier this week, which resulted in the death of Renee Nicole Good.

In a statement provided to Billboard, DHS assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin contended that Eilish was misinformed, stating, “Clearly, Billie Eilish has not seen the newly released footage, which corroborates what DHS has stated all along — that this individual was impeding law enforcement and weaponized her vehicle in an attempt to kill or cause bodily harm to federal law enforcement.” McLaughlin shared a link to a video of the January 7 shooting on X, which was reportedly filmed by the officer involved, identified as Jonathan Ross. She asserted that Ross acted “in fear of his own life [and] the lives of his fellow officers and acted in self-defense,” inviting the public to watch the video and draw their own conclusions.

The DHS’s stance echoes previous statements from the department, former President Donald Trump, and Vice President JD Vance, all of whom have maintained that Officer Ross was justified in his actions when he shot and killed 37-year-old Good in her car during an ICE operation in Minnesota. Although footage from the incident shows Good attempting to drive away from the confrontation seconds before her death, the DHS has characterized her actions as an attempt to “run over” the officer with her vehicle.

McLaughlin further defended ICE’s operational protocols in her statement, referencing an internal DHS investigation into an alleged “increase in vehicle rammings” against immigration enforcement officers, which was published the day after Good’s shooting. She emphatically denied claims of family separation, stating, “ICE does not separate families. Parents are asked if they want to be removed with their children, or ICE will place the children with a safe person the parent designates. This is consistent with past administrations’ immigration enforcement.” McLaughlin attributed a significant rise in assaults and vehicle rammings against law enforcement to what she termed “garbage rhetoric from the likes of Billie Eilish.”

While Eilish herself did not issue a direct comment regarding the Minneapolis incident prior to McLaughlin’s response, she amplified several posts from other creators on her Instagram Story. One such post decried ICE as a “federally funded and supported terrorist group” responsible for “tearing apart families, terrorizing citizens, and now murdering innocent people” under the Trump administration. Another reshared post urged the U.S. to “abolish ICE,” and a third called upon individuals to contact their congressional representatives to demand the arrest and charging of Officer Ross for Good’s death.

The nine-time Grammy winner is not alone in expressing outrage over the footage of Good’s death. Public backlash against ICE’s enforcement activities has intensified significantly since the video’s circulation. The agency’s conduct has faced scrutiny throughout Trump’s recent time in office, with artists like Olivia Rodrigo and Tyler, the Creator previously condemning various ICE raids nationwide. In Minneapolis, countless residents have rallied to mourn Good’s loss and protest ICE’s presence in their community. Mayor Jacob Frey publicly denounced the incident, demanding that enforcement officers “get the f—k out of Minneapolis” during a January 8 press conference, calling it “an agent recklessly using power that resulted in somebody dying, getting killed.” Even Donald Trump reportedly struggled to justify the events after viewing the video during a press meeting, remarking, “Well … I — the way I look at it … I think it’s horrible to watch. No, I hate to see it.”