Does this viral video clip show Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis saying Renee Good had the right to drive away from ICE officers just before one of them shot and killed her on a Minneapolis street? No, that's not true: The clip is real, but was lifted from a June, 2025 appearance on "The Rubin Report" podcast, six months before Good was killed. DeSantis was describing a Florida law that protects the right of drivers to escape when protesters or mobs try to block streets, even if that means driving through people trying to stop traffic.
The claim appeared in a Jan. 7, 2026 X post (archived here) on the @SpencerHakimian account under the title "WOW! ". It continued:
Ron DeSantis DEFENDS the Woman who was KILLED BY ICE.
Here is what the post looked like on X at the time this fact check was written:
(Image source: Lead Stories screenshot of post x.com/SpencerHakimian/status/2009119472565813728.)
DeSantis could not have been defending Good's decision to drive away from ICE officers, since the Minneapolis ICE raids would not happen for another six months. On Jan.7, 2026, the 37-year-old mother of three was shot and killed by an ICE officer as she drove away when ICE agents ordered her out of her car.
The topic of street blockages had been raised by the podcast's host, Dave Rubin, in the wake of June 6, 2025 protests in Los Angeles against ICE raids, which led to President Donald Trump federalizing 2,000 California National Guard troops.
Here's the full context of what DeSantis said, none of which referred to Minnesota or to Good. At 7:24 of the 25-minute podcast, (archived here) DeSantis said that under Florida laws, "You have no right to commandeer streets." He went on to say:
So, we have an absolutely zero tolerance policy for that.
And we also have a policy that if you're driving on one of those streets and a mob comes and surrounds your vehicle and threatens you, you have a right to flee for your safety.
And so if you drive off and you hit one of these people, that's their fault for impinging on you. You don't have to sit there and just be a sitting duck and let the mob grab you out of your car and drag you through the streets.
You have a right to defend yourself in Florida.
