All manner of questions have been raised by the shocking shooting of ICU nurse Alex Pretti on Saturday, January 24.

Less than a month after Renee Good was killed by ICE agents in Minneapolis, Pretti was pepper-sprayed, restrained, disarmed, and then shot dead after reportedly intervening to try and help two women.

The brutal nature of the killing, at a time when tensions in the city are running dangerously high, saw it become one of the world’s standout news topics in the days that followed.

Multiple video angles of the incident were soon uploaded to the internet, with people naturally flocking to see them so that they could form an opinion on what had happened.

As was the case with Renee Good, the first official narrative to come from the shooting was offered by the Department of Homeland Security. As was the case with Renee Good, they heavily implied that Pretti was acting dangerously towards ICE agents, confirming that he was carrying a firearm but neglecting to add that he had a permit and that the gun remained in its holster until an ICE agent removed it.

It’s since been reported that Pretti was shot multiple times after being disarmed, meaning that he was no longer any sort of credible threat to the officers who had restrained him on the floor.

Needless to say, every moment of Pretti’s struggle with the officers in question has been examined and scrutinized in detail.

Forensic neuropsychology professional Derek Van Schaik produced his own video on Tuesday, aiming to shed light on one crucial moment during the exchange that took place seconds before Pretti was killed.

The moment in question saw Pretti reach for his back pocket as agents stepped back and began to fire, which some online commenters have speculated might have been an attempt to grab his holstered gun.

“Alex reportedly just had one gun,” Van Schaik explained on his YouTube channel, but “it doesn’t appear to be a gun because Gray Jacket Guy apparently already removed that from his person.”

Van Schaik instead speculated that the object might have been a cell phone, or even a magazine cartridge.

The expert emphasized that this was not a deliberate act of aggression but rather a defensive reaction related to the situation of distress he found himself in.

“Alex grabbing anything in that final moment is obviously not an indication he initially had nefarious intentions,” Van Schaik said.

“He felt his body was being sadly hit with bullets and that was just a natural desperate attempt to survive,” the expert added, arguing that Pretti’s instinct was to grab something from his back pocket in an attempt to protect himself.

What did you make of the shooting of Alex Pretti? Let us know in the comments box.