In this episode of Stop the Killing Podcast, former FBI agent and prosecutor Katherine Schweit breaks down the fatal shooting of Renee Goode, a 37-year-old U.S. citizen, by a federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minneapolis.

Rather than reacting to headlines or social media outrage, this episode focuses on one question only:

Did the officer’s actions meet the legal standard for the use of deadly force?

Drawing on Department of Justice policy, Supreme Court case law, and her own experience investigating officer-involved shootings, Schweit explains:

What “objectively reasonable” force actually means

When officers are legally prohibited from shooting at moving vehicles

Why anger, frustration, or refusal to comply do not justify deadly force

How federal investigations differ when the shooter is a federal agent

What investigators will be required to evaluate — regardless of politics

This episode does not reach a verdict.It explains the rules — so listeners can understand how this case will be judged.

DOJ and DHS deadly force policy

Shooting into a vehicle: what the law allows and forbids

Federal vs state investigations in officer-involved shootings

Why “escape” alone can never justify deadly force

What video evidence can — and cannot — tell us

This case has ignited protests and intense public debate.Understanding the actual legal standard is essential — especially when emotions are high and facts are still emerging.

Relevant Resources and Links:

Learn more about Change the Ref and how you can get involved: changetheref.org

Support the podcast on Patreon or via Apple Subscriptions.

Related podcast episodes:

Watching Two Detectives

CONmunity podcast 

The Bravery Academy

Guilty Greenie

If you found this episode impactful, consider subscribing to the Stop the Killing podcast on Apple Podcasts or supporting us on Patreon to help continue these crucial conversations. Your support allows us to keep producing this independent podcast and contribute to making a real-world difference.

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In this bonus episode of Stop the Killing, Sarah shares why she felt compelled to release this previously recorded Thanksgiving episode today — after waking to the devastating news of the Bondi Beach shooting in Australia.

Early reports indicate two gunmen — a father and son — opened fire on a Jewish Hanukkah celebration. Amid the terror, a civilian, Ahmed Al Ahmed, intervened and wrestled the gun from one of the attackers, an extraordinary act of bravery that undoubtedly saved lives. His courage, and the countless other acts of heroism that day, deserve to be remembered alongside the victims of this horrific event.

Following Sarah’s reflection on Bondi Beach, Katherine Schweit walks listeners through the recent headlines across the United States — a stark reminder of the rise in everyday gun violence: shootings in parking lots, malls, tree-lighting ceremonies, restaurants, and road-rage encounters. These are not the mass-casualty attacks that dominate front-page news, but the far more frequent, unpredictable shootings that end lives and shatter families daily.

Katherine breaks down:

Why “every neighbourhood” is now potentially vulnerable

How small disputes escalate into gunfire

Why situational awareness is essential

The dangers of anger and firearms in the same moment

The toll of stress and the holiday season on suicide by firearm

How we can all be part of the solution this holiday season

This episode is a reminder that civilians can make a difference, heroes walk among us, and awareness — combined with empathy, grace, and responsible gun ownership — can save lives.

To the victims and families affected in Bondi Beach, and to all impacted by gun violence everywhere: our hearts go out to you.

OIN THE CONVERSATION

We invite you to share this episode with friends, family, and educators. Let’s work together to create safer school environments and inspire action within our communities.

Call to Action: If you found this episode impactful, consider subscribing to the Stop the Killing podcast on Apple Podcasts or supporting us on Patreon to help continue these crucial conversations. Your support allows us to keep producing this independent podcast and contribute to making a real-world difference.

Relevant Resources and Links:

More insights from Katherine Schweit: Katherine Schweit.

Website: Sarah Ferris Media

Email: [email protected]

Share: If you found this episode insightful, share it with someone who might benefit from it and join the conversation on social media.

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RESOURCES

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RUN, HIDE, FIGHT

This is a Sarah Ferris Media production on the Killer Podcasts Network.Check out more Sarah Ferris Media productions:

CONNING THE CON

KLOOGHLESS - THE LONG CON

GUILTY GREENIE

THE BRAVERY ACADEMY

WATCHING TWO DETECTIVES

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🎧 NEW FROM SARAH FERRIS MEDIA

CONmunity Podcast | Season Two: The BADmiral

A $3.75 billion international search-and-rescue organisation. Admirals from around the globe. A mission that promised purpose — and pay.
But what happens when the story doesn’t quite add up?

From the creator of Stop the Killing and Klooghless: The Long Con, Sarah Ferris takes listeners on an 18-month global investigation to uncover the truth behind an organisation that may not be all it seems.

🎙️ THE BADmiral is Season Two of CONmunity Podcast — and all episodes are available now.
Start with Episodes 1 & 2 wherever you get your podcasts — or binge the entire season ad-free right now on:
👉 Apple Podcasts
👉 Patreon.com/CONmunity

⚓️ Follow the investigation. Meet the people who believed. And discover why seeing deception while you’re in it can feel like trying to catch smoke in your hands.

Produced by Sarah Ferris Media on the Killer Podcasts Network

Check out more Sarah Ferris Media productions:

Stop the Killing

Klooghless – The Long Con

The Bravery Academy

Guilty Greenie

📧 Contact: [email protected]
🌐 Website: Sarah Ferris Media

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If you want the very latest updates on this case, head to Patreon or Apple Subscriptions — that’s where we’re posting breaking news episodes as soon as they happen. And don’t forget to follow us on Instagram @stopthekillingstories for updates and behind-the-scenes content.

In this episode, retired FBI executive Katherine Schweit — former head of the Bureau’s Active Shooter Program — brings you the latest on the Charlie Kirk assassination case following the Utah County prosecutor’s first press conference.

Katherine breaks down:

Why the case was filed at the state level as an “information” rather than a federal indictment

The seven charges now filed, including aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, obstruction of justice, witness tampering, and committing a violent offense in the presence of a child

The aggravating factors that could increase sentencing: children present at the shooting and targeting political expression

How text messages and a handwritten note became central evidence

What the prosecutor’s decision to seek the death penalty means for the long road ahead

As always, Katherine takes the heat out of the headlines and focuses on the facts.

Support us on Patreon for exclusive content and early access.

Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts.

More about Katherine Schweit and her work: Katherine Schweit.

Connect with Sarah Ferris: Sarah Ferris Media.

Subscribe to the podcast on your favorite platform.

Support us on Patreon or Apple Subscriptions for exclusive bite-sized episodes and more.

Leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts to help others find the show.

Follow us on Instagram @stopthekillingstories for updates and behind-the-scenes content.

Send us your questions, feedback, and case suggestions through our websites or Instagram.

Stop the Bleed training

FBI

RUN, HIDE, FIGHT

This is a Sarah Ferris Media production on the Killer Podcasts Network.

Check out more Sarah Ferris Media productions:

Conning the Con

Klooghless – The Long Con

Guilty Greenie

The Bravery Academy

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Subscriber Exclusive Early Access 

In this special briefing, retired FBI executive Katherine Schweit — former head of the Bureau’s Active Shooter Program — brings her insider expertise to unpack the assassination of political commentator Charlie Kirk.

Recorded just days after the Utah campus shooting, Katherine cuts through the noise of conspiracy theories and political spin to deliver verified facts: how the sniper carried out the attack, what evidence investigators recovered, and why the suspect’s background and online activity matter.

Drawing on her decades inside the FBI, Katherine explains the investigative process step by step — from sniper tactics to forensic analysis, possible charges, and how law enforcement builds a timeline to uncover motive. She also connects this case to the broader patterns she saw while leading the FBI’s response to mass shootings: political, ideological, or ego-driven violence that thrives in an atmosphere of hate.

Most importantly, Katherine leaves listeners with a call to action: recognize the warning signs, take responsibility for how we speak and share online, and choose kindness over division. Because preventing violence starts long before a trigger is pulled.

Relevant Resources and Links:

Support us on Patreon for exclusive content and early access.

Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts.

More about Katherine Schweit and her work: Katherine Schweit.

Connect with Sarah Ferris: Sarah Ferris Media.

Calls to Action:

Subscribe to the podcast on your favorite platform.

Support us on Patreon or Apple Subscriptions for exclusive bite-sized episodes and more.

Leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts to help others find the show.

Follow us on Instagram @stopthekillingstories for updates and behind-the-scenes content.

Send us your questions, feedback, and case suggestions through our websites or Instagram.

SUPPORTING OUR SPONSORS, SUPPORTS THE PODCAST

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RESOURCES

Stop the Bleed training

FBI 

RUN, HIDE, FIGHT

This is a Sarah Ferris Media on the Killer Podcasts Network

Check out more Sarah Ferris Media productions:

CONNING THE CON

KLOOGHLESS - THE LONG CON

GUILTY GREENIE

THE BRAVERY ACADEMY

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In this clip, retired FBI executive Katherine Schweit — former head of the FBI’s Active Shooter Program — breaks down the disturbing messages the shooter sent after the attack.

Katherine explains how these texts became central to the witness tampering and obstruction of justice charges, and why prosecutors place such weight on this kind of evidence when building a case.

🎧 The full episode is available now with early access:
🔹 On Apple Subscriptions
🔹 On Patreon: patreon.com/stopthekilling

When speculation runs wild, Katherine brings you the facts only an FBI insider can deliver.

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🚨 “We need to strip away the noise and focus on the facts.” — Katherine Schweit

The assassination of Charlie Kirk is dominating headlines — but speculation and conspiracy theories are drowning out the truth.

That’s why former FBI executive Katherine Schweit, who once led the Bureau’s Active Shooter Program, breaks it all down:
✔️ What actually happened
✔️ What investigators know so far
✔️ Why assassinations follow the same warning signs as mass shootings

🎧 Full episode now streaming — ad-free on Patreon & Apple Podcasts.
👉 Link in shownotes.

#CharlieKirk #FBI #TrueCrimePodcast #ActiveShooter #StopTheKilling #KatherineSchweit

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This week on Stop the Killing, we’re bringing you some rare and cautiously optimistic news.
Former FBI agent Katherine Schweit breaks down the newly released FBI 2024 Active Shooter Report, and the headline is striking:

📉 A 50% decrease in active shooter incidents across the United States.

But what does that really mean? Are prevention efforts working? And where are these incidents still happening – and why?

In this episode, you'll learn:

The difference between mass shootings and active shooter incidents

Why open spaces are now the most common location for these attacks

The ages, weapons, and motivations behind the shooters

How schools remain vulnerable – and what insider threats look like

Why most incidents are over before police arrive, and what that means for your own safety

The role of kindness in prevention

📌 You can read the full 2024 FBI Active Shooter Report via the Resources tab at Katherine’s website.

🧠 Stop the Bleed training

🛑 RUN, HIDE, FIGHT

🧷 Katherine Schweit’s website and resources

🎙️ Sarah Ferris Media

📧 Email: [email protected]

🎟️ CrimeCon UK – Tickets Here

🎟️ CrimeCon US – Tickets Here

💥 Don’t forget to use DISCOUNT CODE “FERRIS”

If you found this episode insightful, please share it with someone who might benefit from it and join the conversation on social media.

🎧 Subscribe on Apple Podcasts

💖 Support us on Patreon for exclusive content

This is a Sarah Ferris Media production on the Killer Podcasts Network
Check out more from us:

🎙️ CONNING THE CON

🎙️ KLOOGHLESS – THE LONG CON

🎙️ GUILTY GREENIE

🎙️ THE BRAVERY ACADEMY

🎙️ WATCHING TWO DETECTIVES

Relevant Resources and Links:SUPPORTING OUR SPONSORS, SUPPORTS THE PODCAST:Share the Show:Subscribe for Early Access and Bonus Episodes:

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BONUS: BLOODSHED BADDIES x STOP THE KILLING

In this bonus episode, we're sharing a conversation originally recorded for the Bloodshed Baddies podcast—where our very own Katherine Schweit joins Lex and Sam for an unfiltered, fascinating, and sometimes funny deep dive into her career and mission.

From her early days in journalism to becoming the FBI’s top expert on active shooter response, Katherine reflects on how each chapter prepared her for the next—and why she's still working to prevent the next tragedy.

They also discuss Katherine’s latest book, Women Who Talk to the Dead, which tells the remarkable true story of two women—an FBI agent and a Detroit detective—who refused to let 200 unidentified murder victims remain forgotten. It’s a powerful tribute to persistence, justice, and the women working behind the scenes to give victims their names back.

If you’ve ever wanted a more personal look at the real-world work behind Stop the Killing, this is the episode for you.

Behind the Badge: Katherine’s journey from journalist to prosecutor to FBI executive—and what those career turns taught her about justice.

Mass Shooting Prevention: How Stop the Killing came to be, and why Katherine’s fight against gun violence didn’t stop after retiring from the FBI.

A Book Born from Justice: The incredible backstory of Women Who Talk to the Dead—and how DNA, determination, and a cemetery in Detroit led to one of the most moving cases of Katherine’s career.

True Crime and Real Impact: Why the women behind this story—and the law enforcement community who stood beside them—remind us all of the power of not giving up.

Support us on Patreon for exclusive content and early access to episodes.

Subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts.

More insights from Katherine Schweit: Katherine Schweit.

Website: Sarah Ferris Media

Email: [email protected]

Share: If you found this episode insightful, share it with someone who might benefit from it and join the conversation on social media.

CRIMECON UK TICKETS HERE

CRIMECON US TICKETS HERE

DON’T forget to use DISCOUNT CODE “FERRIS”

Stop the Bleed training

FBI

RUN, HIDE, FIGHT

This is a Sarah Ferris Media production on the Killer Podcasts Network.Check out more Sarah Ferris Media productions:

CONNING THE CON

KLOOGHLESS - THE LONG CON

GUILTY GREENIE

THE BRAVERY ACADEMY

WATCHING TWO DETECTIVES

Topics Explored:Relevant Resources and Links:SUPPORTING OUR SPONSORS, SUPPORTS THE PODCASTRESOURCES

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