By DANIEL MATTHEWS, US SENIOR SPORTS WRITER
Published: 09:08 EST, 31 January 2026 | Updated: 09:08 EST, 31 January 2026
Steve Kerr has apologized after he 'misspoke' and accused ICE of detaining US citizens and 'five-year-old kindergartners' rather than 'violent criminals.'
The Golden State Warriors coach, an outspoken critic of Donald Trump, has been among those to speak out after the fatal shooting of Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, which came two weeks after 37-year-old Renee Good was fatally shot in her car by an ICE officer.
Their deaths have sparked widespread protests against ICE and its immigration crackdown and on Monday night, Kerr said: 'It's not like they're rooting out violent criminals... they're taking five-year-old kindergartners and US citizens and detaining people.'
Kerr was presumably referring to five year-old Liam Conejo Ramos, who was brought into federal custody with his father. They are now in a detention facility, the South Texas Family Residential Center.
On Friday, however, Kerr was asked about his comments and the Warriors coach admitted he had spread 'misinformation.'
'I definitely misspoke, and I knew that ICE was arresting some criminals,' Kerr said ahead of Golden State's loss to the Detroit Pistons.
Steve Kerr has apologized after he 'misspoke' about ICE and its immigration crackdown
Kerr's comments came after the death of Alex Pretti,a 37-year-old intensive care nurse
Five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos was detained in his driveway by ICE agents
'I immediately regretted it because I knew that to be the case. My point is that they’re also arresting people and detaining citizens and people who should not be being detained. The manner in which they’re doing it, as you see, is riling everybody up all over the country.'
The Warriors were due to face the Minnesota Timberwolves last Saturday, only for the game to be postponed amid unrest in the wake of Pretti's shooting.
'Being in Minneapolis for those four days was incredibly emotional and powerful. It was a very difficult time for all of us. At the end of those four days, it was a pretty emotional time,' Kerr continued.
'I misspoke, and I apologize for the misinformation. I hope everybody else out there who’s saying stuff that’s not true, please apologize, too... I addressed everything I want to address in Minneapolis.'
But Kerr added: 'That was false what I said and so I want to correct that for the record.'
Liam Conejo Ramos is said to be sick and depressed after he was detained as he returned home from school in Columbia Heights, Minnesota, last week.
A photo of the boy, wearing a blue winter hat and a Spider-Man backpack, circulated widely in the aftermath and drew widespread criticism of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown.
Ramos and his father, Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias, are now being held near San Antonio, which has been accused in court documents of conducting civil rights abuses against detained migrants.
Golden State WarriorsNBA