A North Dakota man has been sentenced to five years in prison for mowing down a teenager whom he claimed was a “Republican extremist.”
Shannon Brandt, then 41-years-old, struck and ran over 18-year-old Cayler Ellingson with his SUV in the early morning hours of Sept. 18, 2022, in McHenry, North Dakota. The teenager was taken to a local hospital with severe injuries and was pronounced dead shortly afterwards.
Mr. Brandt initially fled the scene but returned to call 911. He admitted to drinking alcohol before hitting Mr. Ellingson. He still smelled of alcohol when he was found hours later after the collision.
The case drew much attention on social media after it was revealed in an arrest affidavit that Mr. Brandt told the 9/11 dispatcher that he believed Mr. Ellingson was a part of a “Republican extremist group” and that he was afraid that the teenager was calling friends to “come and get him.”
The man “intentionally or knowingly caused the death of another human being ... under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life,” Foster County State’s Attorney Kara Brinster said in charging documents.
Mr. Brandt was first charged with criminal vehicular homicide, but Ms. Brinster later upgraded the charge to felony murder, which carries a life sentence. Mr. Brandt has also been charged with leaving the scene of a crash that resulted in death.
On May 2, the charges were reduced to manslaughter, and Mr. Brandt entered a plea deal on May 18.
On Sept. 8, about a year after the killing, Foster County Judge Bradley Cruff sentenced Mr. Brandt to manslaughter, a felony that can be punished with up to 10 years in prison. Mr. Brandt will get credit against the sentence for the time he spent in custody before the conviction.
“I tried to take off. He wasn’t going to let me go. I hit him. I didn’t mean to and he’s subdued. I was scared to death but he’s subdued, he can’t do anything to me now so this is why I’m calling you,” the man told the 911 dispatcher. “I mean I almost, oh God, I almost just runaway [sic] but I thought, ‘Jeez, obviously if it was a total accident, I wouldn’t be scared. But I know it was more than that.’”
Mr. Brandt also claimed that the Mr. Ellingson made calls to other people, making him worried that “Republican extremists” would be on their way to attack him, although investigators found that the only calls the teenager received and placed during the relevant time were to his parents.
During one call, Mr. Ellingson told his mother, Sheri Ellingson, that Shannon Brandt had asked who his parents were. When he disclosed their names, Mr. Brandt said that he knew who they were.
In court, Cayler’s mother asked the judge not to follow the plea agreement and instead go for the maximum 10-year punishment for manslaughter.
“Shannon, you took a piece of our family that’s not replaceable,”the mother said in court. “When you chose to take Cayler’s life and happiness, you took ours too. You have caused our family endless pain, heartache, sleepless nights. Our days, months, and years will never be the same because of your selfishness.”
Mr. Ellingson graduated from Carrington High School in May 2022 and was studying to be an ultrasound technician at Bismarck State College when he died, according to reports.
In an online fundraiser set up by a friend to help the Ellingsons cover the funeral expenses for their son, the teenager was described as a “wonderful young man” who had “his whole adult life ahead of himself.” The fundraiser ended with $52,155 raised.
“I’m here to take responsibility for the role I played in this tragedy. I’m very sorry to the Ellingson family, my family, and anybody else that has been affected by my actions,” Mr. Brandt said in a statement before the sentencing.
“I have always enjoyed seeing the Ellingsons and would never have intentionally caused harm to any of them. I am truly devastated by the impact this has had on the entire community.”
