Killing_of_Cayler_Ellingson
Killing of Cayler Ellingson
2022 homicide in North Dakota
On September 18, 2022, 18-year-old Cayler Ellingson was killed in a vehicle-ramming attack around McHenry, North Dakota. After he was struck by a Ford Explorer SUV driven by a 41-year-old man, Shannon Brandt, Ellingson was taken to a hospital in Carrington, North Dakota, where he was pronounced dead.
Brandt called 9-1-1. An initial highway patrol report claimed that Brandt said he attacked Ellingson for being part of a "Republican extremist group".[1] Brandt said that the victim was calling someone else on the phone before he attacked,[2] who was later identified as Ellingson's mother.[3] Brandt reportedly interpreted the call as an attempt to report him to others.[4] According to North Dakota Highway Patrol Capt. Bryan Niewind there was "no evidence" to Brandt's assertions "that this incident involved politics". The 911 transcript includes Brandt saying that Ellingson “was saying something about some Republican extremist group,” and that Brandt feared that Ellingson was calling someone to "take care of him."[5]
A blood test found Brandt's blood alcohol content level was 0.08, above the legal limit for driving.[6]
In May 2023, Brandt pleaded guilty to manslaughter in connection with Ellingson's death. In September 2023, Brandt was sentenced to five years in prison.[7]