ND Man Out On Low Bail, No Curfew After Killing Conservative Teen

ND Man Out On Low Bail, No Curfew After Killing Conservative Teen


Shannon Brandt, the man who is accused of fatally running over 18-year-old Cayler Ellingson in North Dakota with his SUV because he believed he was a part of a right-wing extremist group, is not under house arrest and has no curfew after posting a $50,000 bond, Fox News Digital reported on Monday.

Brandt, 41, was released on September 20 after he ran over Ellington following a street dance at a local bar in McHenry, North Dakota.

The incident took place on September 18, with Brandt originally fleeing the scene but then calling 911 and telling the operator that he did so because he believed the teen was part of a “Republican extremist group” and that he had a “political argument” with Ellingson. Brandt believed that Ellingson was having people target him, telling people to “get him.”

Ellingson was seriously injured and died later in hospital.

There is “no evidence” to suggest that Ellingson was part of a “Republican extremist group” or that the incident stemmed from a political dispute, North Dakota Highway Patrol Capt. Bryan Niewind said on Monday.

Documents show that Brandt was not placed on house arrest or curfew. He also had alcohol in his system during the time.

Brandt is also ordered by the court to not possess a “firearm, destructive device, or another dangerous weapon” and cannot go within 300 feet of the Ellingson family.

A North Dakota Highway Patrol trooper said that Brandt admitted to “striking someone he never met with his vehicle” before leaving the area.

Police found “disturbances of the dirt on the hood and front end of the 2003 Ford Explorer” when arriving at his residence.

Brant has been charged with criminal vehicular homicide as well as leaving the scene of a fatal incident.

Former US Attorney Neama Rahman told Fox that the amount of Brandt’s bail was “woefully inadequate.”

“Yeah, it’s a low amount, no question. Whenever you’re dealing with a vehicular manslaughter case, that’s low in general,” Rahman said.

 


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