A left-wing radical from North Dakota has pleaded guilty to manslaughter and faces just 10 years in prison thanks to a sweetheart deal that saw his original murder charge downgraded after he admitted to killing a teenager for having conservative political views.
42-year-old left-wing radical Shannon Brandt, of Glenfield, North Dakota, pleaded guilty on Thursday to a reduced charge of manslaughter in the 2022 politically-motivated homicide of 18-year-old Cayler Ellingson.
Though Brandt was initially charged with murder in Ellingson’s death and admitted that he killed the young man for political reasons, his murder charge was reduced in a sweetheart deal from prosecutor Kara Brinster and the Foster County State’s Attorney’s office, and he now faces a maximum of just 10 years in prison.
Back in 2022, Brandt met Ellingson at a North Dakota street festival and struck up a political conversation with him.
After the festival ended and as Ellingson walked home, Brandt ran him down in his vehicle and killed him, telling police shortly thereafter that he killed Ellingson because he believed him to be a “Republican extremist.”
As National File reported at the time:
Ellingson was attending a street dance event in McHenry, North Dakota when he met 41-year-old Shannon Brandt, who drunkenly struck up a conversation with Ellingson about politics.
Brandt and Ellingson argued back and forth about politics but eventually, the street dance event ended and Ellingson began to walk home from the event.
According to court documents, while walking home, Ellingson called his mother to ask if she was familiar with who Brandt was and asked her to come pick him up.
Ellingson never made it home after that call. The 41-year-old Brandt allegedly chased down Ellingson and struck him with his SUV in an alleyway, killing the 18-year-old.
Brandt quickly left the scene of the crime and called 911 to report the murder. Brandt told the 911 dispatcher that he hit Ellingson with his vehicle because he was a part of a “Republican extremist group.”
Brandt was arrested at his home after fleeing the scene.
After Ellingson was murdered, President Trump paid tribute to the young patriot in a post to Truth Social.
As National File reported:
Trump called Ellingson a “great Republican Patriot with an unlimited future ahead.”
“A deranged Democrat maniac who was angry that Cayler was a Republican” stalked Ellingson, who was walking back from a street dance event, and struck him with his SUV in an alleyway.
“The Media doesn’t want to cover this horrible event because of the politics involved. If it were a MAGA Republican that drove that truck, it would have been the biggest of all stories,” the former president continued, slamming the media for hypocrisy.
“We LOVE Cayler, AND WE WILL NEVER FORGET! Warmest condolences to Cayler’s family and friends,” Trump added on his post to Truth Social.
The case of prosecutor Kara Brinster letting left-wing killer Shannon Brandt off easy is just the latest to make headlines, as America develops what many are calling a two-tiered system of justice that enforces existing laws harshly and at times invents new ones to take down patriots while letting left-wing violence go unchecked.