A horrific crime took place in North Dakota as a 41-year-old man killed a teenager due to their differing political ideologies.
Shannon Brandt killed Cayler Ellingson on Sunday morning when he drove his SUV into the teenager in a small alleyway.
Brandt has been charged with vehicular homicide as well as leaving the scene of a deadly accident.
Authorities say that Brandt was allegedly drunk when he called 911 to report the incident to police.
When on the phone with the 911 dispatcher, Brandt claimed that his teenaged victim was part of a Republican “extremist group” and that was the motive for the crime.
Cayler Ellingson was on his way home after attending a street dance and was on the phone with his mother during the altercation.
Ellingson asked his mother if she had any knowledge of Brandt, the man who was violently pursuing the teen, and she was aware of who he was. She did not, however, believe that her son knew Brandt.
“We do not know of any witnesses. We are still making attempts to interview potential witnesses form the street dance, people that were present prior to the crash happening,” Said North Dakota Highway Patrol Capt. Bryan Niewind.
As of right now, Brandt is being held on a judge-ordered $50,000 bail and is awaiting trial.
Brandt sought to dissuade the judge from such a hefty fine, but the court was unmoved by his argument.
“I have a job, a life, and a house and things I don’t want to see go by the wayside – family that are very important to me,” Brandt spoke during the hearing.
On the other side, the Ellingson family has since launched a GoFundMe in order to pay for funeral expenses that will be incurred in the aftermath of this travesty.
So far, the account has reached $17,000, nearly doubling its $10,000 goal in just a couple of days.
“A thing no parent should ever have to endure in their life, is to lose a child. Cayler has went to heaven and will be missed by his Mom, Dad, Brother, Uncles, Aunts, Cousins (and) many Family and Friends,” reads the listing on GoFundMe.
As America’s politics are becoming more hostile, events like this one are more common than ever before.
This comes in the aftermath of President Biden’s new rhetoric that seeks to label the GOP as radical fascists.
On August 25, Joe Biden described the terror that he believes that Republicans are set to bring upon the country.
“You need to vote to literally save democracy again,” said the current President. “Trump and extreme MAGA Republicans have made their choice to go backwards, full of anger, violence, hate and division, but we’ve chosen a different path – forward.”
While speeches like this one cannot be fully to blame for atrocities like the one committed by Brandt, it is clear that this rhetoric has brought about a heightened sense of division along political lines in our country.
Someday soon, a leader must step up and find a point of unity for the United States of America.
By: Goose
Mugshot is from North Dakota Highway Patrol
This story syndicated with permission from Gen Z Conservative