WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO OF AN OFFICER’S DEATH BELOW
Kyle Dinkheller was a deputy with the Laurens County Sheriff’s Department in Georgia. He was 22 years old when he was killed in the line of duty. Dinkheller’s story, and the video that captured his death have been part of police training for 15 years.
It was on Monday, January 12, in 1998 when Dinkheller pulled over Andrew Howard Brannan for going almost 100 miles an hour near the town of Dudley, Georgia.
The stop was uneventful, initially. When Dinkheller pulled Brannan over, Brannan exited his vehicle, and the two greeted each other.
Brannan put his hands in his pockets shortly after. Deputy Dinkheller asked Brannan to keep his hands in plain sight. That’s when the encounter went south.
Brannan became agitated, told Dinkheller to shoot him, and then began dancing crazily on the road. Dinkheller radioed for backup, and ordered Brannan to desist and approach his police cruiser. Brannan then rushed the deputy in an extremely hostile manner. Dinkheller used his baton to keep Brannan from reaching him. That’s when the suspect retreated towards his Toyota pickup truck.
Brannan reached inside of his truck even though Dinkheller ordered him not to do so. The suspect then produced an M1 carbine rifle. Dinkheller can be heard repeatedly yelling at Brannan to “put the gun down now!” Deputy Dinkheller continued telling Brannan to drop his weapon for about 30 seconds. That’s when Brannan opened fire.
Bullets can be seen hitting Dinkheller’s cruiser’s window in the video. Dinkheller returned fire, but did not hit Brannan. With his magazine empty, Dinkheller was forced to reload. It was at this point that Brannan rushed the deputy and began to fire at him at close range. Dinkheller, hit several times, is heard screaming in terror saying “Sh-t! Sh-t! Stop now!” Brannan then ran to the front of Dinkheller’s cruiser and reloaded his weapon.
Dinkheller fired a shot at Brannan, at which point Brannan rushed the deputy while firing his rifle. Dinkheller was hit several times. The 22-year-old’s screams are difficult to listen to.
Returning fire, one of the deputy’s bullets did in fact find its target, hitting Brannan in the stomach, but it wasn’t enough to stop him. Dinkheller, having been shot 9 times, was immobilized. That’s when Brannan, standing over the body of Dinkheller, took careful aim and shot him in the right eye while yelling “Die f-cker!” Brannan, now a murderer, ran to his truck and sped away. He was arrested the next morning.
On January 28, 2000, Brannan was found guilty of murder and was sentenced to death. The jury concluded that he “murdered Dinkheller in a premeditated, torturous, and cruel manner.”
Fifteen years later Brannan was executed. On January 13, 2015, he was given a lethal injection.
While awaiting his execution Brannan was asked why he killed Deputy Dinkheller. His response? “Because he let me.”
A few weeks prior to Dinkheller’s death, the young deputy had been reprimanded for being to “aggressive” during traffic stops. He was afraid of losing his job if he overreacted while on patrol. Many believe that was the reason he did not fire on Brannan when he reached inside of his truck. Truly tragic if that was the case.
Here are the still photos of the scene. The first is the outline of Dinkheller’s body. His blood can been seen on the ground. The second photo is of Dinkheller’s cruiser, and the evidence markers denoting where bullet casing were found.
Every single person in America should see this video. Especially black Americans who believe they can disregard orders from police and not expect the most serious of consequences. Deputy Dinkheller gave his killer one too many chances. Police academies nationwide use this video as a training tool as to why officers cannot hesitate in situations such as this.
Tulsa police officer Betty Shelby was just charged with first-degree manslaughter for shooting Terence Crutcher, a black man who ignored her orders not to return to his truck much like in this video. Officer Shelby most likely was shown this video during her training. She knew what the consequences could be if she hesitated.
Watch the video of Deputy Dinkheller, and the hesitation that lead to his death.
WARNING: EXTREMELY GRAPHIC VIDEO & AUDIO OF A MAN’S LAST MOMENTS ON EARTH!
Color of skin is irrelevant. When cops are confronted, they just want to make sure they don’t end up like the deputy in this video… Dead.
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