SIDNEY — The man who shot Sidney Police Sgt. Tim Kennedy in early October will be going to prison for at least 23 years and up to 28 years, court records show.
Brandon Steele was sentenced Tuesday on attempted murder, felonious assault and a gun specification to the felonious assault charged. He’d pled guilty to the charges back in January after agreeing to have another felonious assault and weapons charge dropped from the case.
The shooting took place in the 700 block of Lynn Street around 10:30 p.m. Oct. 6.
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Sidney Police Chief William Balling said officers were serving a felony warrant when Steele saw the officers and ran.
During the chase, a Sidney officer went to use a Taser on Steele, at which point Steele turned around and fired a gun at the officer. The officer returned fire, but Steele was able to run into a wood line. No one was hit during this exchange of gunfire, Balling said.
The suspect then came out of the wood line and shot Sgt. Tim Kennedy twice — once in the abdomen and once in the lower leg. The suspect then fled the area, Balling said.
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Kennedy was taken to Wilson Memorial Hospital where he was stabilized, and then taken by medical helicopter to Miami Valley Hospital, Balling said. At Miami Valley, Kennedy underwent an hours-long surgery. He was hospitalized for several days.
Kennedy has been with the Sidney police force since 2007, Balling said.
After the officer was shot, several law enforcement agencies were called to assist in the search for Steele including the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office and Ohio State Highway Patrol. Dispatchers for the Piqua Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol confirmed an OSHP helicopter was used in the search for the shooting suspect.
Sidney police ended up arresting Steele the next afternoon around 3 p.m. after the Sidney Piqua Tactical Response Team surrounded a house after learning of Steele’s whereabouts. He surrendered peacefully.
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