Kyle Gilmartin wasn’t expected to survive the ambush.
On Tuesday, the Scranton Police detective sat in front of a packed Lackawanna County courtroom, where he spoke sharply to the defendants who fired the gun and went on a gang-related crime spree that happened just prior. Their actions on Jan. 11, 2024 altered the course of his life, the 36-year-old said in his remarks filled with anger, pity and gratitude.
“You shot me in the head twice, you didn’t knock me out,” Gilmartin said, with his service dog at his side. “That’s how pathetic you are… having firearms doesn’t make you tough. Shooting someone doesn’t make you tough.”
Aiden G. Deininger, 22, of Old Forge, and Jeremiah Cleveland, 21, of Scranton, pleaded guilty in the fall for their roles and appeared in front of Judge Michael J. Barrasse on Tuesday for sentencing.
Deininger pleaded guilty to all of the more than two dozen counts against him, including attempted murder of a police officer, attempted murder and aggravated assault. Barrasse sentenced him to 25 to 83 years in prison.
Cleveland, of Scranton, pleaded guilty to five of six counts, including aggravated assault. He was sentenced to 20 to 43 years in prison.
Their families wept as the judge read their sentences and sheriff’s deputies took the men away.
A wife’s worst fear
The sound of a phone ringing brings Lindsay Gilmartin back to the night two years ago when a police cruiser rushed her to the hospital to be with her husband who she feared would not make it through the night. There, she and the rest of her family prayed over Gilmartin before the first of many surgeries that would save his life.
She spoke of the time away from the couple’s then-8-month-old son, and how her husband had part of his skull removed and how he now lives with a bullet that remains lodged in his head. She watched her husband have to relearn how to stand, how to eat and how to dress himself.
She sees how post-traumatic stress disorder affects him daily — causing nightmares and reactions to loud noises and sudden movements. She also knows how hard it is for him to not work as a police officer anymore.
“You altered the trajectory of his life. Your actions left us with a lifetime of trauma,” she said. “Kyle survived … But make no mistake, we are forever changed.”
Live on Instagram
Law enforcement and families of Gilmartin and the defendants filled Barrasse’s courtroom. The lights dimmed as clips from Instagram played on two screens.
Prosecutors obtained the live footage that Cleveland captured that night as he and Deininger drove around the city, with Cleveland firing a gun into two homes and threatening suspected rival gang members. He told his followers on Instagram that night that he didn’t care if his shots hit children.
“I already know I’m going to jail,” he said on Instagram. “I don’t care, bro.”
The courtroom heard those remarks Tuesday.
Police followed the Instagram stories that night. In West Scranton, Gilmartin, now-Deputy Chief Joseph Lafferty and now-Det. Jason Hyler, in an unmarked police car, spotted Deininger wearing a red coat and red shoes, which matched a description of him police obtained earlier.
Lafferty testified during the June 2024 preliminary hearing that he aimed the car and shined its high beams at Deininger, who pulled out his mother’s gun and fired five times into the car.
Two bullets struck Gilmartin in the head. Lafferty jumped out of the car, rolled to the ground and fired, hitting Deininger three times.
If Deininger hadn’t shot Gilmartin in the head that night, the detective said he would have arrested him, treated him with dignity and tried to “talk sense” into him about the dangers of gang involvement.
‘I’m really sorry’
Attorneys and character witnesses for the defendants spoke about the young men’s backgrounds – Cleveland growing up without a father figure and Deininger, a former honors student who became friends with “bad influences.”
Prosecutors said Cleveland is a member of the Gangster Disciples, while Deininger is a suspected member.
Footage from video calls inside the prison show Cleveland telling a friend he “made history” on the streets of Scranton and that he planned to retaliate against rival gang members if he was put back in the general prison population.
Both defendants received several misconduct marks in Lackawanna County Prison for contraband and drug-related issues.
Barrasse said Cleveland showed a “blatant disregard to human life” and told Deininger he’s fortunate to not be facing a death penalty case.
Both defendants apologized to Gilmartin and his family.
“I’m really sorry,” Deininger said. “I hope the rest of my life shows that.”
Gang activity in Scranton
The shooting gave gang-related issues a spotlight in Scranton. In the last two years, various groups have focused on education and prevention, Lackawanna County District Attorney Brian J. Gallagher said after the sentencing.
“We've done a lot since this incident, with getting into our schools, with doing our community violence intervention program, with having more aggressive patrols, with utilizing our partners at the state police, Scranton police, and the detectives of the DA’s office to go out and ensure that everyone's safe. It's our top priority,” he said. “But again, it's not just enforcement. It also has to be education. It also has to be getting into schools. I think we're doing a good job. We can always do better. We can always do more.”
Changes to sentencing guidelines
Gallagher, during a press conference at his office after court, took the opportunity to advocate for changes in sentencing guidelines.
“We are happy with the sentence imposed. We're grateful that the court removed these individuals for as long as they did,” he said. “But the reality is that no sentence, no matter how long, would have been good enough.”
Current state sentencing guidelines allow for a sentence as short as seven years for someone with no prior convictions who is convicted of shooting an officer with intent to kill or cause serious bodily injury, Gallagher said.
“That doesn't reflect the values of our community here in Lackawanna County, I can tell you that it doesn't reflect the values of law enforcement,” he said.
If an individual shoots a police officer with the intent to kill, and even if that officer survives, the punishment should be life in prison, he said.
“The intent was to kill. The act was deliberate. The harm was catastrophic,” Gallagher said. “The only reason we are not mourning a fallen officer is because fate intervened.”
Gilmartin wants to give back
Gilmartin and his family left the courthouse quietly after the sentencing. Gallagher said he thinks the family is happy with the sentences.
“The bravery it takes to get up and talk about your feelings and the emotions and what happened that night, the most horrific night of their life, is extremely difficult,” the district attorney said. “I think they're happy to put this behind them.”
Gilmartin, unable to resume his regular duties with the police department, told Cleveland and Deininger that they will miss being part of a community in which neighbors support one another. He said he became an officer to give back to that community. After the shooting, Scranton and the greater region came together to support Gilmartin and his family.
“I’m going to find a way to come back and serve them in another way,” Gilmartin said.
