The man who shot a Scranton Police detective in 2024 will spend at least 25 years in prison. His friend, who the prosecution painted as a violent gang member and who was charged with related crimes, will spend at least 20 years behind bars.
The defendants, who pleaded guilty in the fall to their roles in the shooting of Kyle Gilmartin, appeared in front of Judge Michael J. Barrasse in Lackawanna County Court for sentencing on Tuesday morning.
Aiden G. Deininger, 22, of Old Forge, 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.
Jeremiah Cleveland, 21, of Scranton, pleaded guilty to five of six counts, including aggravated assault. He was sentenced to 20 to 43 years in prison.
Gilmartin and his family addressed the court Tuesday, blaming the defendants for taking away his career and altering the course of his life.
Deininger was charged with shooting and wounding Gilmartin, shooting at two other officers and firing into an occupied home.
Cleveland was charged with shooting into an occupied home and counts related to Gilmartin’s shooting but not shooting the officer.
Gilmartin initially was in critical condition and not expected to survive. He has said it's a miracle he's alive.
January 2024 shooting
The shooting occurred early Jan. 11, 2024, after police tracking a crime spree on Cleveland’s Instagram account caught up to the men in West Scranton.
The two had driven around the county committing crimes. Police said they stole a credit card from one convenience store and used it at another, fired a gun into two South Scranton homes and argued with suspected gang members on Instagram.
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. Initially, he was not expected to survive but ended up attending the suspects’ preliminary hearing.
Lafferty jumped out of the car, rolled to the ground and fired, hitting Deininger three times.
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