Man dies day after exchanging gunfire with St. Paul police officer

Man dies day after exchanging gunfire with St. Paul police officer

Man dies day after exchanging gunfire with St. Paul police officer

The man who was critically hurt following an exchange of gunfire with a St. Paul police officer, which also hurt the officer, has died.

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) confirmed that 24-year-old Brandon Daleshaun Keys, of Maplewood, died Friday morning.

Court records show that Keys had three previous misdemeanor charges for domestic abuse – violating order of protection.

One case was filed in January of 2019 in Ramsey County, but prosecutors dismissed the case days later due to insufficient evidence, according to court records.

A second case was filed in January of 2019 in Stearns County. Keys entered a guilty plea and was given a stay of adjudication, meaning the case would later be dismissed if he complied with the terms of probation. The case was subsequently dismissed from his record in March of 2022, according to court records.

The third case was filed in March of 2019 in Hennepin County and Keys pleaded guilty in September of that year, according to court documents. He was given a stay of adjudication in that case as well. That case was also dismissed from his record in March of 2022.

A 2019 mugshot, courtesy of Hennepin County Jail

Keys suffered a gunshot wound to his head after police say he fired shots at officers. St. Paul Police Officer Michael Tschida, a 14-year veteran, was hit in the leg by the gunshots and fired back at Keys, the BCA says.

Initial information from the BCA indicates that police were called to a report of an order for protection violation at around 2 p.m. Thursday. The woman reported that she was driving with a man in the passenger’s seat when Keys pulled in behind her and started hitting her vehicle with his.

Authorities say the woman stopped at the intersection of Cretin and Marshall avenues, and Keys got out of his vehicle and walked toward hers. That’s when Tschida arrived and ordered Keys to the ground, and gunfire was then exchanged.

Keys and Tschida were both taken to a hospital for treatment. Tschida was released Thursday night.

The BCA says Tschida was wearing a body cam and the incident was also captured on other video cameras. Its investigation remains active.