Vermont Cop Was Allegedly Watching Matt Walsh Video When He Hit and Killed Cyclist

A police officer in Vermont who’s been charged with gross negligent conduct after he struck and killed a cyclist with his police cruiser was playing a YouTube video in his squad car at the time of the crash, according to a report from NBC 5. That video was of an event held by notorious anti-trans bigot Matt Walsh, according to the Vermont news outlet VT Digger, which cites court documents.

Kyle Kapitanski, a 41-year-old police sergeant in Shelburne, has been charged with “gross negligent operation with death resulting from a fatal crash” when he hit cyclist Sean Hayes late last year, according to NBC 5. Kapitanski was allegedly driving five miles over the speed limit and was watching YouTube videos on his department-issued iPad when the collision occurred, according to NBC 5.

The fact that Kapitanksi was watching YouTube was only discovered thanks to a body cam, according to court documents reviewed by NBC 5. That bodycam footage has not been released publicly, though it reportedly didn’t capture the crash, only the activity inside the cruiser when Kapitanksi was watching YouTube.

Hayes, 38, had dismounted his bicycle and was standing in the roadway near the curb when he was struck on Nov. 14, 2024, according to NBC 5. He died at the scene of the crash from “blunt force trauma to the head,” according to an autopsy report seen by VT Digger.

The YouTube video Kapitanski was watching just before the crash had the title, “Trans woman CONFRONTING Matt Walsh takes UNEXPECTED turn,” according to VT Digger, which also notes that court documents claim there was “no evidence of user interaction” with the videos. It’s not clear what other videos may have been viewed before the crash, but YouTube web addresses were logged from 2:29 a.m. to 2:40 a.m. The Matt Walsh video is only about a minute long.

Matt Walsh has established himself as one of the most virulently anti-trans bigots in the U.S. and regularly posts atrocious things online about the trans community. Walsh calls himself a “theocratic fascist” in his bio on X, something that he will sometimes downplay as a joke. But in the age of Trump, we all know how “jokes” are often cover for earnestly fascist beliefs.

Kapitanski’s attorney, David Sleigh, is challenging the felony charge and wants to present the lack of interaction with the YouTube video as evidence of something important.

“The affidavit, as near as I can see it, says that Kyle was going maybe 5 miles over the speed limit, that his computer was playing some sort of video, but the officer says that their IT guy says there doesn’t appear to be any interaction with the computer in the 11 minutes that matter,” Sleigh said, according to VT Digger.

An email to Kapitanski’s attorneys wasn’t immediately returned. Gizmodo will update this post if we hear back.