LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — (Eds. Note: Viewer discretion is advised).
Dashcam footage has now been released about three months after an incident where 53-year-old Bryan Malinowski, the former executive director of Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport in Little Rock was shot and later died after federal agents served a search warrant at his home.
According to reports from the ATF New Orleans Field Division, at about 6:00 a.m. on March 19, 2024, ATF agents arrived at Malinowski's home on Durance Court in Little Rock to serve a federal search warrant.
As they were serving the warrant, Malinowski allegedly shot at the agents, striking one of them. That's when authorities said that a second agent then returned fire at the subject.
The agent who was shot was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Meanwhile, Malinowski was treated for his gunshot wounds by paramedics while at the scene and then taken to the hospital.
A few days later on March 21, Shane Carter, the director of public affairs and governmental relations for the Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport, announced that Malinowski had died due to his injuries.
In the dashcam footage released by the Little Rock Police Department, authorities can be heard going up and knocking on the door of the home. Then a power struggle and gunshots can be heard between both Malinowski and authorities. However, it is unclear who did the shooting.
Malinowski's wife was also present in the home at the time of the incident and could be heard speaking and in distress as authorities spoke to her.
During the video, you can also see it progressively turning lighter outside indicating the length of time that authorities were outside the home.
We contacted Malinowski's family attorney, Bud Cummins, to comment on the newly released video. He said he hasn't seen the video yet and wants to look at the full case file before giving a response.
Reports show that the reason for the ATF search on Malinowski's home was that he was accused of selling firearms without a license.
Efforts to stop the unlicensed trafficking are the main reason agents got a warrant to search Malinowski's west Little Rock home. During the course of over two and a half years, he bought 150 guns online and in person.
Malinowski's reselling of firearms at gun shows, where no background check is required, is what put him in the sights of the ATF New Orleans Field Division.
The raid was aimed at seizing the weapons inside the home but after arriving in 10 vehicles and blocking a doorbell camera, Malinowski and at least one agent exchanged gunfire. This is what ultimately led to Malinowski's death.
Since then, there have been many questions raised on whether or not Malinowski's death was justified.
On May 23, the head of the ATF faced over three hours of grilling by the U.S. House Judiciary Committee as Republicans demanded answers to what led to a deadly shootout with the Little Rock airport executive in March.
Lawmakers have continually questioned the ethics behind the raid of Malinowski's home and challenged whether ATF followed proper protocol during their execution of the deadly incident.
They expressed that ATF agents are required to wear active body cameras during raids per policies from the Department of Justice and Pres. Biden's Executive Order 14074 — agents did not wear body cameras during the Malinowski raid.
On June 14, 2024, Will Jones, prosecuting attorney for the Sixth Judicial District, ruled that the use of deadly force during the ATF raid on Bryan Malinowski's home in Little Rock was justified, according to Arkansas law.
Jones said in a press release that Arkansas law states a law enforcement officer is "justified in using deadly physical force if the officer reasonably believes that the use of force is necessary to defend himself or a third person from the use of deadly force."
Officers reportedly identified themselves by knocking on the front door and flashing the lights and sirens on a patrol vehicle before entering the home.
Officers were also wearing attire that readily identified them as either "ATF" or "POLICE" and so when the first agent was shot by Malinowski, Jones contends this gave the second agent a "reasonable belief" to use deadly force and return fire.
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