It was only a matter of time before Taylor Culbertson’s threats against police became reality, his best friend said.
Culbertson showed up drunk at his friend Michael Sequenzia’s house at 5:45 a.m. two weeks ago.
Worried, Sequenzia called police. Culbertson told Sequenzia he would shoot police if they pulled him over or came to his home.
Given recent events, Sequenzia said he wasn’t surprised to hear that Culbertson, 32, was involved in a shooting with officers on Tuesday morning.
Culbertson was shot and critically injured after he fired a gun at a Douglas County sheriff’s deputy about 7:30 a.m. at the Kwik Shop on 156th and Blondo Streets.
Two deputies have been placed on paid administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. Neither was injured.
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“This incident is another reminder of the dangers law enforcement officers face every day,” Sheriff Tim Dunning said. “The initial facts of this case show that the deputies used their training skills to survive.”
While holding back tears at his home on Tuesday, Sequenzia said, “I knew this was coming, but I wasn’t sure when.”
Culbertson had been dealing with a lot of emotional pain since his father died of cancer in October, Sequenzia said.
He always was armed with a firearm that he typically kept in an inside pant holster, Sequenzia said.
Sequenzia called police on June 7 to report that Culbertson had driven drunk to his house near 156th and Ida Streets and that he had said he would shoot officers if they came to arrest him.
“I was scared he was driving and wasn’t sure what would happen,” Sequenzia said. “I knew he was always armed.”
Culbertson was not at Sequenzia’s home by the time officers arrived. Chief Deputy Tom Wheeler said authorities didn’t have enough information to issue a warrant based on Sequenzia’s statements.
But the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office did issue an alert to officers about the threats Culbertson allegedly made against police. Dunning released that notice on Tuesday after Culbertson was rushed to the Nebraska Medical Center in extremely critical condition after being shot.
Culbertson was described as “very disturbed, irrational and abusing alcohol” in the notice, which told officers to “use extreme caution when approaching Culbertson during traffic stops or at his residence.”
An officer was inside the convenience store where Culbertson stopped to buy a six pack of beer on Tuesday morning. Dunning said the deputy didn’t recognize Culbertson as the man listed in the notice.
Dunning gave this description of what happened next:
As Culbertson left the store, the clerk told a deputy inside the shop that Culbertson appeared to be drunk.
The deputy, who has worked for the Sheriff’s Office for nearly nine years, called for backup. He then confronted Culbertson, who was in his Jeep Grand Cherokee outside the store.
As the deputy approached, Culbertson stepped out of his vehicle brandishing a gun. At close range, Culbertson pointed a 9 mm semiautomatic Glock pistol at the deputy. The deputy was able to push the gun away before Culbertson fired, and was not hit. A struggle ensued.
Culbertson’s gun jammed after the first shot. It is unknown whether Culbertson tried to fire more shots.
The backup deputy, who has 15 years on the job, fired two or three shots at Culbertson, hitting him more than once.
A Nebraska Medical Center spokeswoman said Tuesday evening that she could not release Culbertson’s current condition. As of 3:30 p.m., Culbertson was in critical condition, Dunning said.
Neither deputy was injured, but both were taken to the hospital to be checked out.
Dunning declined to identify the two deputies. One of them, he said, is a former firearms instructor who taught use-of-force techniques during department in-service training.
The incident was captured on surveillance video. The camera, inside the store, captured parts of the incident outside. The whole interaction lasted about 18 seconds, Dunning said.
Dunning said the footage won’t be released until after the police investigation is completed.
Immediately after the incident, crime scene tape encircled the Kwik Shop property as numerous investigators combed the parking lot. A Jeep Grand Cherokee was parked near the front door.
The store reopened at midafternoon Tuesday as deputies looked for evidence along 156th Street.
Culbertson spent his early years in Denison, Texas, north of Plano, Sequenzia said. Culbertson moved to Omaha by the third grade and attended school in the Millard district, Sequenzia said. Culbertson graduated from Millard North in 2001.
Culbertson’s and Sequenzia’s fathers worked for the railroad, Sequenzia said. Culbertson and Sequenzia have remained best friends since childhood.
Overcome with sadness, Sequenzia paced back and forth in his kitchen Tuesday as he questioned why his friend would turn to gun violence.
“I don’t have anything poetic to say about him,” Sequenzia said as he took deep breaths and cradled his head in his hands. “He was sad. He had a drinking problem.”
University of Nebraska-Lincoln records show that Culbertson attended the university from August 2001 to May 2004. Sequenzia said Culbertson studied philosophy.
In September 2001, he was arrested by UNL police on suspicion of first-degree assault. He was convicted of third-degree assault, a lesser charge, and sentenced to 18 months of probation and spent some time in jail.
The police report from the 2001 assault says the victim was drinking with Culbertson at the Sigma Nu fraternity house when he said something about pushing Culbertson out a window. Culbertson then jumped at him and punched him in his left eye, the report said.
The victim fell backward onto a futon and didn’t move, but Culbertson continued to punch the victim in the head 15 to 20 times, according to a witness referred to in the report. Culbertson left the area after the witness pulled him away, according to the report. The victim had a bloody, swollen-shut eye and swollen rear scalp and sought medical attention.
Culbertson earned a bachelor’s degree in general studies from the University of Nebraska at Omaha in May 2010, a UNO official said.
A neighbor said Tuesday that Culbertson had moved to Texas after attending college. She said he returned to Omaha recently when his father became ill.
The neighbor also said Culbertson was helping his mother fix up her house so she could sell it and move back to Texas with Culbertson.
Dunning said Culbertson’s gun was not registered locally.
Attempts to reach multiple family members of Culbertson were unsuccessful.
The store manager declined to comment and referred questions to the company’s corporate office. A spokesman at the corporate office in Hutchinson, Kansas, said company officials would not comment on an ongoing investigation.
World-Herald staff writers Jay Withrow and Maggie O’Brien contributed to this report.
Contact the writer: 402-444-1066, alissa.skelton@owh.com
Taylor Culbertson
