KBI clears Hays police officer in fatal shooting

Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees during Thursday's press conference — Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees during Thursday’s press conference

ELLIS COUNTY -In a news release Thursday, Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees detailed the findings of the Aug. 18 officer-involved shooting in Hays.

Drees read the summary to the news media and answered questions Thursday.

According to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, on Aug. 18, Sgt. Brandon Hauptman of the Hays Police Department attempted to stop a vehicle for improper tag display because of an expired year decal.

Drees said Joseph “Joey” Weber, 36, failed to stop and attempted to elude, stopping in an alley. As additional law enforcement officers approached, Weber again drove away, he said.

Weber was pursued by three law enforcement vehicles to the 2300 block of Timber, where he got out of the vehicle and again refused to follow commands at gunpoint. The KBI report said Weber then fled toward a residence, when Hauptman attempted to take Weber to the ground, leading to a struggle between the two.

Police on the scene of the August 18 officer involved shooting in Hays.

Drees said Weber tried to wrestle the handgun away, leading to the moment where Hauptman pushed the barrel of the gun to Weber’s chest and fired one shot. Hauptman and another officer immediately began CPR, but Weber was fatally injured by the shot.

Weber offered no communication to Hauptman during the incident, Drees said.

“Mr. Joey Weber never said anything until after the shot occurred,” Drees said, noting Weber’s family has heard audio recording and seen video recordings of the incident. Those recordings will not be made public, Drees said.

The KBI report cleared Hauptman of criminal wrongdoing.

“No crime occurred because Sgt. Hauptman was acting in self defense of his person,” Drees said.

Now that the criminal investigation has been concluded, the Hays Police Department will begin a Professional Standards Investigation into the events surrounding the incident, according to a media release.

Sgt. Brandon Hauptman, is a graduate of Hays High School and Fort Hays State University, and has been a member of this community for many years. He started his law enforcement career with the Hays Police Department in 2007. He attended all required training for law enforcement officers in Kansas, including the police academy at the Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center. Sgt. Hauptman is a highly decorated and trained police officer. He was promoted to Patrol Corporal in 2014, and then to Patrol Sergeant in 2015. Sgt. Hauptman is a Supervisor and a Police Instructor for the Hays Police Department. Sgt. Hauptman has conducted thousands of citizen contacts and law enforcement contacts during his nine years as a police officer here. Sgt. Hauptman will remain on administrative leave until the professional standards investigation is completed.