Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett said Tuesday no criminal charges will be filed against a Wichita police officer in the shooting death of an armed man in 2021.

An officer shot and killed 28-year-old Tyler Hodge during a confrontation behind a home in the 500 block of West Carlyle on June 19th, 2021.  Officer were checking the welfare of a woman at the home, and she told officers that her boyfriend had battered her during an argument.   Officers checked an attached garage and saw a door open to the back yard, then they went to a storage shed where they found Hodge with a rifle.   Hodge fired shots from inside the shed and the officers took cover.  More officers arrived at the scene and one officer was hit in the face and in both legs when Hodge fired more shots.   A few minutes later, another officer saw Hodge point his rifle at officers and he fired a shot, striking Hodge.    An EMS team pronounced Hodge dead at the scene.

Bennett said there were interviews with witnesses and law enforcement officers to gather details on the incident.  Under Kansas law, he said the officer who fired the shot that killed Hodge acted to prevent harm to himself or another, and that officer is immune from prosecution.

[ photo released by District Attorney’s office shows an officer’s body camera view of Hodge inside the storage shed ]