The Great Bend Tribune has learned that a motion filed in Barton County District Court contains information related to a Kansas Bureau of Investigation case involving a former Barton County employee.
The motion, filed Nov. 9 with the Barton County District Court, asserts that Katie Hales, former intensive supervision officer (ISO) with Central Kansas Community Corrections, had a history of presenting false testimony, as well as being under the suspicion of forging the signatures of a 20th Judicial District judge and Hales’ supervisor, Amy Boxberger, on court documents; identity theft; and wire fraud since 2018.
The filing was made as a motion to suppress in a November case and also references another case concurrently heard in Barton County.
Motion to suppress defined
K.S.A 22-32-16 defines a motion to suppress as a pretrial move to suppress illegally seized evidence obtained by unlawful search and seizure with burden of proof of the evidence’s discovery placed upon the prosecution. The evidence may be subject to further orders of the magistrate and become subject to the orders of the district court.
Evidentiary hearing
The motion asserts that Hales participated in an illegal search and seizure of a CKCC client’s home and sought that evidence seized or documented from that search be considered fruit of the poisonous tree and must be excluded from court proceedings. According to the motion, Hales statements from cross examination were “wildly different” from that of her statements in direct examination in which she spent an hour and a half testifying.
In the interim, a KBI investigation was launched in September alleging that Hales committed identity theft; wire fraud; and forged court officials’ signatures, including that of her supervisor, as well as the signature of a 20th Judicial District Judge.
Current events
Defense attorney Audra Asher noted that the KBI investigation is still ongoing.
She noted that the motion to suppress had been withdrawn in the course of the defendant’s legal proceedings. However, Asher noted that the withdrawal in no way discounted the impact of the statements it contained.
“Withdrawal of the motion is not a reflection of the validity and seriousness of the information it contains,” she said. “It remains a public document available for public view.”
A separate case
The motion also asserts that testimony given by Hales in a separate evidentiary hearing involving another defendant on March 27, 2023, was observed to be false. Her testimony was acknowledged as such by CKCC ISO Tyler Lehmkuhl, who was in attendance while Hales was on the witness stand in Barton County District Court, while both were employed with CKCC.
The motion asserts that Lehmkuhl told Barton County Attorney Levi Morris during Hales’ testimony that her statements were a lie while the preliminary hearing was in session. Morris advised Lehmkuhl to tell his supervisor, Amy Boxberger, which he did. Lehmkuhl also informed Patrick Hoffman, Barton County counselor.
The motion states that no action was taken during the hearing, which resulted in the revocation of probation for the defendant leading to a 12-month probation added to a 12-year prison sentence based on Hales’ testimony.
Hales’ Response
Hales no longer works for the CKCC. When contacted Monday afternoon Hales responded to a question that she had quit her job on her own volition, and had no comment regarding a KBI investigation into her actions.
Hales said she submitted her resignation at the end of her maternity leave, which ended Oct. 6.
Melissa Underwood, Communications Director of the KBI, confirmed Monday afternoon that there is an ongoing investigation into a former CKCC employee which began on Sept. 7 at the request of the CKCC director at the time Amy Boxberger.
Both Boxberger and Lehmkuhl departed from CKCC Nov. 17, with no disclosure as to the nature of their departure from Barton County officials.
