TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Topeka area prosecutor has found that police were justified in fatally shooting a homicide suspect.
Shawnee County District Attorney Mike Kagay said this week that no charges would be filed in the death of 33-year-old Jesse Buck Lees. Kagay also found that Lees acted alone in the fatal shooting of his girlfriend, 25-year-old Jennifer Morris.
Witnesses said Morris and Lees had gotten into an argument on Sept. 8 before he dragged her into a bathroom and shot her, Kagay said.
Police tried to stop Lees the next day, but he eluded them. Police spotted Lees again on Sept. 10 pulling out of a convenience store parking lot and a chase ensued. After crashing, Lees took off running, pulling a handgun from his waistband and raising it in the direction of police.
Three officers fired, striking Lees multiple times. An autopsy showed Lees was under the influence of methamphetamine and the opioid tramadol, Kagay said.
Kagay noted that Lee's was a former inmate and said he would not go back to prison and was ready for a shootout with law enforcement.