Castle Hills officer suspended over role in fatal shooting


by Dillon Collier / KENS 5
CASTLE HILLS -- The Castle Hills Police Department suspended its second-in-command Thursday, nearly a month after he was involved in a fatal officer-involved shooting 15 miles outside of Castle Hills jurisdiction.
Capt. John Siemens was suspended for three days for violating the department's code of conduct pertaining to on-duty activities.
Siemens left work Nov. 20 after receiving a frantic phone call from his brother, who lives in the 9400 block of Rue de Bois.
His brother's neighbor, 46-year-old Andrew Beard, was firing several weapons in his backyard.
Beard had refused to leave the same home several weeks earlier, prompting an hours-long standoff situation with San Antonio Police.
Investigators said Siemens evacuated at least one family from the neighborhood, then fell in with SAPD officers who were approaching Beard in a front yard.
Beard was eventually shot after firing on officers, but he then attempted to get up and fire at them again.
Siemens, armed with a long rifle, then shot and killed Beard, investigators said.
Police on the scene originally said Siemens was off duty and visiting a relative in the area.
But a KENS 5 I-Team investigation revealed Siemens was on duty and out of Castle Hills jurisdiction when the shooting happened.
Castle Hills Police Chief Wayne Davis praised Siemens in November for possibly saving lives at the scene, but he acknowledged Siemens would likely be suspended.
Siemens joined the Castle Hills Police Department earlier this year after spending more than 10 years with the Boerne and Universal City police departments.