Aurora Police Chief Vanessa Wilson has ordered an expedited internal affairs investigation into a Friday incident on South Parker Road in which an officer beat an unarmed man with his gun during a trespassing call.

At a news conference Tuesday afternoon, Wilson showed body-worn camera footage of officer John Haubert striking Kyle Vinson several times and then choking him. The footage shows Vinson gasping for air and struggling to speak.

Near the beginning of the footage, as Vinson lies on his back, Haubert orders Vinson to get on his stomach while Vinson repeatedly asks, “What did I do?” Haubert says he has an active warrant.

Haubert told Vinson several times to “stop fighting,” though Vinson did not appear to be resisting at that point. Haubert also pressed his gun up against Vinson’s head. 

Haubert and another officer, identified as Francine Martinez, appear to attempt to force Vinson onto his stomach.

As Haubert beat Vinson with the gun, the video showed Vinson repeatedly cried out, “You’re killing me!” 

Near the end of the footage, he said, “I need water” several times, his head at that point was bleeding and swollen.

As the footage played at Tuesday’s press conference, Wilson alternately watched the screens, looked away and put her hand in front of her face. She appeared to hold back emotion as she condemned the officer’s conduct.

“This is not the Aurora Police Department. This is criminal,” she said.

Haubert, 39, faces charges of attempted first-degree assault, second-degree assault, felony menacing, official oppression and first-degree official misconduct. He has been a patrol officer with Aurora police for three years.

Aurora police officers wanted for alleged assault, failing to intervene

Officer Francine Martinez, 40, faces misdemeanor charges of failure to intervene and failure to report use of force by an officer, offenses created when the Colorado legislature passed a sweeping law enforcement reform bill in June 2020.

The Aurora Police Department plans training that that teaches officers how to intervene when they believe a fellow officer — or a superior — is about to do something harmful. 

“I can’t speak for Officer Martinez or what she was feeling at that moment, but I need to make sure that my officers out on the street know what to do next time,” the chief said.

Martinez has been a patrol officer at the department for six years and has a disciplinary history, including a written reprimand for handling of evidence and a 10-hour suspension related to responsibility for an investigation.

Court records show Haubert pleaded guilty in 2009 to prohibited use of a weapon, a misdemeanor. Wilson said she learned of his record Monday. She added she does not have control over hiring entry-level officers, which is the responsibility of the Civil Service Commission. Wilson said she only has control over hiring officers who come in from other departments. 

Haubert is on unpaid administrative leave and Martinez is on paid leave. Wilson said she cannot put officers on anything other than paid administrative leave unless they have been charged with a felony, and she can’t take disciplinary action until the internal affairs investigation is completed.

Wilson said she hopes the internal affairs investigation will wrap up by early next week. She ordered the investigation be expedited for the benefit of the public, she said.

“When it’s something this egregious that’s such a slap to the face, to this community, to Mr. Vinson, it needs to be taken care of and it needs to be done quickly.”