The top two officers at the Kansas Highway Patrol have suddenly resigned, and Governor Laura Kelly has tapped an Emporia State Distinguished Alum to lead the agency.
Superintendent Col. Mark Bruce and Assistant Superintendent Lt. Col. Randy Moon resigned Thursday. Gov. Kelly gave no specifics about the resignations, although news outlets out of Topeka have reported alleged domestic violence by Moon and other alleged misconduct in the department.
Herman Jones, current Shawnee County sheriff and an Emporia State graduate, was chosen to lead the Highway Patrol but won’t do so immediately. Highway Patrol Major Jason De Vore is acting superintendent until Jones takes over next week.
Jones was a trooper with the Highway Patrol and also served as the agency’s director of administration from 2000 to 2011, according to the Topeka Capital-Journal. He was appointed as Shawnee County sheriff in 2012 to fill an unexpired term, was elected later that year and won re-election in 2016.
Jones received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Emporia State in 1991 and was soon involved in the university’s Police and Safety Department before serving as an officer with the Emporia Police Department in addition to his time with the Highway Patrol. He was named a Distinguished Alum in 2016.
Bruce and Moon had been with the Highway Patrol for over 30 years. The Kansas Bureau of Investigation has not said whether it’s investigating the agency.
