Former martial arts fighter gets 3 life sentences for shooting Colorado neighbors over driveway dispute

A Colorado man convicted of shooting four of his neighbors in Westcliffe in November 2023 while a surveyor attempted to measure their property lines was sentenced last week to three life sentences.

Hanme Clark, 47, also received 48-year prison sentence for the attempted murder of the only one of the four who survived the attack.

Clark was sentenced Friday, 18 days after a jury found him guilty on all charges brought against him. 

According to court documents, Clark confronted nextdoor neighbor Robert Geers, then 62, on Nov. 20, 2023, as the surveyor began his work. Clark walked from his uphill property and yelled about trespassing, the surveyor later told investigators, and Geers was recording the encounter on his cellphone.

After a brief conversation, Clark shot Geers. The surveyor said he turned and ran to a neighbor's house and called 911.

Clark then turned his gun on Robert Geers's wife, Beth Wade Geers, and two neighbors from down the road, James and Patty Daulton, both then 58. 

Patty Daulton also called 911. According to court documents, dispatchers reported hearing gunfire in the background of the call.

By the time the first deputies from the Custer County Sheriff's Office arrived, Patty Daulton was the only shooting victim still alive. She was taken to a hospital in critical condition.

A SWAT team responded to the area. Residents of the wooded rural community were told to stay inside their homes as law enforcement searched for the shooter. They did not find him.

Later, investigators retrieved images recorded during the "numerous" prior responses to the Clark and Geers properties about an ongoing property dispute, and proclaimed Clark the suspect. 

Clark and his wife were caught the following day by New Mexico State Police near Albuquerque. Clark's wife was initially arrested with him but the criminal case against her was dismissed.

Several arguments had occurred over the course of the year since Geers and his wife, Beth Wade Geers, then 38, had purchased their property on Rocky Ridge Road, Robert Geers' brother told CBS Colorado. Carl Geers said his brother was preparing for retirement and purchased the mountain property without speaking to the neighbor next door, Clark. The dispute over an easement developed quickly, Carl Geers explained. His brother grew particularly concerned after receiving a death threat from Clark.

Carl Geers said his brother was advised by members of the sheriff's office to arm himself and record all interactions with Clark. In fact, Robert Geers was wearing a handgun at the time of the shooting.

"My brother moved up there, and the prior owner didn't bother to tell him what was going on," Carl Geers said. "He walked into a hornets nest."

"It's horrible. It sucks," Carl Geers continued. "I lost my older brother. I was going to teach him to fly fish up there."

Carl Geers said a small triangle of land crossed into one edge of his brother's driveway, which was also an access road to several other homes deeper into the neighborhood. Clark had previously cut a hole through his brother's fence. His brother was prepared to erect that fence again -- to "pound posts" with the help of the Daultons -- as soon as the new survey was completed that day.

"But (Clark) didn't let that survey finish," Carl Geers said. 

Clark, his wife and their business had filed a civil lawsuit in 2020 against the previous owners of the Geers property. They sought correction to the easement between the properties, and claimed the previous owners of the Geers property were aggressive, intimidating, threatening to the sufferers of PTSD being treated at their business, and prejudiced against his wife who is Native American.

The lawsuit was dismissed last year after the shooting, per online court records.

Around that same time, Patty Daulton, the lone survivor, filed her own wrongful death lawsuit against the Clarks and their business. 

Earlier this month, another lawsuit was filed on behalf of a former Custer County Sheriff's deputy, Jason Solbato. A March 2025 article from the local Westcliffe newspaper, the Wet Mountain Tribune, claims Solbato was one of the first deputies to respond to complaint about Clark before the fatal shootings occurred. Solbato was arrested in March 2024 following an investigation by the 11th Judicial District Attorney's Office, then led by DA Linda Stanley.

Per the Tribune's report, the case against Solbato was dismissed once it reached a courtroom. But by that time, the sheriff's office had fired him.

The lawsuit filed this month in Custer County on Solbato's behalf names Custer County's sheriff and undersheriff as defendants. 

Contacted by CBS Colorado, Solbato declined to comment and directed questions to his attorney. His attorney never responded to CBS Colorado's inquiries.

Stanley, meanwhile, was removed last year from her position as district attorney following a state review of her handling of the failed Barry Morphew prosecution. 

Clark and his wife acquired their Rocky Ridge Road property in 2019 when it was deeded to their business. Clark previously lived in Denver, trained at a Denver martial arts gym, and fought on the undercard in a 2007 MMA event at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield. Clark won by submission in the first round. An online source shows Clark has a 1-0 record as an amateur. 

Meanwhile, Carl Geers said he will always mourn his brother's absence. He suggests prospective property owners investigate potential conflicts in rural areas. If any, seek resolutions through peaceful means like mediation. 

"They could've made arrangement," Carl Geers said. "My brother was not unreasonable."