Slain Tulare County deputy remembered as dedicated detective and father
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- Hoppert was shot and killed after assisting at an eviction-related incident.
- Hoppert was a six-year deputy, five-year detective, and served on a gangs/narcotics team.
- Hoppert’s family ties, Navy service and life‑saving actions were highlighted by sheriff.
Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux on Thursday remembered deputy Randy Hoppert, recalling a brief conversation the two had Wednesday — one day before Hoppert was shot and killed in the line of duty.
Hoppert, 35, responded Thursday to a live scene in Porterville where other deputies had called for assistance and reported shots fired after a man was served an eviction notice at a home.
Hoppert was struck by gunfire and was later pronounced dead at Sierra View Medical Center in Porterville.
Boudreaux recalled the fallen deputy as a father.
“He’s leaving behind a wife, and he has a family. He’s a human being who takes his kids to sports, shops at the same shopping centers as you do,” Boudreaux said.
Boudreaux said Hoppert’s wife is four months pregnant. Hoppert was the grandson of former Tulare County Undersheriff Doyle Hoppert.
Hoppert served as a detective for five years and was a six-year veteran of the Tulare County Sheriff’s Office.
In 2025, he served on the Tulare Area Gangs and Narcotics Enforcement Team.
Hoppert also served in the U.S. Navy from 2010 to 2015. The sheriff’s office said his training helped him recently while saving a 2-year-old girl who became unresponsive after a fall; she was taken to Valley Children’s Hospital and made a full recovery.
Hoppert later received letters of commendation for going above and beyond the call of duty.
“He’s out there doing a job: To try and make our community safe,” Boudreaux said.
“This is a dangerous job, and it’s one that you have to have a certain personality to do it, to serve your community, because each and every day families know that the officer may not come home, and that’s what happened today.”
This story was originally published April 9, 2026 at 8:04 PM with the headline "Slain Tulare County deputy remembered as dedicated detective and father."
