Merritt A. Edson
Major General Edson was born in Rutland, Vermont, on April 25, 1897. He received his early education in the Vermont towns of Rutland and Chester. Continue reading
Major General Merritt Edson
Author Archives: rkelley
William H. Baumann
Commissioner Baumann
William H. Baumann was selected to become Commissioner on July 1, 1951. Commissioner Baumann, only thirty-one years old at the time, became the youngest State Police Commissioner in the nation. Continue reading
E. A. Alexander
Commissioner Alexander
E.A. Alexander became the third Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety in 1965 with the rank of Colonel. Colonel Alexander was (at the time) the only appointed Commissioner who had been a Trooper promoted to Commissioner, having begun his career with the Motor Vehicle Highway Patrol in 1929. Continue reading
E. W. Corcoran
E.W. Corcoran
E.W. Corcoran was appointed the new Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety on July 1, 1970. Continue reading
Francis E. Lynch
Francis E. Lynch served as Commissioner from 1977 – 1979
Warren Cone
1979 – 1980
Paul R. Philbrook
Paul R. Philbrook
1980 – 1984
Charles A. Bristow
Charles Bristow
1984 – 1986
A. James Walton Jr.
1986 – 2003
Kerry L. Sleeper
Kerry Sleeper
2003 – 2008
Thomas R. Tremblay
Commissioner Tremblay
2008 – 2011
Keith Flynn
2011 – present
Sergeant William J. Chenard
Sergeant William Chenard
Sergeant Chenard suffered a fatal heart attack on June 14th, 1987 while leading a search party up a mountain.
Sergeant Arthur L. Yeaw
Sergeant Bud Yeaw
Sergeant Yeaw was shot and killed on May 13th, 1983 when his weapon accidentally discharged while cleaning it at the office.
Sergeant Gary A. Gaboury
Sergeant Gary Gaboury
Sergeant Gary A. Gaboury, a Patrol Commander at the Shaftsbury barracks, and a member of the State Police Dive Team, was killed on May 12th, 1992.
Sergeant Gaboury was killed while attempting to recover the body of a swimmer that had drowned in the notorious Huntington Gorge in Richmond.
Sergeant Michael W. Johnson
Sergeant Mike Johnson
Sergeant Mike Johnson was struck and killed on June 15th, 2003 at a traffic stop in Thetford, Vermont by a suspect who was fleeing from State Troopers. Sergeant Johnson deployed spike sticks in the roadway, parked his patrol car in the nearby crossover and exited his vehicle. As the suspect approached, he swerved his vehicle into the median to avoid the spike strips and struck Sergeant Johnson. Sergeant Johnson was transported to the hospital where he died from his injuries.
Vermont’s First Quadruple Murder
Copyright by Brian Lindner
At age 90, Vermont’s first quadruple murderer died a free man in 2007. He had lived most of his life within a five minute walk from VSP headquarters. In colder weather he was often seen on his frequent walks wearing an old surplus VSP parka from the 1970s. Although an entire family had been brutally murdered, in the long term, it seems in this case that the system had actually worked. Continue reading
Troopers Often Win Races Against Death
The following is a newspaper article from the early 1950’s – undated, it was in the donated scrapbook of retired Trooper Richard Gadaree:
Troopers Often Win Races Against Death
Monty
Monty on display
“Monty” is a 1947* Ford 4-door sedan with a flathead V-8 engine and a three speed transmission. Monty has been restored to show our citizens what the first Vermont State Police cruisers looked like. Continue reading
The VSP’s oldest open case – The Murder?
Copyright by Brian Lindner
Pauline Gill Molony
Every day dozens of Vermont State Police members drive past the current Chittenden Bank at the traffic lights near the Complex in Waterbury. Few know that the bank is located on the site where Pauline Molony met her untimely death over six decades ago and the case is still officially open. Continue reading