VSP officer suspended for D.C. riot involvement

On Jan. 7, the Vermont State Police (VSP) received a report of personal, off duty, social media posts by Lucas Hall of the Shaftsbury barracks. The posts appear to support the criminal insurgency that occurred Jan. 6 at the U.S. Capitol and to advocate for such insurgency to continue.

“God Bless America!!!!” Luke Hall, allegedly posted to Facebook on Wednesday. “Cheers to the great Patriots in Washington DC. The time has come… Let’s gooooo!!!”

A commenter replied, “there are going to be riots,” with an emoticon of a sad face, to which Hall responded, “it might be war… We are beginning to see good, law-abiding citizens stand against a corrupted Government.”

Hall’s account appears to have been deactivated as of Thursday morning.

VSP responded with the following statement: “While we recognize the rights of all people including sworn law enforcement officers to express their views, advocating for the overthrow of the constitutionally defined democratic election process by force or violence violates our oath of office to uphold the Constitution.”

“After being initially briefed by Colonel Birmingham, I immediately opened an internal investigation and suspended Hall without pay while we swiftly explored what further lawful personnel actions were immediately available. We anticipate that our internal investigation will be completed within a few days and will update the public as soon as possible,” Public Safety Commissioner Michael Schirling added.

Schirling continued.  “It is important to state in the strongest terms that these posts are in no way reflective of the beliefs and values of the Vermont State Police or its dedicated troopers and staff, who work each and every day to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law.”