[H]IGHGATE — Residents on Friday afternoon were still absorbing the news of sexual assault charges against their state Sen. Norman McAllister, R-Franklin.
In nearly a dozen interviews, residents expressed shock and disbelief, though many say they wanted more details before passing judgment.
McAllister, 63, is well known in the community where he owns a farm on the border of the Franklin County towns of Highgate and Franklin. Some knew him from his door-to-door campaigning or had interactions with him at local businesses.
McAllister was arrested Thursday outside the Vermont Statehouse, where lawmakers are finishing work on the 2015 session.
He pleaded not guilty Friday to three charges of sexual assault and three charges of a prohibited act.
“I think it’s highly unlikely. It’s just not his character. He’s to himself. He’s reserved,” said Mike Fontaine, 55, owner of M&R Guns and Ammo.
Fontaine said he has known McAllister since he opened the gun store in Highgate Center more than 20 years ago. Fontaine hunts on McAllister’s land with permission and McAllister has done business with Fontaine. While anything is possible, Fontaine says, he does not believe the allegations.
“He doesn’t chase skirt around town. We have a lot of them, but he’s not one of them,” Fontaine said.
Another resident said there could be more to the allegations than what has been reported in the media.
Scott Martin, 49, a former town moderator, said McAllister often briefed residents with updates on the Legislature.
Martin said it would be hard for residents to trust McAllister going forward, and that was troubling given the problems Franklin County is facing.
“He’s trying to represent us, but he’s speaking with a forked tongue,” Martin said.
Martin said he hopes there are no new revelations, but he believes more will come out about the case. The allegations are especially troubling, because if they are true, McAllister, as a state senator, would have known what he was doing is wrong, he said.
Chris Woodrow, a senior at Missisquoi Valley Union High School in Swanton, said his government class discussed the allegations. He said it was hard to talk about them because many students know the people who are involved in the case. Opinions were mixed among the students about whether McAllister should resign.
Woodrow said he would prefer to wait and learn more about the case before giving his opinion.
