After 28 years of service, Col. Thomas L’Esperance officially passed the baton to Birmingham at 3 p.m., Public Safety Commissioner Keith W. Flynn said in a news release.
Birmingham has been a member of the Vermont State Police for 17 years. He joined the force as a trooper assigned to the Rutland barracks in 1988 and transferred to the Vermont Drug Task Force as a criminal investigator in 2002.
He eventually took command of the Vermont Drug Task Force and later the Special Investigations branch. Most recently, he served as the deputy director of police, the release said.
The majority of Birmingham’s career has focused on fighting the opiate epidemic facing the state, and he intends to continue that fight in his new capacity, the release said.
“It is honor to serve the citizens of the State of Vermont as Director of the Vermont State Police and I appreciate the trust that’s been placed in me by this appointment,” Birmingham said in the release.
